The following excerpt is from Quinn v. Fresno County Sheriff, No. 1:10-cv-01617-OWW-SMS (E.D. Cal. 2011):
Claims that correctional facility officials violated a pretrial detainee's constitutional rights by failing to address their medical needs are evaluated under a "deliberate indifference" standard. Simmons v. Navajo County, 609 F.3d 1011, 1017 (9th Cir. 2010) (noting that standard is the same for pretrial detainees under Fourteenth Amendment as for prisoners under Eighth Amendment). A correctional officer cannot be liable for deliberate indifference unless she "knows of and disregards an excessive risk to inmate health or safety; the official must both be aware of facts from which the inference could be drawn that a substantial risk of serious harm exists, and he must also draw the inference." Id. (citation omitted).
The above passage should not be considered legal advice. Reliable answers to complex legal questions require comprehensive research memos. To learn more visit www.alexi.com.