Ninth Circuit Victory for UC Hastings Appellate Project in Civil Rights Case

On July 18, 2011, the UC Hastings Appellate Project obtained a reversal from the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals in Wright v. Director of Corrections.

During their third year as UC Hastings students, Tiffany Gates '11 and Andrew Meade '11 represented Delano Wright in his appeal of a district court's order granting summary judgment on Mr. Wright's civil rights claims. Mr. Wright alleged that his Eighth Amendment rights were violated when prison guards at Calipatria State Prison forced him into the prison yard and then strangled him while slamming Wright's head against a wall. Wright also alleged that prison officials subsequently violated his First Amendment rights when he tried to file a grievance by threatening to confiscate his property and place him in administrative segregation. 

Ms. Gates and Mr. Meade filed opening and reply briefs on behalf of Wright, and Mr. Meade argued the case. The Ninth Circuit reversed virtually all of the district court's order. The unanimous three-judge panel found that the district court had applied the incorrect legal standard on the Eighth Amendment claims, and that Wright alleged adequate evidence to proceed on his First Amendment retaliation claims. In its memorandum remanding Mr. Wright's case, the Ninth Circuit also did the extraordinary—ordering the district court to appoint counsel to represent Mr. Wright at trial.

This is the UC Hastings Appellate Project’s second victory this year, and their second year of existence. In its first year, the program obtained reversal in one matter and a narrow loss by a divided panel of judges in another.

The UC Hastings Moot Court Program provides the opportunity for talented third year advocates to represent pro se litigants through the Hastings Appellate Project. This representation is made possible and coordinated by the Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit Pro Bono Program.