Where an inmate claims that the Virginia DNA Statute “sets the standard for post-conviction DNA testing so high that it” violates the 14th Amendment, the district court on remand is directed properly to analyze the procedural due process claims. Background ...

Tagged with: 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals Civil Rights Per Curiam Opinion

The “Important Opinions” that appear each week on the front page of Virginia Lawyers Weekly are those chosen by our editors as the most likely to impact law practice or a given subject area of law. Below is a listing, ...

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The allegations did not support the conclusion the inmate’s need for medical attention was sufficiently obvious or that the defendants actually knew of and disregarded an excessive risk of serious harm. Background On July 25, 2016, a sheriff’s deputy found ...

Tagged with: Civil Rights Judge Glen E. Conrad U.S. District Court - Western District

In awarding plaintiff reasonable fees for prevailing on a discovery dispute against the Virginia Department of Corrections, the court said the appropriate rate was that charged by counsel in the Western District of Virginia, Abingdon Division, because there was no ...

Tagged with: Civil Rights Judge James P. Jones U.S. District Court - Western District

The Virginia Department of Corrections is not required to respond to the parts of non-party discovery that would be irrelevant or unduly burdensome, including disclosing the supplier of the chemicals the department uses in carrying out executions or the identities ...

Tagged with: Civil Rights Judge M. Hannah Lauck U.S. District Court - Eastern District

Where a large health clinic maintained a private police force, a janitor can proceed to discovery on his $ 1983 lawsuit against the clinic, his ex-employer. Background The amended complaint asserts that the plaintiff was employed by Carilion Clinic as ...

Tagged with: Civil Rights Judge Frederick P. Stamp U.S. District Court - Western District

The defendant in a criminal case who sought prospective injunctive relief against the county sheriff failed to plead facts showing the sheriff maintained a custom or policy that allowed misconduct by his officers. Background Plaintiff Les Christopher Burns contends in ...

Tagged with: Civil Rights Judge James P. Jones U.S. District Court - Western District

The court denied  a jail’s summary judgment motion on an inmate’s claims that his skin irritation was a serious medical need and the nurses were deliberately indifferent to his condition. Background Toby Joe Barley, a Virginia inmate proceeding pro se, ...

Tagged with: Civil Rights Judge Elizabeth K. Dillon U.S. District Court - Western District

Plaintiffs were convicted of trespass in state court after they refused to leave the school premises. They then filed this complaint. The court held they lacked standing over several claims, should abstain from deciding others, and would decline the state ...

Tagged with: Civil Rights Judge Henry E. Hudson U.S. District Court - Eastern District

Plaintiffs, parents of a minor child, sued to recover the fees and costs they incurred in successfully prevailing in a school proceeding involving discipline of their child. An individual who assisted plaintiffs in that proceeding moved to intervene in the ...

Tagged with: Civil Rights Judge Mark Davis U.S. District Court - Eastern District