Federal judge dismisses some counts in lawsuit brought against Fayette County by former inmate
Fayette County, its prison board and former warden will not be held liable for negligence in a suit filed by a defendant who claimed he was assaulted while in the county lockup.
U.S. District Judge Arthur J. Schwab found Monday the county cannot be held liable for not having video cameras in the area of a dumbwaiter that former inmate Timothy Reckner claims he was stuffed into in 2009.
Schwab also dismissed a claim of failure to train the guards Reckner alleged assaulted him in the prison, but did so without prejudice, which will allow Reckner’s attorney to amend the complaint to offer more evidence to support the claim.
Reckner sued earlier this year claiming that corrections officers Bruce McCombie and Joseph Yeagley assaulted him between Aug. 17 and Sept. 2, 2009. Schwab’s ruling did not address claims brought against McCombie and Yeagley, as their attorneys have not filed motions to dismiss the lawsuit.
Schwab did not dismiss claims that he county, prison board and former warden Larry Medlock were responsible for the actions of Yeagley and McCombie.
For more information, read Tuesday’s HeraldStandard.com.