Timm v. Gunter

Nebraska operated an all-male, maximum-security prison (the prison) (defendant). Both female guards (defendants) and male guards were permitted to conduct pat searches of clothed male prisoners. However, prison policy required that female guards first ask whether a prisoner preferred his groin area searched by a male guard. This rule meant female guards always had to be paired with male guards and could not be assigned to one-officer posts. Female guards also were not assigned to shifts when prisoners were most likely to be showering. James Timm and other prisoners (plaintiffs) sued the prison and its female guards, claiming the use of female guards for pat searches and visual surveillance while prisoners were partially or fully naked violated the prisoners’ constitutional privacy rights. The prisoners also alleged a violation of their equal-protection rights because the state’s equivalent all-female prison used less invasive security procedures. The female guards counterclaimed, alleging the regulations denied them equal employment opportunities due to limited shift options and the lack of experience in one-officer posts, which in turn hindered promotion to supervisory roles. The prisoners moved for summary judgment. The district court denied the prisoners’ equal-protection claim but partially granted their privacy claims and issued an injunction changing the prison’s regulations. Under this order, a female guard could determine that a prisoner’s request for a male pat search was too disruptive, female guards had to make minor courtesy accommodations while patrolling naked prisoners, and the prison was required to adjust staffing as needed to accommodate a prisoner’s privacy needs. All parties appealed.