United States v. Georgia

546 U.S. 151 (2006)

Purchase the Printed Copy at bsmsphd.com

Nature of the Case

To access this section all you need to do is click here and register.

Facts

Goodman (P), is a paraplegic inmate in the Georgia prison system. P filed a pro se complaint in District Court challenging the conditions of his confinement. P was confined for 23-to-24 hours per day in a 12-by-3-foot cell in which he could not turn his wheelchair around. He was unable to use the toilet and shower without assistance, which was often denied. P claimed numerous injuries in attempting to transfer from his wheelchair to the shower or toilet on his own. On several occasions, he had been forced to sit in his own feces and urine while prison officials refused to assist him in cleaning up the waste. He also claimed that he had been denied physical therapy and medical treatment, and denied access to virtually all prison programs and services on account of his disability. The District Court dismissed on state sovereign immunity. The United States (P) intervened, and the 11^th Circuit held the District Court should have given Goodman (P) leave to amend his complaint to develop three Eighth Amendment claims relating to his conditions of confinement: The Court affirmed the state sovereign immunity. The Supreme Court granted certiorari.