7.16 Eighth and Fourteenth Amendments: Failure to Protect — Elements are the set of criteria used to determine whether a state has failed in its duty to protect its citizens from harm. This type of failure can occur when the state fails to provide adequate security or when the state fails to intervene to prevent a violation of civil rights. The elements of a failure to protect claim are that: (1) the state had a duty to protect; (2) the state failed to protect; (3) the state's failure to protect was the proximate cause of the injury; and (4) the plaintiff suffered actual damages. The 8th and 14th Amendments of the United States Constitution prohibit states from depriving citizens of “life, liberty, or property, without due process of law”. When a state fails to protect its citizens from harm, it can be held liable for violating the 8th and 14th Amendments.