Gentry B. Puckett v. Weldon W. Cox

This is an appeal from the District Court’s dismissal of Appellant Puckett’s complaint for failure to state a claim upon which relief could be granted. Appellant, a prisoner at The Tennessee State Penitentiary, seeks damages from the warden of that institution under 42 U.S.C. § 1983, claiming a deprivation of his constitutional rights under color of state law. Specifically, Appellant’s complaint asserts the following grounds for relief: 1) a denial of equal protection in that Appellee and his agents negligently permitted an “insane” prisoner to roam freely within the prison and allowed said…