Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals rules that the alleged fondling of a federal inmate’s genitals by a prison guard did not constitute a “sexual act” cognizable under the Federal Tort Claims Act

By Sands, White & Sands, PA

| March 12, 2021

On February 26, 2021, in Johnson v. White, et al., No. 19-14436, the Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that a federal inmate did not have a cognizable claim against the government under the Federal Tort Claims Act (FTCA) because the tortious conduct, the alleged fondling of the plaintiff’s genitals by a prison guard, did not qualify as either a “physical injury” or a “sexual act” under 28 U.S.C. § 1346(b)(2). Section 1346 cross-references the definition of “sexual act” in 18 U.S.C. § 2246, which excludes touching of the genitalia without penetration unless the victim is under 16years of age.

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