Civil Rights and Jail Beatings

In 1998, Gilbert Garcia died due to massive head injuries two days after he was beaten by four deputies at Orange County Jail. The said beating was videotaped. In 2002, county supervisors opted to pay $650,000 to settle a federal lawsuit filed by the family of Garcia, who were represented by two good civil rights lawyers. The settlement is the biggest ever incurred against the OC sheriff's department over a case of jail beating.

This is an example of jail beating which is commonplace in most jails in the United States. Jail beatings are very common in our jails because apparently there seems to be a culture of acceptance of jail beatings that allows physical abuse of jail inmates. While motives for jail beatings vary, one apparent reason is the wrong sense of "justice" of the attacker whereby he feels that an inmate has the right be physically abused due to the wrongdoings he has committed.

What is the implication of jail beatings on rights of the inmate?

An inmate has the right to live in jail free from the thought of being physically attacked by fellow inmates or jail employees. An inmate might have given up their some of his rights as a citizen upon receipt of the jail sentence but it is the responsibility of the jail where he is in to look after his welfare. In the case presented above, there was a glaring evidence of jail beating in Orange because this was documented on video.

Let us take a look at some of the basic rights of inmates:

• Aside from a right to humane facilities, pre-trial detainees are not to be punished or treated guilty while waiting for the trial.

• As stated in the Constitution, under the Eight Amendment, inmates have the right to be free from "inhuman" conditions as these conditions make up "cruel and unusual" punishment.

• Inmates have the rights not to be sexually abused.

• Inmates have the rights have the right to voice out opinion about jail conditions and treatments of inmates in the jail. More over, they have the right to access to the courts to give their complaints about the prison.

• Inmates who have sickness are entitled to medical care and necessary treatment. The treatment must be sufficient.

• Inmates have the right not to be racially segregated. Racial segregation, however, is accepted when it is necessary in preserving discipline and prison security.

• Inmates have the right to be free from unauthorized and intentional deprivation of their personal property by prison official as enshrined under the Due Process Clause of the Constitution.

These are just the basic rights of an inmate in jail. If you have relatives in jail and that they are being beaten by fellow inmates and jail officials, do not hesitate to look for a reputable civil rights lawyer who can help you fight for the rights of your loved one. Let us learn from the case of Gilbert Garcia. His family had chosen two good civil rights lawyers who helped in building a strong case against the culprits. It is in this way that no more Gilbert Garcia is abused inside the jail and that the culture of acceptance of jail beating is overcome.