Harrison v. Ash
| Decision Date | 28 August 2008 |
| Docket Number | No. 07-2077.,No. 07-2078.,07-2077.,07-2078. |
| Citation | 539 F.3d 510 |
| Parties | Deborah HARRISON, Personal Representative for the Estate of Charles Kevin Jones, Plaintiff-Appellee, v. ASH, C.O., Harrell, C.O., Felsner, C.O., Eric Oke, Officer, Pete Martin, David Abbott, Sgt., Defendants-Appellants (07-2077), Tracey Kirk, R.N., Julianne Munro, L.P.N., Defendants-Appellants (07-2078). |
| Court | U.S. Court of Appeals — Sixth Circuit |
ARGUED: Kristen M. Netschke, Plunkett & Cooney, Bloomfield Hills, Michigan, Brian J. Richtarcik, Chapman & Associates, P.C., Bloomfield Hills, Michigan, for Appellants. Joseph Kelly Carley, Jaques Admiralty Law Firm, Detroit, Michigan, for Appellee. ON BRIEF: Kristen M. Netschke, Plunkett & Cooney, Bloomfield Hills, Michigan, Mary Massaron Ross, Plunkett & Cooney, Detroit, Michigan, Brian J. Richtarcik, Ronald W. Chapman, Chapman & Associates, P.C., Bloomfield Hills, Michigan, for Appellants. Joseph Kelly Carley, Jaques Admiralty Law Firm, Detroit, Michigan, for Appellee.
Before: MERRITT, CLAY, and GILMAN, Circuit Judges.
Charles Kevin Jones, an inmate serving a 35-day sentence for failure to pay child support, died after suffering a severe asthma attack at the Macomb County Jail. Plaintiff, Deborah Harrison, personal representative of the estate of Charles Kevin Jones, brought suit pursuant to 42 U.S.C. § 1983 against Defendant-Appellants, nurses Tracey Kirk and Julianne Munro and jail officers William Ash, David Abbott, Eric Oke, Pete Martin, Harrell and Felsner.1 Harrison alleged that Defendants were deliberately indifferent to Jones' serious medical needs in violation of the Eighth and Fourteenth Amendments. Defendants moved for summary judgment and now appeal from an order entered by the district court denying summary judgment to Defendants Kirk and Munro and denying qualified immunity to Defendants Ash, Abbott, Oke, Martin, Harrell and Felsner. For the reasons described below, we REVERSE the district court's denial of qualified immunity with respect to Defendant officers and DISMISS Defendant nurses' appeal for lack of jurisdiction.
On May 10, 2004, Charles Jones ("Jones") began serving a 35-day sentence for failure to pay child support at the Macomb County Jail. During the intake process at the Jail, Jones reported that he suffered from asthma for which he was prescribed an Albuterol inhaler and Prednisone, a steroid. Jones needed to ingest in 1-2 puffs from the inhaler every 4-6 hours.
At 9:00 p.m. on June 6, 2004, Jones began complaining of tightness in his chest and shortness of breath. Jones' complaints were communicated to an officer on duty, who then escorted Jones to the Jail's medical unit for treatment. Macomb County contracted with Correctional Medical Services ("CMS") to provide medical services and personnel for the facility. Pursuant to CMS protocols, when an inmate arrives at the medical unit with symptoms of asthma, nurses were required to evaluate the severity of the asthma attack utilizing a peak flow meter and to immediately call a doctor for further instructions.
When Jones was taken to the medical unit for treatment, he was examined by Tracey Kirk, R.N., a CMS employee, who observed that his Albuterol inhaler was empty. Kirk noted that Jones was wheezing "on inspiration and expiration." (J.A. at 188) Upon further examination, Kirk measured Jones' blood pressure and his blood oxygen level via a pulse oximeter.
The pulse oximeter indicated that Jones was absorbing approximately 95% of the air in the room, which was within normal ranges. Thereafter, Kirk administered four puffs from an Albuterol inhaler to Jones. After approximately five minutes, Jones was examined again and it was noted that Jones' wheezing had subsided and his blood oxygen level increased to 98%. Jones was then returned to his cell.
At approximately 10:30 p.m., Jones was returned to the medical unit, again complaining that his chest "felt tight" and that he was experiencing difficulty breathing. Jones was examined by Julianne Munro, L.P.N. During the examination, Munro observed that Jones was wheezing when he inhaled and exhaled and that he was using "accessory muscles" to breathe. Munro also noted that Jones had a blood oxygen level of 94%. Munro administered an updraft treatment2 of Albuterol and noted some improvement. She further advised Jones to increase his fluid intake and to make the nursing staff "aware if his condition worsens." (J.A. at 197)
At 11:00 p.m., Jones again complained of breathing difficulty. Upon return to the medical unit, Munro measured Jones' blood oxygen level and noted that it was within normal ranges at 95%. Although Munro provided no additional treatment, Jones was admitted to the medical unit for observation and placed in an infirmary cell.
At 11:50 p.m., Jones once again reported difficulty breathing. Munro noted that Jones continued to experience wheezing and that his blood oxygen level had dropped to 93%. Munro administered another Albuterol updraft treatment, which brought Jones' blood oxygen level to 99%. Approximately ten minutes later, at 12:00 a.m., Jones' blood oxygen level decreased to 95%. Jones continued to experience wheezing when inhaling and exhaling.
On June 7, 2004 at 2:30 a.m., Jones contacted Officer Eric Oke through the Jail's intercom system and complained of shortness of breath and requested to go to the hospital. Officer Oke contacted Nurse Kirk "to check on [Jones]." (J.A. at 424) After speaking with Oke, Kirk came to Jones' cell to examine him. Nurses Munro and Jeanene Goodwin were also present during the examination. Kirk noted that Jones' blood oxygen level had dropped to 60%. Jones was placed on oxygen and given another Albuterol updraft treatment. Although Jones' oxygen level increased, he continued to complain of difficulty breathing and reiterated his request to go to the hospital. The nursing staff notified Dr. Bedina, the Jail physician, of Jones' condition. Thereafter, Dr. Bedina authorized Jones to be transferred to a hospital. Munro contacted Officer Abbott, who was stationed at the Jail's booking desk, and requested that he call an ambulance to transport Jones. Officer Abbott called an ambulance at approximately 2:37 a.m.
At 2:44 a.m., the ambulance arrived and emergency medical personnel were escorted to the medical unit by Officers Harrell and Felsner. Another officer, William Ash, was also present to observe Jones being transported from the medical unit to the ambulance. Although Jones' transport to the hospital was momentarily delayed because one of the nurses told emergency personnel "that the inmate's vital signs were improving and that he may be faking," Jones was placed in a wheelchair and escorted to the ambulance. (J.A. at 412) While Jones was being transported to the booking garage where the ambulance vehicle was located, Jones suffered a grand mal seizure and went into cardiac and respiratory arrest. After unsuccessful attempts to resuscitate Jones, he was transported to Mt. Clemens General Hospital. Officer Pete Martin instructed Officer Abbott to drive the ambulance while emergency personnel continued to work on Jones en route to the hospital. Once there, Jones was pronounced dead at 4:11 a.m. An autopsy later determined that Jones died as a result of a severe asthma attack.
Deborah Harrison ("Harrison"), as personal representative of Jones' estate, filed the instant suit pursuant to 42 U.S.C. § 1983 alleging that a number of individuals were deliberately indifferent to Jones' serious medical needs in violation of the Fourth, Eighth and Fourteenth Amendments. Harrison also alleged that the actions of the named defendants constituted gross negligence under the Michigan Tort Liability Act. Harrison named Nurses Kirk, Munro, and Goodwin ("Defendant nurses") as well as Officers Ash, Harrell, Felsner, Oke, Martin and Abbott ("Defendant officers") as Defendants.3 Harrison alleged that Kirk, Munro and Goodwin were deliberately indifferent as a result of their failure to follow the nursing procedures established by CMS. Specifically, Harrison contended that Defendant nurses failed to utilize required diagnostic tools, such as a peak flow meter, and that CMS staff failed to contact a doctor when Jones presented symptoms of a severe asthma attack. With respect to the Defendant officers, Harrison contended that the officers were deliberately indifferent as a result of their failure to obtain proper medical treatment for Jones when it became clear that the nursing staff was either unable or unwilling to properly treat his asthma.
All Defendants moved for summary judgment. With respect to Defendant nurses, the district court denied the motion in part and granted the motion in part. The district court found that Nurse Goodwin was entitled to summary judgment but that there were genuine issues of material fact that precluded summary judgment with respect to nurses Munro and Kirk. The district court denied Defendant officers' motion for summary judgment in its entirety. This timely appeal followed.
This Court reviews a district court's denial of summary judgment de novo. Monette v. Electronic Data Sys. Corp., 90 F.3d 1173, 1176 (6th Cir.1996). Summary judgment is appropriate if, pursuant to Rule 56(c) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, the pleadings, depositions, answers to interrogatories, and admissions on file, together with the affidavits, if any, "show that there is no genuine issue as to any material fact and that the movant is entitled to a judgment as a matter of law." Fed.R.Civ.P. 56(c). As the moving parties, Defendants bear the burden of showing the absence of a genuine issue of material fact as to at least one essential element on each of Harrison's claims. See Celotex Corp. v. Catrett, 477 U.S. 317, 324, 106 S.Ct. 2548, 91 L.Ed.2d 265 (1986). Harrison,...
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