Filed Date: July 23, 1979
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In July 1979, prisoners being held in protective custody at the Trenton State Prison in New Jersey filed a lawsuit under 42 U.S.C. §1983 against the New Jersey Department of Corrections in the U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey. The plaintiffs asked the court for declaratory and injunctive relief, as well as damages, alleging that their constitutional rights had been violated by their placement in protective custody without a hearing.
On August 2, 1982, the U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey (Judge Dickinson Richards Debevoise) held that placement in involuntary protective custody did not deprive the plaintiffs of federally protected rights, and that the plaintiffs were not deprived of their federal due process rights to any hearing before their placement in protective custody. The court further held, however, that an inmate held involuntarily in protective custody for an indefinite period is entitled to a hearing at least once each year, and that to the extent that the inmates were not accorded such hearings, they were deprived of due process. The court declined to award any damages to the plaintiffs, however, holding that the defendants were protected by qualified immunity. Calloway v. Fauver, 544 F.Supp. 584 (D.N.J. 1982).
Summary Authors
Kristen Sagar (2/16/2007)
Wooten v. Klein, District of New Jersey (1975)
Debevoise, Dickinson Richards (New Jersey)
Halper, Louise A. (New Jersey)
Shire, Robert A. (New Jersey)
Debevoise, Dickinson Richards (New Jersey)
Last updated April 17, 2024, 3:14 a.m.
Docket sheet not available via the Clearinghouse.State / Territory: New Jersey
Case Type(s):
Key Dates
Filing Date: July 23, 1979
Case Ongoing: No reason to think so
Plaintiffs
Plaintiff Description:
Inmates challenging their confinement in protective custody
Plaintiff Type(s):
Public Interest Lawyer: Unknown
Filed Pro Se: Unknown
Class Action Sought: Unknown
Class Action Outcome: Unknown
Defendants
Case Details
Causes of Action:
Constitutional Clause(s):
Available Documents:
Outcome
Prevailing Party: Plaintiff
Nature of Relief:
Injunction / Injunctive-like Settlement
Source of Relief:
Order Duration: 1982 - None
Issues
General:
Parents (visitation, involvement)
Siblings (visitation, placement)
Jails, Prisons, Detention Centers, and Other Institutions:
Type of Facility: