Lee Willis Bender v. D. Perkins, et al.

Summary

The United States District Court for the Eastern District of California screened Lee Willis Bender’s first amended complaint under 28 U.S.C. § 1915A. The court permitted Bender to proceed on his Eighth Amendment conditions-of-confinement claim against defendants D. Perkins and Raul Morales, based on alleged unsanitary prison conditions, inadequate food-safety procedures, and a prolonged lack of hot water. The order was issued without resolving whether the allegations would ultimately establish a constitutional violation.

Holdings

1. The first amended complaint may proceed past screening on Plaintiff’s claim against Perkins and Morales for unconstitutional conditions of confinement in violation of the Eighth Amendment.
2. A § 1983 plaintiff must allege that the defendant acted under color of state law and deprived the plaintiff of a right secured by the Constitution or federal law, with a personal and causal connection between the defendant’s conduct and the alleged deprivation.

Questions Presented

1. Whether the first amended complaint stated a potentially cognizable § 1983 claim against Perkins and Morales for unconstitutional conditions of confinement in violation of the Eighth Amendment.
2. Whether the allegations, liberally construed at the screening stage, plausibly alleged an objectively serious deprivation and deliberate indifference by the defendants.

Disposition

other