On April 13, 2007, plaintiff Ivan Carter Jr., 53, a prison inmate, was using the law library at Kern Valley State Prison, while fellow inmates were out in the yard. At approximately 1:10 p.m., the inmates were called back in, a process that involves them stripping down to their underwear so their clothes and bodies can be searched. When Carter was to be searched, a scuffle ensued that resulted in him being taken to the ground and handcuffed. Carter claimed bruises to his head and body, as well as fractured ribs from the incident. Carter sued correctional officers Angel Fernandez, Ruben Reynaga, and Humberto Carrillo, as well as the vocational nurse, Leona Ceasear, and the staff nurse, Darren Jones. He alleged that Fernandez, Reynaga and Ceasear used excessive force against him, and that Ceasear and Jones were deliberately indifferent to his . Carter, acting pro per at trial, contended that when he was finished in the law library, he requested that he set aside his books and documents in the housing unit before being searched. However, he claimed that the correctional officers denied his request, causing a conflict to ensue during which he was thrown to the ground and beaten by the three officers. He alleged that during the conflict, the officers kicked him in the head and ribcage. After the incident, Carter was escorted to the prison’s medical facility, where Ceasear saw him. Carter claimed that Ceasear falsified his the medical report of injury and failed to provide any medical care. He further claimed that Jones also denied him treatment, and that the actions of both Ceasear and Jones served as deliberate indifference to his medical needs. The correctional officers denied the plaintiff’s allegations and claimed that when he was about to be searched, Carter threw his books down to the ground, striking one of them, and exhibited hostility. They also claimed that Carter twice refused to turn around and be cuffed and that when Fernandez attempted to restrain him, the plaintiff spun around and dove toward the officer’s legs. Fernandez claimed that this caused him to take Carter down by the legs and cuff him on the ground, while both Reynaga and Carrillo held the plaintiff down. In addition, the defense’s liability expert testified that the officers used reasonable and necessary force to gain compliance from Carter, who was acting noncompliant and violent. In regards to medical treatment, Ceasear claimed she provided adequate medical care for Carter, who only suffered minor scrapes and bruises to his forehead and elbow. Jones also denied Carter’s allegations and claimed that he was not working or present at the facility on the date of loss., Carter claimed that he sustained multiple bruises to his forehead and body, as well as fractured ribs as a result of the defendants’ use of force. Thus, he sought recovery of $25,000 in compensatory damages and $25,000 in punitive damages from the correctional officers. Carter further sought recovery of $10,000 in compensatory damages and $10,000 in punitive damages from the medical defendants. Defense counsel contended that Carter did not sustain a serious injury from the incident in question, only minor scrapes and bruises to his forehead and elbow, which were gauzed by Ceasear at the medical facility. Counsel also contended that Carter did not suffer any rib fractures during the incident in question, and that the plaintiff was previously shot in the ribs prior to his incarceration.