Inmate Sues Over Eye Surgery
A federal inmate has pulled off a rare feat – suing the federal government and getting a trial date.
Johnny Davis filed suit in 2008 in federal court in Pikeville over complications stemming from eye surgery while done while housed at Big Sandy federal prison in Inez in eastern Kentucky. Davis worked for three years without an attorney to push the suit forward before a Lexington law firm took up his cause in 2011.
On Thursday, U.S. District Judge Amul Thapar set a trial for Davis in May in Lexington.
Legal experts say an inmate has to beat long odds to get a case against the government to trial.
Davis is serving a life sentence for drug offenses. He’s currently housed at the federal prison in Williamsburg, S.C.
