Ex Parte Alabama Department of Corrections (in Re Veronica McCaskill, as Administrator of the Estate of Tyus Elliott…

Summary

The court granted mandamus relief and directed the circuit court to enter summary judgment for the Alabama Department of Corrections and the prison defendants on sovereign-immunity, State-agent-immunity, and qualified-immunity grounds. The court held that the Department was constitutionally immune, that the individual defendants were exercising discretionary judgment and were not shown to have acted willfully, maliciously, fraudulently, in bad faith, or beyond their authority, and that the evidence did not establish deliberate indifference to a substantial risk of serious harm. MURDOCK, Justice, concurring specially, would expand the State-agent-immunity categories to include managing the confinement of prisoners in state custody.