Hunter

Robert Hunter and Howard Eley, the plaintiffs in this § 1983 action, sought to prove at trial that they were subjected to excessive force while in custody at the Sacramento County Main Jail pursuant to the County’s allegedly unconstitutional custom or practice of using excessive force at the Main Jail. The jury found in favor of the County, and the District Court denied plaintiffs’ motion for a new trial. In this appeal, plaintiffs argue that the District Court erred by refusing to use certain jury instructions they requested. Because we agree that the District Court erred, and that its error was prejudicial, we reverse the District Court’s order and remand for a new trial.

I

Plaintiffs initiated this action on March 3, 2006, and filed their Second Amended Complaint (“Complaint”) on August 22, 2006. The Complaint alleges that, on September 17, 2005, plaintiff Hunter was arrested for driving while under the influence. He was taken to the Sacramento County Main Jail (“Main Jail”), where he was placed in a detox cell with a clogged and overflowing toilet. The Complaint further alleges that when Hunter alerted several deputies of the Sacramento County Sheriffs Department…