Zalazar v Kaminski
For the reasons set out below, this Court allows Plaintiff's Fourteenth Amendment claims to proceed against all Defendants in their individual capacities, but claims against Defendants in their official capacities seeking monetary damages shall be dismissed.
BACKGROUND
Plaintiff, Juan Zalazar, is currently civilly committed to the East Jersey State Prison Special Treatment Unit (STU) in Avenel, New Jersey, pursuant to the New Jersey Sexually Violent Predator ("SVP") Act, N.J. Stat. Ann. § 30:4-27.24 et seq. Plaintiff alleges in his complaint that the rules and regulations through which the STU is managed are interfering with his receipt of the prescribed medical treatment with which he must comply in order to be released from the facility. (Id. at 4-8).[1] Plaintiff alleges that, on multiple occasions, Corrections officers lock down or otherwise temporarily imprison the civilly committed individuals for security reasons (such as while transporting individual detainees to medical or other housing units). (Id. at 9-19).
Plaintiff alleges that while his housing unit is in lockdown, "treatment staff is told to leave the . . . unit" and treatment is either postponed or cancelled altogether for that day. (Id. at 9). Plaintiff alleges that this temporary cessation of treatment during lock up situations prevents him from receiving treatment and thus extends his term of commitment at the STU. (Id. at 12). Plaintiff provides several specific instances in which his unit was locked down for a variety of reasons, and treatment was postponed or cancelled as a result, including December 18 and 19, 2014. (Id. at 9-12).
