Arnold Maxwell Harris v. George Jacobs

Arnold Harris, an inmate at the Oregon State Penitentiary, brought a pro se civil rights action alleging he was denied adequate medical care while incarcerated, in violation of the Eighth Amendment’s proscription against cruel and unusual punishment and the Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment. The district court entered summary judgment for defendants and Harris appealed. We affirm in part and remand for further proceedings.

I

Harris’s pro se complaint alleges that he suffers from a salt-related disease and has an intolerance for salt; that he suffers from severe headaches, nausea and deteriorating vision caused by ingestion of ordinary amounts of salt; that he sought but was denied treatment for his illness by prison medical personnel; that requests made by him and his son to have a private nonprison medical doctor examine and treat him were ignored by prison officials; and that as a result, he was subjected to cruel and unusual punishment and denied due process.

While his civil rights action was pending Harris filed a petition in state court for a writ of habeas corpus. His state habeas petition alleged an inadequate medical care claim similar to that in the…