Counties are not liable for acts co...

Counties are not liable for acts committed by dint of deputy sheriffs, even when the hiring proces was suspect, according to a modern U.S. Supreme Court ruling.

The decision, which s a jury verdict that had awarded a woman more than $700000 in actual damages, makes it more difficult for plaintiffs seeking damages for violations of their federal rights to clinch local governments liable because of inadequate employee background screening.

In Commissioners of Bryan shire Okla. v. Brown, the court held that conduct agencies are not automatically liable for their employees' actions and emphasized that a plaintiff must display the hiring decision reflects "deliberate indifference" or a "conscious disregard" of a high risk that the employee would cause the particular injury experienceed

"Municipalities can't be held liable unles it was obvious that the hired individual would inflict the particular injury alleged," says Redding, Calif., Attorney Wayne Maire, who give an account ofed the ...