U.S. Appeals Court: RESTRAINING CHAIRS.

• Position: Brief Article

Fuentes v. Wagner, 206 F.3d 335 (3rd Cir. 2000). An inmate who had been detained in a county prison while awaiting sentencing sued corrections officers and prison officials under [Sections] 1983 for the alleged use of excessive force. A district court jury returned a verdict in favor of the defendants and the inmate appealed. The appeals court affirmed, finding that whether the inmate was placed in a restraint chair to stop his disruptive behavior and maintain prison order or for purposes of punishment was a jury question and that placement of the inmate in a restraint chair for eight hours did not violate substantive due process under the Eighth Amendment. The court noted that the inmate was not kept in the chair any...