×
You've used up your 3 free articles for this month. Subscribe today.
A Lesson in Pleading: Utah Jail Suicide Complaint Fails for Alleging Failure to Train Rather than Failure to Provide Care
by David M. Reutter
On May 3, 2022, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit affirmed summary judgment for defendant jailers in a lawsuit seeking damages for a Utah detainee’s suicide. Not only bad for the survivors of the unfortunate man, the case also offers a …
Full article and associated cases available to subscribers.
As a digital subscriber to Prison Legal News, you can access full text and downloads for this and other premium content.
Already a subscriber? Login
More from this issue:
- “I Was Scheduled to Die in Solitary Confinement” – and May Soon Be Again, by Mark Wilson
- From the Editor, by Paul Wright
- Detainees Awaiting Psychiatric Beds Suffer Permanent Harm in Jails, by Eike Blohm, MD
- Monterey County Sheriff’s Office Poised for Much-Needed Cleanup, by Kevin Bliss
- Federal Judge Tells BOP Officials They “Are Not Above the Law”, by Casey Bastian
- U.S. Response to Haitian Crisis: Fund More Prisons, by Jayson Hawkins
- California Halted from Re-Integrating “Sensitive Needs” Prisoners Into General Population, by David Reutter
- Circuit Court Orders Hawaii to Release Names of Prisoners Who Die in State’s Jails and Prisons, by Keith Sanders
- Former CoreCivic Guard Pleads Guilty to Deprivation of Tennessee Prisoner’s Rights, by Harold Hempstead
- $1.9 Million Paid by L.A. County for Detainee’s Suicide, by Chuck Sharman
- Sixth Circuit Revives Claim Over Michigan Prisoner’s Fatal Overdose on Allegedly Smuggled Fentanyl, by David Reutter
- Santa Clara County Sheriff Accused of Coverup After $10 Million Payout to Mentally Ill Detainee Who Severely Injured Himself During Jail Transport, by Benjamin Tschirhart
- Polling Stations Inside Jails Combat Voter Disenfranchisement, by Keith Sanders
- New Mexico Supreme Court Rules Both Prisoners and Nonprofit Plaintiffs Subject to Requirement to Exhaust Administrative Remedies, by Jacob Barrett
- Nevada DOC Director Sacked After Prisoner Escape Goes Unnoticed Four Days, by Ashleigh Dye
- Almost $650,000 Paid by Illinois to Prisoner Who Lost Leg to Untreated Diabetes, by Keith Sanders
- $11.75 Million Settlement for Prisoner Beating in Pheonix Jail, by Casey Bastian
- SCOTUS Ruling Forces Ninth Circuit U-Turn on Damages Suit by Federal Prisoner in California “Snitch Jacketed” by Guard, by Kevin Bliss
- BOP Revives Plans for Controversial Prison in Kentucky, by Kevin Bliss
- Second Circuit Takes Back $20,000 Emotional Damage Award from Former Federal Prisoner in New York, by Benjamin Tschirhart
- California Extends Medi-Cal Health Benefits to Prisoners Nearing Release, by Eike Blohm, MD
- Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court: Jail Detainee’s Urine Not a ‘Noxious or Filthy Substance’, by David Reutter
- Iowa Ombudsman Calls Out DOC For Unfair Prisoner Discipline, by Kevin Bliss
- Virginia DOC Resists Prisoner Fee Cuts, by Ashleigh Dye
- Washington Racks Up More Than $98 Million in Fines for Failure to Timely Hold Competency Hearings, by Jacob Barrett
- Third Circuit Unbothered by Pennsylvania’s Discrimination Against Sex Offenders in Denying Parole to Halfway Houses, by David Reutter
- Indiana Will Now Send Low-Level Felons to Prison Instead of Jail, by Casey Bastian
- Fourth Circuit: Religious Headwear Policy Violated Virginia Prisoner’s Rights, by David Reutter
- A Lesson in Pleading: Utah Jail Suicide Complaint Fails for Alleging Failure to Train Rather than Failure to Provide Care, by David Reutter
- Sixth Circuit Says Ohio Prisoner’s Lack of Tablet Access May Have Prevented Grievance Exhaustion, by David Reutter
- Texas Prison Warden and Brother Charged with Shooting Two Migrants, Killing One, by Ashleigh Dye
- California Makes Calls Free for State Prisoners and Juvenile Detainees, Prohibits Telecom Kickbacks to Prisons and Jails, by Benjamin Tschirhart
- $35,000 Awarded to Federal Prisoner in Kentucky Who Accused Guards of Using Excessive Force, by Benjamin Tschirhart
- Educating Prisoners: New Meta-Analysis Reinforces That It Reduces Recidivism, by Keith Sanders
- $2.375 Million Settlement in Over-Detention Suit at Santa Clara California Jail, by David Reutter
- Montana Supreme Court Grants State Prisoner 604 Days in Sentence Credit, by David Reutter
- En Banc Ninth Circuit Voids Portion of California Law Banning Private Federal Prisons in the State, by Jacob Barrett
- Report Shows How Perverse Financial Incentives Drive Mass Incarceration and Inequity in Criminal Justice System, by Matthew Clarke
- Arizona Prisoner Waits in Excruciating Pain While Incompetent Executioners Fumble, by Eike Blohm, MD
- How the Newest Federal Prison Became One of the Deadliest, by Christie Thompson and Joseph Shapiro
- No More Second Chances for New York Jail Guard Convicted of Smuggling, by Benjamin Tschirhart
- “Ban the Box” Hiring Law Sets National Standard for Federal Contracts, by Keith Sanders
- No Pay for Iowa Prisoners Overdosed With COVID-19 Vaccine, by Benjamin Tschirhart
- Former State Prison Guards in Georgia Sentenced for Prisoner Assaults and Cover-Up, by Jayson Hawkins
- Suspended Colorado Work Release Program Exposes Companies’ Reliance on Low-Wage Labor, by Benjamin Tschirhart
- Seventh Circuit Revives Claim of Wheelchair-Bound Wisconsin Prisoner Denied Access to Handicapped Toilet, by David Reutter
- Seventh Circuit Overturns Class Decertification in Cook County Jail Disability Lawsuit, by David Reutter
- Despite Official Claims, Stopping Mail to Missouri Prisoners Has No Effect on Drug Overdoses, by Benjamin Tschirhart
- Former Georgia Sheriff Gets 18 Months for Punishing Detainees in Restraint Chair, by David Reutter
- $1.2 Million Paid by St. Louis County for Jail Detainee’s Death from Untreated Ulcer, by David Reutter
- Gun Safety Group Defeats Re-Election of “Constitutional Sheriff” in Massachusetts, by Keith Sanders
- Voters in Four States Change Constitution to Ban Prison Slavery, by Keith Sanders
- News in Brief
More from David Reutter:
- Eight Circuit Reverses Denial of Partial Qualified Immunity in Detainee’s Pepper Ball Claim, Remands Excessive Force Claims, Sept. 1, 2026
- Nevada Prisoners, Families Call Out Predatory Tablet Program, Sept. 1, 2026
- Fourth Circuit: Error in Granting Judgment Prior to Adjudging Spoliation Motion, Sept. 1, 2026
- Fourth Circuit Affirms Qualified Immunity in Strip Searches Resulting from Anonymous Tips, Sept. 1, 2026
- Tenth Circuit: Colorado Governor Unentitled to Eleventh Amendment Immunity on Claim Related to DOC Religious Policies, Aug. 1, 2026
- Michigan Appeals Court: Witnesses Cannot be Forced to Wear Jail Clothes at Trial, Aug. 1, 2026
- Sixth Circuit Affirms Denial of State-Law Qualified Immunity in Scabies Case, Aug. 1, 2026
- Fourth Circuit Revives Disabled Prisoner’s Claim for Denial of Out-of-Cell Exercise Time, Aug. 1, 2026
- Sixth Circuit Announces State-Law Exceptions to Appeal Deadlines Preserve “Pending” Status Under AEDPA, Holding Belated-Appeal Procedures Toll Federal Habeas Limitations Period, April 1, 2026
- Florida Supreme Court Announces Rule 3.170(f)’s Good-Cause Plea-Withdrawal Standard Does Not Apply at Post-Appeal Resentencing, April 1, 2026
More from these topics:
- Mississippi DOC Held Mentally Unwell Prisoners in Solitary, Many Died Because of It, Sept. 1, 2026. Control Units/SHU/Solitary Confinement, Failure to Treat (Mental Illness), Suicides, Staff Training, Deliberate Indifference.
- $800,000 Settlement Reached in Hawai‘i Jail Suicide Case, Sept. 1, 2026. Staffing, Failure to Train/Supervise, Failure to Protect (Wrongful Death), Failure to Treat (Mental Illness), Suicides.
- Rising Deaths in Los Angeles County Jail Linked to Longer Stays, Sept. 1, 2026. Systemic Medical Neglect, Drug Overdose, Statistics/Trends, Suicides, Reduction of Prison Population.
- What 911 Calls Reveal About Jail Operations, Sept. 1, 2026. Systemic Medical Neglect, Statistics/Trends, Failure to Protect (General), Staffing, Staff Training.
- Isolation and Medical Neglect at Illinois’ Joliet Treatment Center Drive Prisoners to Set Fatal Fires, Sept. 1, 2026. Systemic Medical Neglect, Security Systems, Medical Neglect/Malpractice, Control Units/SHU/Solitary Confinement, Failure to Treat (Mental Illness).
- Court Shuts Down Arizona Attempt to Fill Medical Staff Vacancies with Under-Qualified Providers, Sept. 1, 2026. Systemic Medical Neglect, Staffing, Injunctions, Control Units/SHU/Solitary Confinement, Failure to Treat (Mental Illness).
- Federal Court Upholds Consultants’ Finding that Oklahoma Is Not Honoring Its Consent Decree to Provide Mental Health Treatment, Sept. 1, 2026. Consent Decrees, Failure to Treat (Mental Illness), Pretrial Detention and Detainees, Competency Hearing, Inadequate Health Care Facilities.
- $4.5 Million Paid by Cook County for Detainee Suicide in Chicago Jail, Aug. 1, 2026. Medical Neglect/Malpractice, Failure to Treat (Mental Illness), Suicides, Administrative Detention/Segregation, Deliberate Indifference.
- Death of Seattle Detainee—Jailed Despite Not Being “Grounded in Reality”—Costs King County $3.5 Million Settlement, Aug. 1, 2026. Restraints, Medical Neglect/Malpractice, Excessive Force (Wrongful Death), Failure to Treat (Mental Illness), Monell Liability.
- Oregon Agrees to $2.3 Million Settlement After Guards Toss Mentally Ill Prisoner in Solitary, Taunt Him Until He Kills Himself, Aug. 1, 2026. Control Units/SHU/Solitary Confinement, Failure to Treat (Mental Illness), Suicides, 42 U.S. Code § 1983, civil action for deprivation of rights, Deliberate Indifference.

