Applying the “state-created danger” doctrine, circuit courts have generally held that a state actor who creates a risk of injury for a private party faces liability if injury occurs. But in Fisher v. Moore, the Fifth Circuit declined to apply the doctrine where public school teachers failed to protect a disabled student. Why would the Fifth Circuit diverge so sharply from nearly every other circuit to consider the matter? In large part, the answer relates to the Supreme Court’s stance on substantive due process rights in its decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization.
March
2024