On June 12, 2014, six individuals formerly held in the Floyd County Jail filed a class-action complaint in the Southern District of Indiana, against Floyd County, Indiana, the Sheriff in his official and unofficial capacities, corrections officers of Floyd County Jail, and other sheriff department workers under 42 U.S.C. § 1983. The plaintiffs, represented by private counsel, sought actual and punitive damages for themselves and the other members of their class, declaratory judgment stating all policies enforcing humiliating and torturous practices were unconstitutional, and an injunction prohibiting the defendants from practicing or enforcing those policies. The plaintiffs claimed their Fourth, Fifth, Eighth, Ninth, and Fourteenth Amendment Rights were violated. Specifically, they claimed that during detention in Floyd County Jail, through use of excessive force, they were stripped of their clothing and kept in a state of undress in a padded cell in violation of their constitutional rights.

In the complaint, the plaintiffs claimed they were stripped of their clothing without probable cause or provocation. They claimed this action was done in front of members of the opposite sex, in view of jail employees, and on surveillance tapes containing images of the plaintiffs' naked bodies. The plaintiffs were kept in a padded room without access to a phone or bathroom and left in the state of undress until given a smock. The plaintiffs additionally claimed the defendants used excessive and unnecessary force through pepper spray or taser absent provocation or probable cause. The plaintiffs claimed that the defendants were using the same policies and practices implemented against them on other detained individuals. The plaintiffs alleged these abuses were a result of policies and practices implemented by the jail. The plaintiffs later amended their complaint on November 12, 2014, to include three more representatives. One of the new plaintiffs moved to sever their claim, which Chief Judge Richard Young granted on February 17, 2016.

On June 15, 2015, the plaintiffs filed a motion for class certification, which Judge Young granted on February 16, 2016. The final approved designated class was: “All inmates confined from June 12, 2012, to present in the Floyd County Jail who were not on a suicide watch, but were housed in a padded cell where they were deprived of clothing, bedding, and hygiene products.” The court also approved a subclass of “[t]hose class members who were subjected to weapons deployment while confined and secured in the padded cells.” 313 F.R.D. 72.

On March 1, 2016, the defendants filed a motion for reconsideration of the class certification arguing that the main class did not meet the requirements for commonality and predominance. Additionally, the defendants argued the subclass did not contain enough members. On July 25, 2016, Chief Judge Young granted the defendants' motion in part and denied in part. He found that the court did not err with respect to the main class but the subclass did not include enough members. 2016 WL 4088748. The plaintiffs appealed the redetermination of the subclass on July 29, 2016, arguing there would be enough members. The motion was denied on October 27, 2016, because Chief Judge Young found the subclass definition involved an officer’s choice to use force and therefore could not be used for class certification.

The defendants appealed to the Seventh Circuit the plaintiffs' main class certification and moved for a stay pending their appeal. On August 24, 2016 the appeal to the Seventh Circuit was denied. The motion for stay was denied two days later.

On February 6, 2017, the parties moved jointly to approve settlement. Magistrate Judge Baker approved the settlement on August 2, 2017. The settlement detailed the creation of a settlement fund for $1,230,000. Attorney fees amounted to 37% of the settlement fund, and each plaintiff was paid an additional $15,000 for their time as class representative in the litigation. The rest of the settlement fund was to be distributed to the class. Each member who was subjected to the deployment of taser or pepper spray with a valid claim were to receive an additional $3,000. Any remaining funds were to be redistributed evenly among class members with each member not getting more than $25,000. Any remaining funds were to be returned to the defendants.

The settlement fund was agreed to be explicitly for damages resulting from alleged personal injuries and not as a form of punitive damages. The settlement also detailed the policy advising the treatment of individuals in this manner was to be suspended. Additionally, Field Training Officers were to be independently certified, and new employees were to go through orientation and receive training on how to handle new inmates. Finally, the facility supervisor, security supervisor, and classification officer needed to attend Inmate Behavior Management and Training conducted by the National Institute of Corrections.

The court approved the parties’ Joint Motion for Final Approval of Class Action Settlement on August 2, 2017. The case is now closed.

Taylor Brook - 01/25/2018
Justin Hill - 03/15/2020


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