Tangreti v. Bachmann, 983 F.3d 609

Cara Tangreti, incarcerated at York Correctional Institute (Aug 2013–Nov 2014), was sexually abused repeatedly by three correctional officers over several months; those officers were later terminated and criminally prosecuted.
Tangreti sued eight supervisory officials under 42 U.S.C. § 1983, alleging Eighth Amendment deliberate indifference to a substantial risk of sexual abuse.
The district court granted summary judgment for seven defendants but denied summary judgment and qualified immunity to counselor supervisor Christine Bachmann, finding a triable issue as to her personal involvement.
Bachmann appealed, arguing that Ashcroft v. Iqbal changed the law on supervisory liability and that the record did not show she had the requisite subjective knowledge to be liable.
The Second Circuit held that post-Iqbal there is no special supervisory-liability test: a plaintiff must plead and prove that each official, by his or her own actions, violated the Constitution; for Eighth Amendment deliberate-indifference claims, the supervisor must have subjective knowledge of and disregard a substantial risk of serious harm.
Applying that standard, the court concluded the pretrial record did not permit an inference that Bachmann had subjective knowledge of Tangreti’s ongoing sexual abuse and reversed, directing entry of summary judgment for Bachmann.

Issue	Tangreti's Argument	Bachmann's Argument	Held
Whether Iqbal eliminated a special supervisory-liability test and thus whether supervisory liability was clearly established	Colon’s multi-factor supervisory test allowed liability for gross negligence or failure to act on information	Iqbal requires pleading each official’s own individual actions; no special supervisor test; liability not clearly established under Colon	Iqbal supersedes any special supervisory test; plaintiffs must plead/prove each official’s own conduct and mental state; supervisory liability not separately established by Colon
Whether the pretrial record shows Bachmann had subjective knowledge and deliberately disregarded a substantial risk of sexual abuse	Bachmann observed inappropriate interactions, received inmate complaints, and noticed changes in Tangreti’s behavior—sufficient for liability	Those facts show at most negligence or that she should have known; no evidence she subjectively inferred and disregarded the risk before Oct 31, 2014	The record does not support an inference Bachmann subjectively knew of and disregarded a substantial risk; summary judgment for Bachmann required

Ashcroft v. Iqbal, 556 U.S. 662 (2009) (plaintiff must plead that each government official, through the official’s own actions, violated the Constitution)
Farmer v. Brennan, 511 U.S. 825 (1994) (deliberate indifference requires subjective knowledge of and disregard for substantial risk)
Colon v. Coughlin, 58 F.3d 865 (2d Cir. 1995) (articulated pre-Iqbal supervisory-liability categories)
Taylor v. Barkes, 135 S. Ct. 2042 (2015) (qualified immunity requires violation of a clearly established right)
Vega v. Semple, 963 F.3d 259 (2d Cir. 2020) (Eighth Amendment failure-to-protect standard reiterating Farmer’s subjective knowledge requirement)