Smith v. Harris County, No. 19-20194 (5th Cir. 2020)
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After Danarian Hawkins committed suicide while incarcerated in the Harris County Jail, his mother filed suit against the County for compensatory damages under Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act.
The Fifth Circuit affirmed the district court's grant of summary judgment to the County, holding that plaintiff failed to prove that Hawkins was subjected to intentional discrimination. In this case, Harris County did not intentionally discriminate against Hawkins by failing to remove the towel covering his window or by failing to conduct observation rounds every twenty-five minutes; the non-medical staff at the Harris County Jail did not intentionally discriminate against Hawkins by failing to provide additional accommodations, such as the suicide-prevention
measures identified by plaintiff; and the nurse who spoke with Hawkins the night before he died did not intentionally discriminate against Hawkins by failing to refer him to the Mental Health Unit or by failing to implement suicide-prevention measures.
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