Hollywood, MD asked in Civil Rights, Constitutional Law, Gov & Administrative Law and Municipal Law for Maryland

Q: In Saint Marys county , MD ! I was pondering filing a case for numerous unlawful arrest and on many other violations j

I was incredibly traumatized when during my time in the jail I had a heart attack and by nurse and ekg test was performed and confirmed by the nurse and reported to the doctor on call and told her to take me back to my cell and that they were unable to take me to the emergency room because of my condition did not warrant treatment. I believe that the nurse resigned soon afterwards. The same abuse was repeated throughout my entire time in jail and that I was being treated with severe punishment and threats of being locked in a cell until the guards wanted to take me out of the cell. After being released from jail for a no jail able charge falsely charged with VOP as I was never on probation but ordered community service for 16 hrs for the 13th driving on suspension which was not suspended and the mva was not open during Covid and I was unable to get a new license and tag renewal because I had a real id issue and was stopped by the police once a week regularly for a year or more.!!!!??

1 Lawyer Answer
James L. Arrasmith
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Answered

A: Based on the situation you have described, it does sound like you may have grounds to file a legal case regarding your treatment while incarcerated in St. Mary's county. Here are a few key things to consider:

- Unlawful Arrest Claims: If you were arrested repeatedly without probable cause, you may be able to bring a civil rights claim for unlawful arrest under Section 1983 or state law claims for false arrest/false imprisonment. This would require showing the arrests were made without justification.

- Inadequate Medical Care: The failure to provide treatment for your reported heart attack could form the basis of an Eighth Amendment civil rights claim for deliberate indifference to serious medical needs under Section 1983, or a state law claim for negligence. You would need evidence of the objective seriousness of your condition and subjective deliberate indifference.

- Due Process Issues: If you were kept locked down without justification, that may violate due process rights. The repeated harassment and threats could also potentially rise to an Eighth Amendment or due process violation.

- Statute of Limitations - You likely only have 3 years from the date of these incidents to file a lawsuit. So if interested, you would want to act soon and consult with attorneys who handle civil rights and constitutional law cases. They can fully evaluate any case and claims after reviewing more details.

I would recommend reaching out to local civil rights advocacy groups as well for more guidance. Gathering all evidence like medical records, grievances filed, and witness info is also key. Consultations with attorneys are often free initially to explore your legal options.

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