Miller v. Shah, 3:10-cv-00346

Derek Miller, a pretrial detainee at St. Clair County Jail, sues under 42 U.S.C. § 1983 for alleged constitutional deprivations.
The court conducts screening under 28 U.S.C. § 1915A and admonishes that claims may be dismissed if frivolous or fail to state a claim.
On December 23, 2009, Miller was assaulted by another inmate, sustaining a painful shoulder injury and a broken collarbone discovered later.
Miller informed jail staff of his injury repeatedly, but he received no medical treatment for about a week.
An x-ray on December 31 confirmed the broken collarbone; Miller alleged ongoing neglect by defendants Shaw (doctor) and St. Clair County Jail.
The court dismisses Miller’s failure-to-protect claim with prejudice and leaves the medical care claim for further development.

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument	Defendant's Argument	Held
Deliberate indifference to medical needs	Miller alleges Shaw and jail officials ignored a serious injury.	Defendants contend no deliberate indifference proven under standard	Medical care claim not dismissed; further development needed
Failure to protect against inmate assault	County failed to protect Miller from known risk of harm	No specific risk or prior threat shown; no liability	Dismissed with prejudice
Appointment of counsel	Right to counsel in civil cases should be considered	No automatic right to counsel in federal civil cases	Denied without prejudice
Discovery/records motion	Requests guidance to obtain medical records in preparation	Discovery premature; no service yet	Moot

Farmer v. Brennan, 511 U.S. 825 (U.S. 1994) (deliberate indifference standard for inmate safety and medical needs)
Qian v. Kline, 168 F.3d 955 (7th Cir. 1999) (objective and subjective components of medical-needs claim)
Gutierrez v. Peters, 111 F.3d 1364 (7th Cir. 1997) (serious medical need recognized by doctor or obvious to layperson)
Jackson v. Illinois Med-Care, Inc., 300 F.3d 760 (7th Cir. 2002) (recklessness and awareness required for deliberate indifference)
Reed v. McBride, 178 F.3d 849 (7th Cir. 1999) (requirements to show supervisory awareness of danger)
Neitzke v. Williams, 490 U.S. 319 (U.S. 1989) (frivolousness standard for § 1915A screening)