Ingram v. Cole County

Plaintiffs, detainees at the Cole County Detention Center, filed two putative class actions, one for current detainees and one for former ones, alleging that the laundry policy violates the Eighth and Fourteenth Amendments to the United States Constitution and corresponding provisions of the Missouri Constitution. The laundry policy allows guards and cellmates to see detainees naked while the detainees' one set of jail-issued clothing is being washed every few days. The detainees are given a bed sheet and a blanket. The court concluded that this practice constitutes more than a de minimis deprivation, and this practice is not related to a legitimate government interest. Therefore, the laundry policy is unconstitutional and the district court erred in dismissing the complaint. Finally, because the district court based its qualified immunity ruling on the perceived lack of a constitutional violation, the district court also erred as to this issue. Accordingly, the court reversed the dismissal and remanded for further proceedings. View "Ingram v. Cole County" on Justia Law