CAMDEN, NJ – A federal judge has denied the U.S. government’s attempt to dismiss a negligence lawsuit filed by an inmate who was brutally attacked at the Federal Correctional Institution (FCI) Fairton after officers allegedly ignored warnings that he was in danger.
U.S. District Judge Christine P. O’Hearn ruled that plaintiff Lenworth Parke’s claim under the Federal Tort Claims Act (FTCA) can move forward, rejecting the government’s argument that the case should be dismissed for lack of jurisdiction.
Parke alleges that on July 24, 2020, federal prison officials knowingly disregarded a credible threat against him after receiving a “drop note” — an anonymous inmate communication commonly used at FCI Fairton to accuse other prisoners of wrongdoing.
According to the complaint, the note falsely claimed that Parke had been in a fight and possessed a cell phone. Instead of investigating or moving him to protective housing, Lieutenants Barber, Robinson, and Wieler sent him back to his housing unit.
Moments later, Parke says another inmate struck him in the face with a weapon, knocking him unconscious. He was taken to an outside hospital where surgeons inserted a metal plate secured with 18 screws into his left cheek.
Government sought dismissal citing ‘discretionary function’ exception
The U.S. Attorney’s Office, representing the United States as the sole defendant, moved to dismiss the case under Rule 12(b)(1), arguing that inmate housing and investigation decisions fall within the “discretionary function” exception to the FTCA — a provision that shields the government from liability over policy-based or discretionary acts of its employees.
The government contended that such administrative decisions cannot serve as grounds for a federal tort claim.
Judge O’Hearn disagreed, finding that Parke’s complaint alleged specific acts of negligence that, if proven, would fall outside that exception.
Court finds claim within scope of FTCA
The court accepted Parke’s factual allegations as true for the purpose of deciding the motion, as required in a facial jurisdictional challenge. O’Hearn wrote that the complaint sufficiently claimed that Fairton officials had “actual knowledge of the danger” posed by the drop note system, based on prior incidents, and nonetheless failed to take reasonable protective action.
The opinion noted that Parke had previously been targeted by similar inmate tactics in 2019, during which officials removed him from the unit for safety — demonstrating that staff understood the risk such notes posed.
By ignoring those warnings, the court found, the officers’ conduct could constitute negligence under the FTCA’s standards.
Case to proceed to discovery
Parke first filed a tort claim with the Bureau of Prisons, which was denied in February 2022, before filing suit that June. His second amended complaint, filed in February 2025, details years of alleged systemic failures to protect inmates from retaliatory violence linked to misuse of the drop note system.
The denial of the government’s motion clears the way for discovery and potential trial proceedings.
