SAN DIEGO (CN) — An inmate in the San Diego County Jail who says that his thumb was amputated when a door closed on his hand while he was being patted down by two deputies can proceed with a lawsuit against the deputies and jail staff, a federal judge found.
Mauricio Bernal says that he was being patted down near a metal open staff doorway while incarcerated in the jail in July 2023. As the door began to close, deputies Richard Pham and T. Gonzales moved his arms toward the door, severing his thumb and permanently damaging his index finger, he says.
U.S. District Judge Anthony Whelan, a Bill Clinton appointee, allowed the negligence claims against the deputies for the injury live on despite the county’s attempt to dismiss the case…