Dist. Ct. erred in granting defendant-jail correctional officer’s motion for summary judgment in plaintiff-estate of jail detainee’s section 1983 action, alleging that defendant’s delay in responding to intercom call by detainee’s cellmate, who indicated that detainee was experiencing medical emergency, caused detainee harm and his eventual death. While Dist. Ct. found that plaintiff had failed to present sufficient evidence of causation, Ct. of Appeals found that plaintiff presented sufficient evidence to create triable issue on causation question, where record showed that: (1) there was 13-minute delay between first and second intercom calls from detainee’s cellmate, indicating that detainee had breathing problems; (2) while defendant argued that detainee was dead long time prior to second intercom call, cellmate indicated that detainee was still breathing just prior to arrival of jail personnel following second intercom call; and (3) medical expert’s testimony that detainee’s death from cardiac arrhythmia occurred over several minutes supports plaintiff’s claim that defendant’s delay in responding to first intercom call harmed detainee. Fact that defendant asserted that delay was caused by his inability to understand cellmate’s first intercom call and by history of jail inmates misusing intercom for non-emergency reasons did not require different result, since said matters were appropriate for jury’s consideration.
Federal 7th Circuit Court
Civil Court
Prisoners