Montez Estate of Hearlson v. U.S.

• Position: Cases of negligence - Brief Article

U.S. Appeals Court

PRISONER ON PRISONER ASSAULT

Montez Estate of Hearlson v. U.S., 359 F.3d 392 (6th Cir. 2004). The administratrix of the estate of a murdered federal inmate brought a negligence claim against the United States under the Federal Tort Claims Act (FTCA). The district court dismissed the case and the administratrix appealed. The appeals court affirmed. The appeals court that the allegations in the complaint were insufficient to rebut the presumption that prison officials' decisions regarding the inmate's safety at the time of his death were of the type that could be said to be grounded in Bureau of Prisons...