Pugh v. State

This action was brought to recover damages for personal injuries suffered by the claimant while he was an inmate in Stateville Penitentiary at Joliet. Claimant’s injuries were allegedly caused by the negligent acts of a prison guard who forced claimant, under threat of punishment, to ride in an unsafe place on a tractor in violation of prison rules.

We will first state certain facts which are not in dispute. On April 22, 1967, claimant was a prisoner at Stateville Penitentiary, confined on the prison farm. On that date he was assigned by the officer in charge to work on the plumbing detail,…