West Virginia Regional Jail and Correctional Facility Authority, an Agency of the State of West Virginia, Defendant…

Summary

The court held that the West Virginia Regional Jail and Correctional Facility Authority was immune from the plaintiff’s negligence and vicarious-liability claims arising from alleged sexual assaults by a correctional officer. The officer’s alleged assaults were manifestly outside the scope of his employment, and the plaintiff identified no clearly established law that the Authority violated through training, supervision, or retention decisions. Chief Justice Davis, dissenting, would have affirmed the denial of summary judgment based on the Authority’s alleged failure to protect the inmate and the special-relationship doctrine; Justice Benjamin, concurring, emphasized that the decision was limited to the pleaded negligence claims.