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Qualified Immunity Law Clarified
Loaded on Feb. 15, 1994
published in Prison Legal News
February, 1994, page 3
Joseph Rankin was a pretrial detainee in the Harris County, Texas, jail. While awaiting a court appearance in a large holding cell a disturbance broke out after female prisoners passed in front of the cell. A deputy sheriff removed Rankin from the cell and, according to Rankin's complaint, placed him …
Filed under:
Excessive Force,
Guard Brutality/Beatings,
Appeals,
Qualified Immunity.
Location:
Texas.
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More from this issue:
- How to Secure the Attendance of Witnesses at Trial, by Paul Wright
- Ninth Circuit Upholds Ban on Attorney Contact Visits
- Murder Incorporated, by Bill Dunne
- Qualified Immunity Law Clarified
- California DOC Starts Use of Electric Fence
- Shackling of Con Litigants Discussed
- Reviews, by Paul Wright
- Estate Proper Party When Defendant Dies
- Officials Must Assess Informant's Credibility
- Delay of Medical Care States Claim
- Prisoner Entitled to Interest From Prison Account
- Loved One in Prison?
- No Right to TV Interviews
- More Censorship and Repression in Indiana
- Twenty-Seven Cons Die in El Salvador Riot
- Class Differences in Crime Control, by Ed Mead
- What's Wrong in the Ohio DOC?, by John Perotti
- City Liable for Negligent Medical Care
- Involuntary PC Violates Due Process
- WA DOC Wants to Open New Prison, Close Old Ones
- Attorneys File Briefs for Peruvian POW's, by Paul Wright
- Third Circuit Announces Rules for Appointment of Counsel
- Rule of Law or Rule of Five?, by Mark Tushnet
- Court Upholds Silencing of Dan Quayle's Drug Supplier
- From The Editor, by Paul Wright
More from these topics:
- Ninth Circuit Revives HRDC Challenge to Washington DOC Mail Restrictions, Aug. 1, 2026. Qualified Immunity, Publications/Books, Due Process, Censorship, First Amendment, rights.
- At Least Three Guards Charged for Assaulting Two Massachusetts Prisoners, Aug. 1, 2026. Guard Misconduct, Guard Brutality/Beatings, Assaults on Staff, Wrongful Use of Force.
- Detroit Pays $5.8 Million to Former State Prisoner Exonerated of Murder After 15 Years, Aug. 1, 2026. Wrongful Conviction, Qualified Immunity, 42 U.S. Code § 1983, civil action for deprivation of rights, Eyewitness Identification, Evidence - Failure to Disclose.
- Ombudsman Report Finds Use of Force Misapplied in Contraband Search, Aug. 1, 2026. Guard Misconduct, Failure to Treat, Body Cavity Searches, Guard Brutality/Beatings, Pepper Spray/Tear Gas.
- $1.2 Million for Elderly Detainee Shoved Out the Door of Sacramento Jail by Guard, Aug. 1, 2026. Guard Brutality/Beatings, Americans with Disabilities Act, Rehabilitation Act, Failure to Treat (Mental Illness), 42 U.S. Code § 1983, civil action for deprivation of rights.
- Seventh Circuit Grants Qualified Immunity to Detectives Who Revealed Prisoner Was Informant, Denies Him Anonymity, Aug. 1, 2026. Failure to Protect (General), Physical Injury Rule, Qualified Immunity, Informants (Failure to Protect), 42 U.S. Code § 1983, civil action for deprivation of rights.
- Sixth Circuit Affirms Denial of State-Law Qualified Immunity in Scabies Case, Aug. 1, 2026. Corizon, Systemic Medical Neglect, Contagious Disease -- Misc., Qualified Immunity, Deliberate Indifference.
- Fourth Circuit Revives Disabled Prisoner’s Claim for Denial of Out-of-Cell Exercise Time, Aug. 1, 2026. Totality of Conditions, Eighth Amendment, Exercise, Summary Judgment, Qualified Immunity.
- Oregon Reaches $49 Million Settlement with State Prisoners in COVID-19 Class-Action, Aug. 1, 2026. COVID-19, Eighth Amendment, Settlements, Class Certification, Qualified Immunity.
- $6.35 Million Paid for Ohio Jail Detainee’s Spinal Cord Injury Caused by Guard, Aug. 1, 2026. Guard Misconduct, Malpractice, Guard Brutality/Beatings, Settlements, Wrongful Use of Force.

