U.S. appeals court: search; Wood v. Hancock County Sheriffs Dept.

• Position: Pretrial Detention

Wood v. Hancock County Sheriffs Dept., 354 F.3d 57 (1st Cir. 2003). A jail inmate sought damages under [section] 1983, alleging he was unconstitutionally strip searched on three separate occasions by correctional officers. The district court entered judgment in favor of the defendants and the inmate appealed. The appeals court affirmed in part, vacated in part, and remanded for a partial new trial. The appeals court held that a jury instruction that incorrectly defined a strip search, improperly limited the jury's deliberations on the nature of the searches of the misdemeanor detainee. The court found the district court's use of the term "deliberate," when describing a strip search, unduly directed the jurors to the officers' subjective...