Cite as: 521 U. S. 399 (1997)
Opinion of the Court
"Prison" 361-368 (11th ed. 1911); S. Webb & B. Webb, English Prisons Under Local Government (1922) (Webb), but historical sources indicate that England relied upon private jailers to manage the detention of prisoners from the Middle Ages until well into the 18th century. Shichor 21; see also Webb 4-5; 1 E. Coke, Institutes 43 (1797). The common law forbade those jailers to subject " 'their prisoners to any pain or torment,' " whether through harsh confinement in leg irons, or otherwise. See In re Birdsong, 39 F. 599, 601 (SD Ga. 1889); 1 Coke, supra, at 315, 316, 381; 2 C. Addison, A Treatise on the Law of Torts § 1016, pp. 224-225 (1876); see also 4 Geo. IV, ch. 64, § X Twelfth. And it apparently authorized prisoner lawsuits to recover damages. 2 Addison, supra, § 1016. Apparently the law did provide a kind of immunity for certain private defendants, such as doctors or lawyers who performed services at the behest of the sovereign. See Tower, supra, at 921; J. Bishop, Commentaries on Non-Contract Law §§ 704, 710 (1889). But we have found no indication of any more general immunity that might have applied to private individuals working for profit.
Our research, including the sources that the parties have cited, reveals that in the 19th century (and earlier) sometimes private contractors and sometimes government itself carried on prison management activities. And we have found no conclusive evidence of a historical tradition of immunity for private parties carrying out these functions. History therefore does not provide significant support for the immunity claim. Cf. Briscoe v. LaHue, 460 U. S. 325, 330-334 (1983) (immunity for witnesses); Pierson v. Ray, 386 U. S. 547, 554-555 (1967) (immunity for judges and police officers); Tenney v. Brandhove, 341 U. S. 367, 372-376 (1951) (immunity for legislators).
C
Whether the immunity doctrine's purposes warrant immunity for private prison guards presents a closer question. Wyatt, consistent with earlier precedent, described the doc-
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