Michelle Ortiz was serving a one-year sentence at the Ohio Reformatory for Women when she was sexually assaulted by a prison guard. She fought off the attack and reported it to a prison case manager. But Ortiz says nothing was done and she was assaulted again the next day by the same guard. She also said she was put in solitary confinement as retaliation for talking about the attacks. When Ortiz sued the prison case manager and the prison official that put her in solitary, they attempted to have the case dismissed saying they had "qualified immunity." This is a defense that prevents public officials from being sued if they do not violate rights which a "reasonable person" would know. The district court rejected the request to dismiss, a motion called "summary judgment." The case went to trial and a jury awarded Ortiz $625,000. But the US Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals in Cincinnati later reversed the decision in a 2-1 move, saying the lower court was wrong not to dismiss the case, or grant summary judgment.
David E Mills, a private Cleveland attorney, says this was where he saw an opportunity for former inmate, Michelle Ortiz.
David Mills:The Court of Appeals essentially went back to that pretrial summary judgment decision which struck me as a little bit strange since the trial had already taken place and typically the Court of Appeals will look at issues from the trial or after the trial.
Twenty-six states, Puerto Rico and the District of Columbia filed briefs backing the Ohio prison officials, but in the end all nine US Supreme Court Justices agreed with Mills. Mills says he's not yet sure if the ruling will end Ortiz's legal odyssey or if there are still issues to be worked out in lower courts. The 34-year-old attorney says publicity around the case has helped grow his fledgling solo practice which he still runs out of his Cleveland apartment.