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Faye Strain, as Guardian of Thomas Benjamin Pratt v. Vic Regalado, et al.
Paid petition · United States Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit, No. 19-5071 · judgment October 9, 2020
Before the decision, roughly the 4.1% base rate. The model weighted this up for a circuit split argued in the petition, a dissent in the court below (flagged in the petition), and a Tenth Circuit decision below.
Question presented
Because U.S. jails incarcerate more than 725,000 people at any given time, federal courts frequently hear claims in which pretrial detainees allege that jail medical staff provided constitutionally deficient treatment. But the legal standard for such claims presents a 4-3 split among the circuits. In the Fifth, Eighth, Tenth, and Eleventh Circuits, pretrial detainees must plead and prove that jail defendants who denied them medical care subjectively knew that their deficient treatment would pose a substantial risk of serious harm. Not so in the Second, Seventh, and Ninth Circuits. In this case, the Tenth Circuit explicitly acknowledged that “the circuits are split” on the issue and resolved it “head-on.” Pet. App. 10a-11a. The question presented is: Whether a pretrial detainee can prevail against a jail official who disregarded an obvious risk of serious harm or whether the pretrial detainee must prove that the official subjectively knew of and disregarded a serious risk of harm.
Counsel of record
For petitioner
Robert M. Blakemore
Smolen, Smolen & Roytman, PLLC
For respondent
Guy Anthony Fortney
Brewster & De Angelis, P.L.L.C.
Case
Conference history
Distributed for 1 conference
Amicus briefs
1 cert-stage
Proceedings
- Oct 04 2021Motion for leave to file amici brief filed by Former Corrections Officials GRANTED.
- Oct 04 2021Motion for leave to file amici brief filed by 21 Law Professors GRANTED.
- Oct 04 2021Petition DENIED.
- Sep 24 2021Supplemental brief of petitioner Faye Strain as guardian of Thomas Benjamin Pratt filed.
- Jul 28 2021DISTRIBUTED for Conference of 9/27/2021.
- Jul 27 2021Reply of petitioner Faye Strain as guardian of Thomas Benjamin Pratt filed. (Distributed)
- Jul 12 2021Brief of respondent Vic Regalado in opposition filed.
- Jul 12 2021Brief of respondents Armor Correctional Health Service, Inc.; Curtis McElroy, D.O.; Patricia Deane, L.P.N.; and Kathy Loehr, L.P.C. in opposition filed.
- Jul 06 2021Brief amicus curiae of The Virginia Sheriff's Association filed.
- Jun 10 2021Motion for leave to file amici brief filed by Former Corrections Officials.
- Jun 10 2021Motion for leave to file amici brief filed by 21 Law Professors.
- May 21 2021Motion to extend the time to file a response is granted and the time is extended to and including July 12, 2021, for all respondents.
- May 20 2021Motion of Vic Regalado to extend the time to file a response from June 10, 2021 to July 12, 2021, submitted to The Clerk.
- May 13 2021Motion to extend the time to file a response is granted and the time is extended to and including July 12, 2021.
- May 12 2021Motion of Armor Correctional Health Services Inc., et al. to extend the time to file a response from June 10, 2021 to July 12, 2021, submitted to The Clerk.
- May 07 2021Petition for a writ of certiorari filed. (Response due June 10, 2021)