Although the court acknowledges that the plaintiffs faced many hardships in detention during the pandemic, the restrictions placed on them by the county was to prevent the spread of COVID-19 in prisons; these restrictions were at issue in this case. Plaintiffs did not raise sufficient evidence showing the jail had a widespread and persistent practice of not allowing inmates out-of-cell exercise.
Plaintiffs also failed to allege that the county knew or had reason to know the training given to the sheriff's office and correctional officers regarding exercise for inmates was insufficient. Altogether, the plaintiffs failed to show how these restrictions on exercise amounted to deliberate indifference by the county.
Brenizer v. Cnty. of Sherburne, No. 21-1301, 2022 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 41894 (D. Minn. Mar. 9, 2022)
DETAILS
Decision
Date
03/09/2022
Practice Area
Criminal (State Charges)
Relief Requested
Improved Conditions, Other, Out-of-cell exercise and punitive damages
Type of Court
Federal District Court
Location
Minnesota
Type of Case
Class Action
Case Characteristics
Pretrial Detention [jail]
Compassionate Release Case
No
Case Tracking Number
0:21-cv-01301-DSD-TNL
MORE CASE INFORMATION
Court Name
D. Minn.
Decision
Motion Denied
Place of Incarceration
Local / County Jail
Name of Facility
Sherburne County Jail
Legal Authority
Eighth Amendment - Deliberate Indifference, Substantive Due Process - Deliberate Indifference (both 14th and 5th Amendments)
Case Status
Decision Made But Case Still Pending
COVID-19 in Jail Prison or Detention Center
Not Discussed
Litigation Database
Crowdsourced legal documents from around the country related to COVID-19 and incarceration, organized, collected, and summarized for public defenders, litigators, and other advocates. Created and managed by Bronx Defenders, Columbia Law School’s Center for Institutional and Social Change, UCLA Law COVID-19 Behind Bars Data Project, and Zealous. Mostly federal court opinions, but now expanding to states and legal filings, declarations, and exhibits.
This resource is designed to help lawyers, advocates, researchers, journalists, and others interested in challenging, remedying, or drawing attention to the grave risk that Covid-19 poses to individuals who are detained.