Injured in Jail? Contact Our Prison Negligence Attorneys
The Eighth Amendment guarantees inmates protection from “cruel and unusual punishment.” Under federal law, inmates are afforded protection from abuse and unsafe prison conditions. Even though your freedom is taken away from you in prison, prison personnel are prohibited from using excessive force or imposing unreasonable punishments on inmates.
Our Tennessee prison negligence attorneys discuss your rights as a prison inmate and how our legal team can assist you.
Examples of Abuse and Neglect by Jail Personnel
With 1.2 million people estimated to be in prison as of December 2022, prisons are overcrowded and understaffed. The prison population is increasing with each passing year, but jails and prisons are not taking the necessary measures to ensure that inmates are safe.
Correctional officers may use excessive force to control inmates, including any of the following:
- Unnecessary spiteful punishments, such as being placed in solitary confinement without justification or for an extended time
- Using unreasonable restraints
- Beating a prison inmate
- Using pepper spray for no reason
- Denial of medical care
- Being called names or experiencing vulgar language
- Sexual abuse
Injuries Sustained by Inmates
Prisoners can suffer abdominal trauma, often as a penetrating trauma caused by a shank (a weapon that prisoners create out of materials available in prison). An abdominal trauma can damage any number of internal organs, causing internal bleeding. The severity of the injury will depend upon which organs were damaged. A penetrating wound could cause an acute abdomen, the main symptom being severe abdominal pain. If left untreated, your body could go into shock, and you could eventually die.
Prisoners who sustain an abdominal injury will likely also experience psychological trauma, causing them to fear entering their cell and even interacting with other inmates. If you experienced trauma while in jail, you deserve compensation for your losses and hardship.
Civil Rights of Institutionalized Persons Act
If a prisoner is being mistreated or harmed, legal recourse can be taken through the Civil Rights of Institutionalized Persons Act (CRIPA). CRIPA is a federal law that authorizes the U.S. Attorney General to take legal action against a state or local government or its employees or agents. It provides protection to inmates at correctional facilities or pretrial detention facilities, as well as juveniles awaiting trial.
For legal action to be taken, the Attorney General must have reason to believe that:
- An institutionalized person is being subjected to offensive conditions depriving the individual of constitutional and federal rights, causing him or her serious harm.
- Such deprivation is part of a pattern of neglect.
How Can Hiring a Prison Negligence Attorney Help Me?
Suppose you have suffered injuries while an inmate in a prison or penitentiary; you may be entitled to compensation. Even though you have been stripped of your freedom, you still deserve to be treated as a human being.
Jail and prison personnel, as well as correctional officers, should be held accountable for their wrongful behavior. When you hire our Tennessee prison negligence attorneys, we will investigate your matter thoroughly. If we believe that you have a valid prison negligence lawsuit, we will compile the necessary evidence and get the names of other witnesses to build your case and see it through.
Contact the Attorneys at Raybin & Weissman, P.C., Today
If you or a loved one has been physically or verbally abused while in prison or jail, you deserve to be compensated for your suffering. At Raybin & Weissman, P.C., our Tennessee prison negligence attorneys proudly represent the rights of inmates and detainees and are ready to assist you. Contact us today to schedule your free consultation.