Figueredo v. Jenne
Docket: No. 4D01-1753
Court: District Court of Appeal of Florida; June 12, 2002; Florida; State Appellate Court
Alejandro Figueredo filed a civil lawsuit against Sheriff Jenne while awaiting trial at the Broward County Jail, seeking injunctive and declaratory relief, along with compensatory and punitive damages for alleged mistreatment as a pretrial detainee. He claimed he was denied a bed, medical care, access to publications, visitation rights, court access, and privacy. The trial court dismissed all seven counts of his complaint. On appeal, Figueredo challenged the dismissal of five counts. Counts II (denial of access to publications) and V (violation of privacy rights) were dismissed without prejudice, leading to the dismissal of the appeal for those counts as such dismissals are non-final and nonappealable. For the remaining counts—denial of medical attention and a bed (Count I), denial of visitation (Count III), and limitation of access to courts (Count IV)—the appellate court affirmed the trial court's dismissal but reversed the dismissal with prejudice. The appellate court agreed that Figueredo's failure to meet the statutory prerequisites under section 768.28(6)(a), Florida Statutes, warranted dismissal, but it did not require dismissal with prejudice. It acknowledged that, although Figueredo's claims were not well-articulated, they were sufficient to potentially support a cause of action if he could properly allege and prove the necessary prerequisites. The appellate court therefore reversed and remanded for further proceedings on Counts I, III, and IV. The decision was partially dismissed, partially affirmed, and partially remanded, with concurrence from Justices Stevenson and Taylor.