Minneci v. Pollard

Richard Pollard (plaintiff), a prisoner at a federal facility privately operated by Wackenhut Corrections Corporation, sued Minneci and other Wackenhut employees (defendants) for cruel and unusual punishment under the Eighth Amendment, seeking damages for pain from allegedly inadequate medical care after he slipped and fell in the prison. The district court held no Eighth Amendment claim exists against private prison employees, but the Ninth Circuit reversed and held the claim proper, prompting the Supreme Court to grant certiorari given a circuit split.