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| Inmate loses lawsuit against prison workers |
| By Concord Monitor |
| Published: 12/15/2004 |
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Inmate James Skinner beat a murder charge for killing Eric Balagot in prison but he lost his civil lawsuit yesterday against four prison employees he had accused of jeopardizing his safety behind bars. A jury of four men and four women took about five hours yesterday at the federal court to acquit the four employees: Daniel Shaw, Jay Nagy, Walter Davies and Keith Hardy. Nancy Smith, who defended the case for the state attorney general's office, could not be reached yesterday evening. Skinner, serving time in a Massachusetts prison for an unrelated murder, also could not be reached for comment. Jurors also could not be reached. Skinner's attorney, Michael Sheehan of Concord, said he was disappointed and had figured that winning was the least of the battle. "I was worried about winning but getting a small number (in monetary damages),"said Sheehan, who did not name a figure because jurors decide damages in federal court. "I'm frankly puzzled as to how (jurors) got to where they did." Skinner, 41, killed Balagot, 29, on July 24, 1998, during a racially motivated fight in a recreation yard outside the maximum security unit at the state prison in Concord. Skinner, who is black, told jurors that Balagot, who had white supremacist tattoos, had used racist language and made a show of his tattoos prior to the fight. After Balagot threw two initial punches, Skinner punched and stomped him to death, according to court records. Skinner was acquitted of murder in 2000. He alleged in his lawsuit that the prison contributed to the unsafe conditions by not assigning anyone to monitor the yard and by using cameras employees knew frequently failed to work. Several witnesses confirmed both allegations. |
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