Key Takeaways
- California Correctional Institution warden Thomas Valdez denies that he or his staff violated Tory Lanez’s rights or contributed to inmate Santino Casio stabbing the rapper 14 times.
- Lanez’s lawsuit accuses prison officials of ignoring Casio’s violent history and showing “deliberate indifference to foreseeable violence,” while seeking $100 million, plus additional damages tied to each wound and his facial scars.
- California Attorney General Rob Bonta’s office has moved to dismiss the corrections department from the suit, arguing federal law does not allow Lanez to sue the agency and the 11th Amendment grants the state immunity.
The prison warden is pushing back against claims made by Tory Lanez in his $100 million federal lawsuit over his stabbing by another inmate.
In a court document reviewed by Complex, Thomas Valdez, warden at the California Correctional Institution, is denying any wrongdoing on his part that led to Santino Casio stabbing Lanez 14 times last year.
In his lawsuit, which includes the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation and 50 correctional officers, the rapper alleges Valdez violated protocols by placing them together, given Casio’s “violent history.”
Lanez also accused the prison staff of showing "deliberate indifference to foreseeable violence,” as they were allegedly nowhere to be found when the stabbing occurred.
Valdez has denied that any staff member violated Lanez’s rights or caused him harm, and rejected the notion that any act or omission on their behalf played a part in the incident.
Casio allegedly claimed in a phone call that he heard rumors of Lanez plotting to harm him, and decided to attack the rapper after witnessing him carrying a weapon in his pocket.
Casio also allegedly did not intend on fatally stabbing Lanez.
Lanez is not only seeking $100 million in damages, but also $1 million per stab wound and $10 million for scars to his face.
The office of California attorney general Rob Bonta filed a motion in July to dismiss the lawsuit against the state’s Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation on the grounds that Lanez cannot use the agency under the federal law referenced in his suit.
The motion also claimed the state is granted immunity from a lawsuit because of the 11th Amendment.
