Assignment:
Cell Extraction Training by U.S. Military Police (4 minutes)
Though it features the U.S. Military Police, the same cell extraction procedure is used across all jails and prisons. Cell extractions involve significant UOF. It's not terribly uncommon for some prisoners, especially those suffering from mental health problems, to refuse to leave their cells when ordered. When that happens, officers cannot search the cell for contraband or weapons. Prisoners with mental health issues are at greater risk of harming themselves. Prisoners can more easily set their beds on fire or flood the toilets. It's essential that officials have access to a prisoner's cell.
Because cell extraction can lead to serious injuries to both inmates and officers, officials have developed extraction procedures that assign several officers with different responsibilities during an extraction. One officer's assignment is to handcuff the prisoner. Another is to neutralize a left foot; the other the right foot. One officer makes certain the inmate's head is not injured. Typically, a member of the medical staff stands by to deal with any injuries that might occur during the assault. Inmates who refuse to leave their cells can be very violent during an extraction. The cell extraction procedures you see in this film are meant to reduce injuries.
QUESTION 1
Correctional Officer Bruce Wayne was escorting Inmate Davis to the shower. Because Davis was assigned to administrative segregation, he was placed in handcuffs as he walked to the shower. Davis complained to Wayne that the handcuffs the officer had placed on him were too tight and were cutting off the blood circulation in his hands and arms. Wayne had heard this complaint on many occasions from many inmates and did not respond. Wayne did not argue with Davis, nor did he loosen the handcuffs. Inmate Davis suddenly slipped on a wet spot on the cellblock floor. The handcuffs made it impossible for him to protect himself from the fall. He broke both wrists and an arm. In the infirmary, the doctor treating Davis commented that if the handcuffs had not been so tight Davis would have been able to rotate his hands inside the cuffs and quite possibly have avoided breaking both wrists. Davis decides to sue for a violation of his civil rights. (NOTE: Using the handcuffs in this situation will be considered a use of force.)
Discuss the standard or test that the Supreme Court created to evaluate the constitutionality of uses of force in correctional institutions. That requires discussing the Supreme Court's decisions in the cases Albers v. Whitley and Hudson v. McMillian. How would a court apply those two decisions and the standards it has set for use of force in corrections to Davis's lawsuit? You do not have to argue both sides of the issue. Assume you are representing the government who is defending the inmate's lawsuit.
QUESTION 2
Does it matter if the scenario described in Question 1 happened to a prisoner who was a pretrial detainee? Minimum 1 and ½ page, double-spaced. Be sure you listen to the Commentary!