Inmate with wool allergy moves forward with suit over Texas prison's refusal to give cotton blanket

Calvin Weaver, whose federal lawsuit just survived a motion to dismiss, is currently being held at the Pack Unit in Navasota. Calvin Weaver, whose federal lawsuit just survived a motion to dismiss, is currently being held at the Pack Unit in Navasota. Photo: BOB OWEN, STAFF Photo: BOB OWEN, STAFF Image 1 of / 1 Caption Close Inmate with wool allergy moves forward with suit over Texas prison's refusal to give cotton blanket 1 / 1 Back to Gallery

A federal court this week sided with an inmate who sued the Texas prison system to get a cotton blanket after repeatedly telling officials he was allergic to the standard-issue bedding, which he alleged is made of "recycled waste" that caused him to have open sores.

For 10 years, Calvin Weaver has been asking prison staff for a cotton blanket. But officials refused, so last year the Harris County man took them to court, representing himself from inside the Terrell Unit in Rosharon.

The prison system responded with a motion to dismiss, but on Friday, moU.S. District Judge Kenneth Hoyt ruled that the suit can continue. Even though Weaver won't be entitled to money from the defendants in their official capacities, Hoyt wrote, he could get injunctive relief: a new blanket.

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"These defendants' argument that replacing Weaver's blanket is beyond their power because they are not Medical Doctors is disingenuous," Hoyt wrote. "It appears from the complaint that each of these defendants is in a position of authority and could, presumably, order that Weaver receive another blanket, or that he receive a medical evaluation."

The problem that sparked the legal wrangling dates back to 2001, when prison medical staff diagnosed Weaver with a wool allergy, according to court papers. At the time, they gave him a medical pass that allowed him to get a cotton blanket. But then in 2009, the pass wasn't renewed when all the blankets systemwide - both the standard-issue wool ones and the cotton alternative for allergy sufferers - were replaced with non-wool blankets made from what Weaver described as a "blend of recycled waste."

Prison officials on Thursday clarified that there is no waste in the blankets, which are made by inmates and contain 60 percent recycled natural fibers and 40 percent cotton blend.

But the non-wool blend allegedly made Weaver itch, break out into open sores and lose sleep. For nine years, Weaver asked for another blanket, complaining repeatedly to officials all the way up to the agency executive director.

He filed grievances, noting that he knew of at least 10 to 15 other prisoners at his unit who'd gotten cotton blankets.

Officials and medical staff "ignored his complaints," the federal judge wrote in his recent ruling.

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So in 2018, Weaver sued, demanding that the prison system give him a new blanket, do a toxicology study on the blended fiber blanket, and give him money for pain and suffering.

The Texas prison system argued that they shouldn't be the target of the suit because the complaint was medical, so they couldn't provide the requested relief. The judge took a dim view of that claim.

Though the court removed two of the defendants — a warden and a doctor — from the case, the judge decided he could continue his suit against the agency executive director and two employees who allegedly ignored his requests. He's not eligible for compensation from the defendants in their official capacities, but could get money damages from them in their individual capacities.

Weaver, who has since been moved to the Pack Unit, does not have an attorney, and the Texas Department of Criminal Justice did not offer comment on the case.

Update: This story has been edited to clarify that Weaver could be entitled to compensation for damages from the defendants in their individual capacities.