Filed Date: March 2, 1983
Clearinghouse coding complete
On March 2, 1983, Greg Horn, a 14 year-old minor in custody at the Oldham County Jail ("OCJ") and his mother filed a class action lawsuit under 42 U.S.C. § 1983, in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Kentucky, seeking declaratory and injunctive relief against Oldham County, Kentucky and the administrators of the OCJ. The plaintiffs, represented by private attorneys and the Youth Law Center of San Francisco, California, alleged poor sanitary conditions of confinement, failure to provide personal hygiene materials, failure to provide adequate educational materials, failure to separate juvenile detainees from adult offenders, lack of medical or psychological screening for incoming detainees, inadequate staff, failure to supervise detainees, and because of these failures, the wrongful death of Mrs. Horn's other son Robert Lee (who had committed suicide during unsupervised confinement). The suit was also filed under the Juvenile Justice Act, 42 U.S.C. § 5601 et seq.
On January 11, 1985, the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Kentucky (Judge Thomas Austin Ballantine, Jr.) approved a Consent Decree. The wrongful death claim was settled, and the Defendants agreed to cease use of OCJ for detention of juveniles. The consent decree, however, did not apply to persons under 18 years of age who are charged with serious offenses and who have been transferred from the jurisdiction of the District Court to the jurisdiction of the Circuit Court. There is no docket or further information for this case.
Summary Authors
Greg Venker (5/18/2006)
Ballantine, Thomas Austin Jr. (Kentucky)
Bell, James Raymond (California)
Lowery, Jack (Kentucky)
Miller, Carl (Kentucky)
Prather, Stewart L. (Kentucky)
Ballantine, Thomas Austin Jr. (Kentucky)
Last updated March 30, 2024, 3:19 a.m.
Docket sheet not available via the Clearinghouse.State / Territory: Kentucky
Case Type(s):
Key Dates
Filing Date: March 2, 1983
Case Ongoing: No reason to think so
Plaintiffs
Plaintiff Description:
All juveniles who are currently, have been during the past year or in the future will be confined in the Oldham County Jail.
Plaintiff Type(s):
Attorney Organizations:
Public Interest Lawyer: Yes
Filed Pro Se: No
Class Action Sought: Yes
Class Action Outcome: Granted
Defendants
Oldham County Jail (Oldham), County
Case Details
Causes of Action:
Juvenile Justice Act, 42 U.S.C. § 5672
Constitutional Clause(s):
Available Documents:
Injunctive (or Injunctive-like) Relief
Outcome
Prevailing Party: Plaintiff
Nature of Relief:
Injunction / Injunctive-like Settlement
Source of Relief:
Form of Settlement:
Court Approved Settlement or Consent Decree
Order Duration: 1985 - None
Issues
General:
Sanitation / living conditions
Staff (number, training, qualifications, wages)
Jails, Prisons, Detention Centers, and Other Institutions:
Affected Sex or Gender:
Medical/Mental Health:
Type of Facility: