D. Who You Can Sue
In your complaint you have to name at least one defendant. But if you want, you can name more than one. You should include all of the people or entities that were responsible for the harm that you suffered. You must have a good reason to sue someone. People who were not involved in violating your rights cannot be sued under Section 1983 for damages.
Every defendant you sue must have acted "under color of state law" as you learned in Chapter Two, Section A, Part 2. What this means is that each prison official who was responsible for your injury must have acted while working at your prison or otherwise "on duty." This can include anyone who is involved in running your prison. You can sue the people who work in your prison, such as guards, as well as the people that provide services to prisoners, such as nurses or doctors.
You have to prove that each defendant in your case acted or failed to act in a way that led to the violation of your rights. This is called "causation." For example, if a guard illegally beats you and violates your rights, they cause your injury. The guard's supervisor could also be liable for violating your rights if you can show that the supervisor made or carried out a "policy" or "practice" that led to the violation of your rights. So let's say that the prison warden, who is the supervisor of the guard who beat you, instructed their guards to beat prisoners anytime that they did not follow orders. In this instance, the warden didn't actually beat you themselves, but they are responsible for creating a policy that led to the beatings.
Sometimes, a supervisor may also be sued for ignoring or failing to react to a widespread health or safety problem. For example, if the warden was aware that guards refused to let prisoners eat on a regular basis and did not do anything to stop it, you might be able to sue the warden as well as the guards, arguing all of them were deliberately indifferent.
In 2009 the Supreme Court decided a case called Ashcroft v. Iqbal, 556 U.S. 662 (2009), that may limit the ways in which supervisors can be sued for ignoring illegal action. Some courts are interpreting Iqbal to limit a plaintiff's right to sue a supervisor who ignored illegal action by a guard they supervised. Other courts have found that ignoring illegal action is still a ground for suit after Iqbal. This issue is discussed in more detail in Part 2 of this section.
You also have to decide whether you are suing a defendant in their "individual capacity," "official capacity," or both. If you are suing for damages under Section 1983, you should sue defendants in their individual or personal capacity. You are still saying that they acted under color of law, but you are seeking damages against them personally. If you are suing for injunctive relief under Section 1983, you should sue the defendants in their official capacity. You can sue defendants in both their individual and official capacities if you are asking for...
