Texas Officials Not Immune to Inmate’s Pain Suit, Court Affirms

Texas officials failed to show they’re entitled to qualified immunity from an incarcerated man’s suit alleging violations of the Eighth Amendment’s prohibition of cruel and unusual punishment, the Fifth Circuit said Wednesday in an unpublished opinion.

Robin Smith, currently in Texas Department of Criminal Justice custody, accuses state officials of deliberate indifference to his medical needs after they refused to approve the replacement of a device he relies on for relief from a rare and painful condition. The district judge correctly rejected the qualified immunity arguments in the officials’ summary judgment bids, and “what appear to be difficult fact questions” ...