Section 1983 Reform
Passed in 1871, 42 USC ยง 1983 gives individuals the right to sue state officials if those officials violate their constitutional rights. Originally conceived of as a way of ensuring that local officials did not violate the recently-ratified Fourteenth Amendment, the statute does not authorize lawsuits against the federal government. In 1971, in a case called Bivens vs. Six Unknown Federal Narcotics Agents, the Supreme Court partially extended Section 1983 to the federal government and authorized individuals to sue the federal government when their Fourth Amendment rights were violated. Subsequently, however, the Supreme Court has been reluctant to extend these Bivens actions, going so far as to rule in 2022, in Egbert v Boule, that, absent congressional authorization, the federal […]