Filed Date: April 15, 1980
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In November 1979, inmates at the West Virginia State Penitentiary in Moundsville, West Virginia staged a mass escape, prompting a security shakedown by the West Virginia Department of Public Safety. Several months later, an inmate of the prison filed a pro se lawsuit under 42 U.S.C. § 1983 against the Department of Public Safety in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of West Virginia. The inmate alleged that the defendants had violated his civil rights during the security shakedown by beating him and commanding an attack dog to bite him.
After the Department of Public Safety prevailed at trial in eleven similar cases, the plaintiff accepted the defendants' settlement offer of $200. The settlement agreement included a clause in which all parties agreed to bear their own costs and attorneys' fees. When the plaintiff could not pay his attorney, the attorney petitioned the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Western Virginia to award him attorneys' fees pursuant to 42 U.S.C. § 1988, the Civil Rights Attorney's Fees Act of 1976.
On January 25, 1985, the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of West Virginia (Judge Charles Haden) held that the attorneys' fees clause in the settlement agreement was unenforceable and awarded the plaintiff's attorney $2760. Gillespie v. Brewer, 602 F.Supp. 218 (N.D.W.V. 1985). We have no further information on the proceedings in this case.
Summary Authors
Kristen Sagar (12/13/2007)
Haden, Charles Harold II (West Virginia)
Cogan, Timothy (West Virginia)
Davis, Dana (West Virginia)
Haden, Charles Harold II (West Virginia)
Last updated Jan. 24, 2024, 3:11 a.m.
Docket sheet not available via the Clearinghouse.State / Territory: West Virginia
Case Type(s):
Key Dates
Filing Date: April 15, 1980
Case Ongoing: No
Plaintiffs
Plaintiff Description:
Inmate at the West Virginia State Penitentiary at Moundsville
Plaintiff Type(s):
Public Interest Lawyer: No
Filed Pro Se: Yes
Class Action Sought: No
Class Action Outcome: Not sought
Defendants
West Virginia Department of Public Safety (Moundsville), State
Case Details
Causes of Action:
Constitutional Clause(s):
Available Documents:
Outcome
Prevailing Party: Plaintiff
Nature of Relief:
Source of Relief:
Form of Settlement:
Court Approved Settlement or Consent Decree
Order Duration: 1980 - 0
Issues
General:
Policing:
Jails, Prisons, Detention Centers, and Other Institutions:
Assault/abuse by staff (facilities)
Affected Sex or Gender:
Type of Facility: