The wife and children of David Lewis, an inmate who committed suicide while in solitary confinement at the Terrebonne Parish Jail, filed a lawsuit under 42 U.S.C. § 1983 against the parish in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana. The plaintiffs allege that Lewis's ...
read more >
The wife and children of David Lewis, an inmate who committed suicide while in solitary confinement at the Terrebonne Parish Jail, filed a lawsuit under 42 U.S.C. § 1983 against the parish in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana. The plaintiffs allege that Lewis's constitutional rights were violated by the jail's deliberate indifference to his serious medical needs.
Following a jury trial, the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana (Judge Peter Beer) entered judgment in favor of the plaintiffs, but awarded only punitive damages of $6,279 (funeral costs). Both parties appealed this decision.
On February 12, 1990, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit (Judge F.A. Little) held that the jury verdict was unsupported by the evidence and remanded the case to the district court for determination as to damages suffered by the inmate immediately prior to death. Lewis v. Parish of Terrebonne, 894 F.2d 142 (5th Cir. 1990). We have no further information on the proceedings of this case.
Kristen Sagar - 03/14/2006
compress summary
