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Possibility for inmates to sue the prison or state.

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LawstudSwe

Junior Member
Hi!

I�m a law student from Sweden. At the moment i�m writing a paper about threats and violence between inmates and the inmates civil-rights.

However violence between inmates is not a huge problem due to the small number of inmates in Sweden, compared to other countries such as the US, where rape, assault, battery and even murder in prisons, to my understanding, seem to occur frequently.

So my question is if someone like me for whatever reason ended up in prison and would get assaulted, stabbed or raped, would it be possible for me to sue the prison, state, or the government for failure to provide my safety?

How can the state/government inprison someone when they clearly can not guarantee a persons basic safety?

Does any such cases, where inmates sued the prison/state, for this reason exist?

Grateful for your response.
 


single317dad

Senior Member
Good morning.

Here at FA we only answer actual legal questions, not hypotheticals or homework assignments.

I believe your view of the American prison system is skewed somewhat by too much American television.

Good luck to you.
 

LawstudSwe

Junior Member
Good morning to you too.
I have to apologize for not have the knowledge about the rules of this forum. I might also lack knowledge about the prison environment in the US. But for ex a check on wikipedia shows that "In 2010, Human Rights Watch estimated that at least 140,000 inmates had been raped while incarcerated." Anyhow i do not doubt that at least some of the major prisons in the US have a much harder and brutal environment then for ex Sweden.
 

quincy

Senior Member
Everything single317dad has said is correct. We do not entertain hypotheticals and we do not assist with homework and we answer US law questions and concerns only.

That said ;), here is a link to information you might find helpful, so you can educate yourself about prisoner rights in the US. HG.org provides first a brief overview of prisoner rights and then provides several links to different sources, so you can get a more in-depth look at the laws.

http://www.hg.org/prisoner-rights-law.html

Good luck with your law studies.



(Wikipedia is not always the best source of information)
 
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Silverplum

Senior Member
Good morning to you too.
I have to apologize for not have the knowledge about the rules of this forum. I might also lack knowledge about the prison environment in the US. But for ex a check on wikipedia shows that "In 2010, Human Rights Watch estimated that at least 140,000 inmates had been raped while incarcerated." Anyhow i do not doubt that at least some of the major prisons in the US have a much harder and brutal environment then for ex Sweden.
Estimated + Wikipedia = No facts.

I agree with singledad. Too much tv.

But as an aside, who cares if our prisons "have a much harder and brutal environment" than some other places? I don't. And as a Swede, it's none of your business. :rolleyes:
 

LawstudSwe

Junior Member
That an estimated 140.000 or so been raped in US prisons is confirmed by Bureau of Justice Statistics.
Too much TV or not, having 2.200.000 inmates in prisons on daily bases, its a given fact that there will be a lot of violence between the inmates. And I am sure that there is at least a few hundred cases every year where some poor bustard getting raped, beaten stabbed or murdered although proper warning to the prison authorities been made.
Definitely he or his family would care. This is the typ of cases i was wondering about. If someone has the knowledge about any cases where the prison or state got sued due to failure of providing the inmates safety. I am not judging the US prisons being more or less inhumane then other countries.
 
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Silverplum

Senior Member
That an estimated 140.000 or so been raped in US prisons is confirmed by Bureau of Justice Statistics.
Too much TV or not, having 2.200.000 inmates in prisons on daily bases, its a given fact that there will be an lot of violence between the inmates. And I am sure that there is at least a few hundred cases every year where some poor bustard getting raped, beaten stabbed or murdered although proper warning to the prison authorities been made.
I am sure that he or his family would care. This is the typ of cases i was wondering about. If someone has the knowledge about any cases where the prison or state got sued due to failure of providing the inmates safety. I am not judging the US prisons being more or less inhumane then other countries.
http://lmgtfy.com/?q=prison+lawsuit
 

quincy

Senior Member
That an estimated 140.000 or so been raped in US prisons is confirmed by Bureau of Justice Statistics.
Too much TV or not, having 2.200.000 inmates in prisons on daily bases, its a given fact that there will be a lot of violence between the inmates. And I am sure that there is at least a few hundred cases every year where some poor bustard getting raped, beaten stabbed or murdered although proper warning to the prison authorities been made.
Definitely he or his family would care. This is the typ of cases i was wondering about. If someone has the knowledge about any cases where the prison or state got sued due to failure of providing the inmates safety. I am not judging the US prisons being more or less inhumane then other countries.
First, the prisoners in the US are not housed in one great big room with no supervision. There is not a lot of violence between the inmates and there are not a lot of civil rights violations - but, just like in the real world, violence happens and civil rights violations occur. Outside of prison, in fact, the prisoner could be more likely to die because of the lifestyle choices the prisoner has made. No one is around to supervise encounters with drug dealers and rapists and murderers.

That said, the link I provided you has all of the resources you should need. Use it. There are links to the ACLU, to prisoner rights groups, to the laws ...

Because you are in Sweden, however, and because we do not help with homework assignments as was pointed out to you early with single317dad's reply, you have received more direction than the average foreign visitor seeking homework help. You should probably leave this forum and start reading. You have a lot of it to do if you hope to get your paper completed.

And, again, I would not rely on Wikipedia for your information. Anyone can add stuff to a Wikipedia entry and what is added may not be attributed to a reliable source or any source (i.e., it might just be the creation of an inventive mind) and the information provided might be outdated. Schools (especially law schools) will not look kindly on a paper written with Wikipedia as its main source of material.
 

LawstudSwe

Junior Member
First, the prisoners in the US are not housed in one great big room with no supervision. There is not a lot of violence between the inmates and there are not a lot of civil rights violations - but, just like in the real world, violence happens and civil rights violations occur. Outside of prison, in fact, the prisoner could be more likely to die because of the lifestyle choices the prisoner has made. No one is around to supervise encounters with drug dealers and rapists and murderers.

That said, the link I provided you has all of the resources you should need. Use it. There are links to the ACLU, to prisoner rights groups, to the laws ...

Because you are in Sweden, however, and because we do not help with homework assignments as was pointed out to you early with single317dad's reply, you have received more direction than the average foreign visitor seeking homework help. You should probably leave this forum and start reading. You have a lot of it to do if you hope to get your paper completed.

And, again, I would not rely on Wikipedia for your information. Anyone can add stuff to a Wikipedia entry and what is added may not be attributed to a reliable source or any source (i.e., it might just be the creation of an inventive mind) and the information provided might be outdated. Schools (especially law schools) will not look kindly on a paper written with Wikipedia as its main source of material.
Dear Sir,

First I certainly am grateful for the information you provided.

Second, I am aware of the possibility that it may exist more then one huge mega-jail where the inmates are gathered and left Mad-Max style. Life inside the prison may be "safer" for some people but the difference is that outside prison you are able to make choices that you do not behind bars. Abandoning a criminal lifestyle is an option you have but if you are locked up in a cell with someone who fancies to give you a round or two, well you can not do much about it.

Regarding the prisons not being a violent location, it is relative. As i see it already and said before, the numbers speak for themselves. Due to the large population in US the number of people who are put behind bars proportionally lager then a smaller country like Sweden. There are in average 2.2- 2.400.000 people in local and state prisons in a single day and notice though, that number is static: it does not capture the churn of people in and out of incarceration during a given year. In one year the local jails admit a total of about 11-12.000.000 people. If 1 of 100 inmates are subject for an violent act that gives you the sum of 110-120.000, not an insignificant number. And that is by far an underestimate. For ex; this is a quote form bjs.gov not wikipedia "An estimated 9.6% of former state prisoners reported one or more incidents of sexual victimization during the most recent period of incarceration in a jail, prison, and post- release community-treatment facility."

I did not ask if some could write this paper for me.The question may have not been forwarded properly and the language skills def may be poor. Never the less it is more or less an yes or no question. Does this type of cases (inmates suing the state) exist or not.

As you pointed i hopefully will find the answer by following the link provided.

Thanks again.
 
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quincy

Senior Member
Dear Sir,

... Never the less it is more or less an yes or no question. Does this type of cases (inmates suing the state) exist or not. ...
Yes. This type of case exists in the US.

When writing your paper, be sure to note not only the source of your information and its reputation for reliability, but also be aware of any biases that may exist. You will find some information can be slanted a bit to support an agenda of some sort. Be especially careful of statistics, as the same statistics can be worked to support both sides of an issue. Know which side is being supported.

For example: While you found that 9.6% of prisoners reported one or more incident of sexual victimization, that also means that over 90% of prisoners reported no sexual victimization. How "sexual victimization" is defined in the study is important (does it include "cat calls" and whistles?).

Good luck with your paper. Say "hej" to Sweden for us.
 

LawstudSwe

Junior Member
Yes. This type of case exists in the US.

When writing your paper, be sure to note not only the source of your information and its reputation for reliability, but also be aware of any biases that may exist. You will find some information can be slanted a bit to support an agenda of some sort. Be especially careful of statistics, as the same statistics can be worked to support both sides of an issue. Know which side is being supported.

For example: While you found that 9.6% of prisoners reported one or more incident of sexual victimization, that also means that over 90% of prisoners reported no sexual victimization. How "sexual victimization" is defined in the study is important (does it include "cat calls" and whistles?).

Good luck with your paper. Say "hej" to Sweden for us.
What you say is correct and considerable.

Thanks again for your concern and advise, or, Tack så mycket as we say in Sweden!
 

LdiJ

Senior Member
Dear Sir,

First I certainly am grateful for the information you provided.

Second, I am aware of the possibility that it may exist more then one huge mega-jail where the inmates are gathered and left Mad-Max style.
There are no mega-jails where inmates are gathered and left Mad-Max style. That does not exist.

Life inside the prison may be "safer" for some people but the difference is that outside prison you are able to make choices that you do not behind bars. Abandoning a criminal lifestyle is an option you have but if you are locked up in a cell with someone who fancies to give you a round or two, well you can not do much about it.
That is inaccurate and simplistic.

Regarding the prisons not being a violent location, it is relative. As i see it already and said before, the numbers speak for themselves. Due to the large population in US the number of people who are put behind bars proportionally lager then a smaller country like Sweden. There are in average 2.2- 2.400.000 people in local and state prisons in a single day and notice though, that number is static: it does not capture the churn of people in and out of incarceration during a given year. In one year the local jails admit a total of about 11-12.000.000 people. If 1 of 100 inmates are subject for an violent act that gives you the sum of 110-120.000, not an insignificant number. And that is by far an underestimate. For ex; this is a quote form bjs.gov not wikipedia "An estimated 9.6% of former state prisoners reported one or more incidents of sexual victimization during the most recent period of incarceration in a jail, prison, and post- release community-treatment facility."
Local jails tend to be the safest. They are housing people who may be there only for minutes, or a few hours, a few days, or a few months. There is high supervision due to the "churning" of those being held. True prisons vary, in great part, depending on the type of inmates that prison holds.

I did not ask if some could write this paper for me.The question may have not been forwarded properly and the language skills def may be poor. Never the less it is more or less an yes or no question. Does this type of cases (inmates suing the state) exist or not.

As you pointed i hopefully will find the answer by following the link provided.

Thanks again.
The US is a vast area containing many different kinds of rural communities and many different kinds of urban areas. There is no "one size fits all"

There are small town local jails (think village, in your terms) where inmates are utterly safe. There are also vast numbers of smaller towns and cities where in local jails inmates are utterly safe. There are also larger urban areas where local inmates are utterly safe. There are also state and federal prisons where inmates are utterly safe.

There are some prisons, both on the state and federal level where the authorities have to work harder to ensure inmate safety. However, those are the prisons where the most violent offenders are held...and the opportunities for violent contact are limited.

However, in every scenario there are situations where something can go wrong...and your country is not immune from that either. Human nature is human nature.

You live in a smallish country that has been probably one of the most successful in the world at providing its citizens with all of their basic needs without violating basic freedoms...without potentially bankrupting your country. You have the right to be proud of that and proud of it's effect on crime.

Nevertheless, if you want to do a accurate paper, you need to delve much deeper and do much more research than you have done so far.

Its all out there on the internet...you just have to be willing to really research.
 
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