Case law pertaining to prison suicide liability in Section 1983 civil lawsuits shows several trends in future liability considerations. Supreme Court decisions regarding deliberate indifference standards, as set forth in Estelle v. Gamble, are compared with present deliberate indifference standards produced by the Farmer v. Brennan ruling. Although some researchers have hailed the Farmer decision as a potential benefit to plaintiffs in prison suicide cases, such claims do not appear to hold merit. The effects of the Farmer decision on Section 1983 prison suicide litigation have created difficulties in proving suicide liability as a violation of constitutionally established civil rights.
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