Peckham v. Wisconsin Department of Corrections
United States Court of Appeal for the Seventh Circuit
141 F.3d 694 (1998)
- Written by Elliot Stern, JD
Facts
Jane Peckham (plaintiff) was a prisoner who filed a complaint alleging that prison officials in the Wisconsin Department of Corrections (Wisconsin) (defendant) had unconstitutionally subjected her to repeated strip searches. According to Peckham, prison guards conducted strip searches even though Peckham had not been out of the sight of her guards, and guards often searched her even when she did not have contact with other inmates or outsiders. Under the prison’s policy, guards were to conduct strip searches of a prisoner when the prisoner arrived from another facility, from court, or from a doctor; after contact with anyone from outside the prison; or when the prisoner moved into segregation. All of the strip searches that Peckham was subjected to occurred within these guidelines. The district court held that the particular searches that Peckham complained of were not unreasonable and granted Wisconsin’s motion for summary judgment. Peckham appealed.
Rule of Law
Issue
Holding and Reasoning (Evans, J.)
Concurrence (Easterbrook, J.)
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