Helena, MontanaHelena Civil Rights
Helena Civil Rights Lawyers: Jail Deaths, In-Custody Injuries, Excessive Force and Section 1983 Claims in Lewis and Clark County
Boland Aarab PLLP.
If someone was seriously hurt or died in the Lewis and Clark County Detention Center, at the Montana State Prison, or at the hands of police or corrections officers in the Helena area, the family or injured person may have a federal civil rights claim under 42 U.S.C. § 1983 and claims under Montana law. Those cases are heard in the federal Helena Division.
Key Takeaways
Lost a family member in custody, or hurt by excessive force in the Helena area? Contact Boland Aarab PLLP for a free consultation at (406) 315-3737.
Which Helena-area facilities and agencies are involved in these cases?
The county jail. The Lewis and Clark County Detention Center, at 221 Breckenridge Avenue in Helena, is run by the Lewis and Clark County Sheriff’s Office (county Detention Center page). Most people held there are pretrial detainees who have not been convicted of anything. For them, the Ninth Circuit judges excessive-force and medical-care claims under an objective standard (Kingsley v. Hendrickson, 576 U.S. 389 (2015); Gordon v. County of Orange (9th Cir. 2018)). A claim over jail conditions, medical care, suicide prevention or force is a claim against the county and the individual staff, and sometimes a private jail medical contractor.
Police and sheriff’s deputies. The Helena Police Department and the Sheriff’s Office share the Law and Justice Center at 406 Fuller Avenue. Excessive-force claims arising from arrests, traffic stops and welfare checks are judged under the Fourth Amendment’s objective-reasonableness standard (Graham v. Connor, 490 U.S. 386 (1989)). Body-camera and dash-camera video is often decisive.
The Montana State Prison and the Department of Corrections. The Montana State Prison sits west of Deer Lodge in unincorporated Powell County, and the Department of Corrections is headquartered in Helena. Because Powell County is part of the Helena Division, federal civil rights cases arising at the prison are generally heard at the Paul G. Hatfield Federal Courthouse in Helena. The State and the Department itself cannot be sued for damages under § 1983 (Will), so those claims are brought against individual officials, and state-law claims against the State go first to the Department of Administration (§ 2-9-301, MCA). Convicted prisoners’ claims arise under the Eighth Amendment, which generally requires proof of the official’s awareness of the risk.
We describe these institutions so families know where a case would go. Each case depends entirely on its own facts, and we make no assumption about any facility or officer.
What happens after a death or serious injury in custody near Helena?
Preserve the evidence immediately. The most important evidence belongs to the jail or prison: surveillance video, cell-check and observation logs, intake and suicide-screening forms, medical and medication records, incident reports, radio and phone records, and staffing rosters. Video is often kept on short retention schedules. We send written preservation demands to the county, the Department of Corrections and any contractor at the outset.
Request records and the investigation. A death in custody is typically investigated by an outside law enforcement agency and reviewed by the county coroner. Those reports, and the autopsy, are central to the case.
Present state-law claims. Claims against Lewis and Clark County must be presented to its clerk; claims against the State, to the Department of Administration (§ 2-9-301).
File in the right court. Section 1983 cases are usually filed in the U.S. District Court’s Helena Division, at the Paul G. Hatfield Federal Courthouse, 901 Front Street, together with related Montana claims. The Helena clerk’s office is not open to the public; filings are electronic. State-law-only cases may be filed in the First Judicial District Court at the Lewis and Clark County Courthouse, 228 Broadway (§ 3-5-101(1), MCA).
Montana law that applies
Briefly: alongside the federal claims, Montana provides wrongful-death and survival claims (§ 27-1-513; § 27-1-501, MCA), negligence and medical-negligence claims, and protections for individual dignity and against cruel and unusual punishment in the Montana Constitution (Art. II, § 4; § 22). State-law damages against government entities are capped at $750,000 per claim and $1.5 million per occurrence, and the detention-immunity rule does not reach serious bodily injury or death caused by negligence, medical malpractice or intentional torts (§ 2-9-108, MCA). Individual officers may raise qualified immunity; counties may not (Owen v. City of Independence, 445 U.S. 622). Section 1983 and wrongful-death claims generally have a 3-year deadline, and state assault and battery claims 2 years (§ 27-2-204, MCA). The statewide Montana civil rights lawyer page covers Monell, qualified immunity and the Montana claims in depth.
Why hire a Great Falls firm for a Helena case?
Because these are federal cases against counties, the State’s officials and their insurers, fought through qualified-immunity motions and sometimes interlocutory appeals. Experience in the District of Montana matters more than an address. We are based in Great Falls, handle cases statewide, and our attorneys travel to Helena and Deer Lodge for depositions, inspections, hearings and trial. We do not have a Helena office.
The Boland Aarab Way
- We have held a county accountable for a death in custody. In Estate of Alexander v. Cascade County, we obtained a $550,000 settlement in a § 1983 and wrongful-death case.
- We know federal and appellate court. Our attorneys have handled more than 40 cases in the U.S. District Court for the District of Montana over nine years, and Samir Aarab has argued twice before the Ninth Circuit.
- We try cases against government. We won a $115,000 net jury verdict in a municipal negligence case (Jack v. City of White Sulphur Springs).
- We are part of the trial and public-interest bar. Both attorneys belong to AAJ and MTLA; Caitlin Boland Aarab is an AAJ Governor and serves on the MTLA Board, and Samir Aarab is a member of Public Justice.
We also handle wrongful death cases in Helena, medical malpractice cases in Helena and other Helena cases.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can a family sue after a death in the Lewis and Clark County jail? Often, if the death resulted from constitutional violations or negligence. The estate may bring § 1983 and survival claims, and the family may bring wrongful-death claims against the county and responsible individuals.
Where would a civil rights case from the Montana State Prison be filed? Generally in the federal Helena Division, because Deer Lodge and the prison are in Powell County, which the Helena Division covers.
Can I sue the Montana Department of Corrections under Section 1983? Not for damages. A State and its agencies are not “persons” under § 1983 (Will, 491 U.S. 58), but individual officials may be sued, and state-law claims against the State may be presented under § 2-9-301.
What evidence matters most in a Helena in-custody case? Jail video, cell-check logs, intake screening, medical records and incident reports. They must be preserved immediately, before routine deletion.
How long do we have to file? Generally 3 years for § 1983 and wrongful-death claims (§ 27-2-204, MCA), but state claims against the county or State must first be presented, and evidence should be preserved right away.
Talk to a Helena Civil Rights Lawyer
Contact Boland Aarab PLLP for a free consultation at (406) 315-3737.
Our attorneys: Caitlin Boland Aarab · Samir F. Aarab
Sources: 42 U.S.C. § 1983 · Monell · Will v. Michigan Dep’t of State Police · Owen · Graham v. Connor · Kingsley · Gordon v. County of Orange · Mont. Const. art. II, §§ 4, 22 · § 2-9-108 · § 2-9-301 · § 27-2-204, MCA · D. Mont. L.R. 1.2 · Lewis and Clark County Detention Center
Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. Reading it does not create an attorney-client relationship.
