Section 1983 claims asserting violations of federal constitutional rights are commonly referred to as “constitutional tort” actions. In fact many common-law tort principles have been read into the §1983 claim for relief. One of the most important of these common-law principles is proximate cause.
The application of proximate cause to §1983 claims is supported by the language of §1983 authorizing imposition of liability against a person who, acting under color of state law, “subjects, or causes to be subjected” another to the “deprivation” of her federally protected rights. In other words, there must be a causal relationship between defendant’s conduct and the deprivation of plaintiff’s federally protected rights. The Supreme Court holds that §1983 should be interpreted “against the background of tort liability that makes a [person] responsible for the natural consequences of his [or her] actions.”1
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