Supreme Court to weigh rights of federal prison inmates to sue over lack of medical treatment

WASHINGTON — Taking up a case that could further erode the rights of people to sue federal officers for constitutional violations, the Supreme Court on Monday agreed to consider whether a prison inmate could sue a nurse for failing to provide medical assistance after a riot

WASHINGTON — Taking up a case that could further erode the rights of people to sue federal officers for constitutional violations, the Supreme Court on Monday agreed to consider whether a prison inmate could sue a nurse for failing to provide medical assistance after a riot.

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The case concerns a lawsuit brought by Kekai Watanabe, who alleges he was denied medical treatment following a riot at a federal prison in Honolulu in July 2021.

The justices will consider the scope of a 1980 Supreme Court ruling called Carlson v. Green that said federal prison inmates could sue officials for deliberate indifference to their medical needs under the Constitution’s 8th Amendment, which protects against cruel and unusual punishment.