Legal Aid Center of Southern Nevada Voulentters

A man is living with unmanaged chronic pain because the medical staff at Clark County Detention Center (CCDC) allegedly ignored his requests for proper treatment and an annual exam while in the custody. In 2006, he was injured in a car accident that left him with chronic pain. He started pain management and underwent multiple tests in which surgery was deemed necessary, but he never received it. He became a CCDC inmate in 2010 and received medical care for his chronic pain until September 2015. Despite multiple requests to continue treatment and medication, he alleges he did not receive the care requested. In March 2016, CCDC and Naphcare allegedly removed him from “sick call” altogether without explanation and denied him an annual exam for his chronic pain. After submitting multiple grievances to the jail, he filed a 42 USC 1983 claim alleging Eighth Amendment cruel and unusual punishment and Fourteenth Amendment due process and equal protection violations. He is seeking counsel through the Federal Pro Bono Program.

A man has multiple injuries after he fell in the shower and hit his head while in Nevada Department of Corrections custody causing nausea, spinning feeling/vertigo, confusion, shakes/tremors, slurred speech, and equilibrium issues in May 2017. Despite the concussion-like injury and repeated requests for treatment, he alleges he was not seen for two months and only after repeated requests for a doctor’s appointment and filing an informal grievance. He was then given multiple medications that were ineffective so he was taken off the medications. He had an MRI in November 2017 but allegedly did not receive the results until a year later and the results were inconclusive. It took a year for him to be approved to see a specialist for the medical issues. He was prescribed a new medication but was allegedly denied the prescribed medication. His condition has caused additional injuries. He filed a civil rights complaint under 42 USC 1983 against NDOC. He alleged deliberate indifference to serious medical needs, a policy to callously delay or deny ordered treatment, and issues involving insufficient medial staffing at Lovelock Correctional Center. He would like representation in this matter through the Federal Pro Bono Program.

A man is now diabetic and suffers from complications of diabetes after he was allegedly physically forced to take medication while in the custody of the Nevada Department of Corrections (NDOC). He alleges he was forced to take the medication despite a known risk of elevating blood sugar levels and he was not told of the risks or given the opportunity to make an educated decision on whether to take it. As a result, he filed a 42 U.S.C. 1983 claim in 2014 seeking damages for mental anguish and humiliation, impairment of reputation, out of pocket losses, pain and suffering, emotional distress, impairment, and loss of quality of life. The complaint was initially dismissed and the inmate appealed it to the 9th Circuit. It was remanded to allow him to amend the complaint and give him an opportunity to add any Americans with Disabilities Act and 14th Amendment claims. He amended the complaint and added the additional claims and the Defendants motioned for a rescreening of the complaint. The motion was granted and the First Amended Complaint was dismissed, but the inmate was given an opportunity to file a Second Amended Complaint. He is seeking counsel through the Federal Pro Bono Program. Next Deadline(s): Second Amended Complaint is due 60 days after the Notice of Appearance.

After he expressed his concerns with the unconstitutional living conditions in the prison, a Nevada Department of Corrections (NDOC) prisoner was transferred to a higher security housing unit, was deprived of the ability to work a prison job or attend programs, lost canteen privileges for a period of time, and experienced a negative impact on his parole points. He believes these disciplinary actions were in retaliation for filing multiple grievances against NDOC for food shortages, living conditions, inadequate medical treatment, and other concerns. Instead of addressing the grievances, he believes NDOC punished him for allegedly abusing the grievance process. He filed a 42 U.S. 1983 complaint alleging the retaliation was a violation of his first amendment rights and his due process rights protected by the U.S. Constitution and would like representation through the Federal Pro Bono Program in this case.

A man suffering from Hepatitis C, a curable disease, now has irreversible liver damage with incurable cirrhosis because the Nevada Department of Corrections (NDOC) allegedly did not give him the treatment he needed to take care of the Hepatitis C. He believes NDOC failed to provide him with any “one of the many commercially available drugs” to cure his Hepatitis C despite knowing that not doing so would cause serious risk to his health. As a result, he filed a 42 U.S.C. 1983 complaint alleging violations of the Eighth Amendment. His complaint claims “Defendants—doctors and administrators at High Desert State Prison—violated his rights through deliberate indifference to his serious medical needs.” This inmate is seeking representation through the Federal Pro Bono Program.

A 61-year-old man suffering from prostate cancer while in prison alleges he was not given his diagnosis until six months after the Nevada Department of Corrections (NDOC) knew he was sick and was not allowed to see a doctor until a year after the initial biopsy. He had a biopsy in March 2020 and NDOC personnel allegedly knew the results in April 2020 but did not tell him of the diagnosis until October 2020. He then alleges he tried to get follow-up appointments and treatment, but it was not until March 2021 that he was finally able to see a doctor who recommended a biopsy and treatment, which had not occurred by June 2021. As a result, he filed a 42 U.S.C. 1983 complaint alleging violations of the Eighth Amendment. He is seeking counsel through the Federal Pro Bono Program to help him get the treatment he needs so he has a chance of surviving and for additional relief because of his suffering.

An inmate has been in the custody of the Nevada Department of Corrections for allegedly much longer than required as a result of alleged improper application of credit for time served. As a result, he filed a 42 U.S.C. 1983 complaint alleging he did not get the proper credit for time served and has deprived him of his liberty. He needs an attorney to fight for him through the Federal Pro Bono Program.

On December 5, 2019, while being held in the Clark County Detention Center, this individual alleges that the Clark County Detention Center violated his Fourth, Eighth, and Fourteenth amendment rights when he was drugged during his morning meal. He is represented by counsel in the underlying state proceedings, but needs representation in his 42 U.S.C. 1983 matter to protect his rights.