Franklin v. Aycock

• Decision Date: 15 July 1986
• Docket Number: 85-5072,Nos. 85-5040,s. 85-5040
• Parties: Marty O'Shea FRANKLIN, Plaintiff-Appellee, Cross-Appellant, v. Max AYCOCK, et al., Defendants-Appellants, Cross-Appellees.
• Court: U.S. Court of Appeals — Sixth Circuit

Page 1253

795 F.2d 1253

Marty O'Shea FRANKLIN, Plaintiff-Appellee, Cross-Appellant, v. Max AYCOCK, et al., Defendants-Appellants, Cross-Appellees.

Nos. 85-5040, 85-5072.

United States Court of Appeals, Sixth Circuit.

Argued May 1, 1986.

Decided July 15, 1986.

N. Alan Lubin, Memphis, Tenn., for Sgt. D.H. Kelly.

H. Wallace Maroney, Jr. (Argued), Memphis, Tenn., for Gene Barksdale.

Marty O'Shea Franklin, pro se.

Carol S. Nickle (argued), Knoxville, Tenn., for Marty O'Shea Franklin.

Before CONTIE and RYAN, Circuit Judges, and BROWN, Senior Circuit Judge.

CONTIE, Circuit Judge.

The defendants, Max Aycock, et al., appeal and the plaintiff, Marty O'Shea Franklin, cross-appeals from the judgment of the district court entered in Franklin's action brought pursuant to 42 U.S.C. Sec. 1983. Franklin, a state inmate, asserted two claims in his action. He alleged that prison officials physically beat him, violating his Eighth Amendment rights to be free from cruel and unusual punishment and his Fourteenth Amendment due process rights. He also alleged that a prison disciplinary proceeding violated his procedural due process rights under the Fourteenth Amendment. The defendants claim the district court erred in finding for Franklin on his claim of physical abuse and in awarding monetary damages against three prison officials based on that finding. Franklin claims in his cross-appeal that the district court erred in declining to award damages on his procedural due process claim, despite having found that the procedures afforded Franklin in his disciplinary proceeding were deficient. For the reasons that follow, we affirm the district court's rulings concerning Franklin's claim of abuse, but remand Franklin's procedural due process claim for further consideration on the issue of damages.

I.

These appeals concern two separate incidents involving Marty O'Shea Franklin. On February 12, 1982, Franklin was transferred from the Tennessee State Penitentiary in Nashville, where he was serving a sentence of thirty-three years for felony convictions, to the Shelby County Jail in Memphis. After a dispute arose concerning tuberculosis medication that Franklin had brought with him, three disciplinary write-ups were issued against Franklin. The write-ups charged Franklin with refusing a direct order, disrespect to an officer, and cursing. One of the write-ups was issued by correctional officer D.O. Walker. A disciplinary hearing on the charges commenced on March 11, 1982, before a Disciplinary Board consisting of three members: Max Aycock, D.H. Kelly, and Chaplain Lee A. Mullen. The hearing was adjourned that same day and resumed several days later. At that time, the Board found Franklin guilty of the disciplinary charges and sentenced him to thirty days in disciplinary segregation, otherwise called isolation or deadlock.

On April 11, 1982 there was a disturbance in the deadlock area where Franklin was being held. Though no fire was seen, smoke was coming from the area and the inmates were kicking and shaking their cell doors. During the disturbance, Franklin was escorted from his cell by several correctional officers to a secluded area near the jail's control center called the sally port, where Franklin claims he was beaten. Franklin subsequently was returned to his cell, after which he claims he was shackled to his bed.

On April 27, 1982, Franklin filed a pro se civil rights action pursuant to 42 U.S.C. Sec. 1983 alleging that his procedural due process rights were violated as a result of the disciplinary hearing. On August 30, 1982, Franklin filed a supplemental complaint under Sec. 1983 alleging that the prison officials beat him and shackled him to his bed, thereby subjecting him to cruel and unusual punishment in violation of the Eighth Amendment and inflicting corporal punishment in violation of the Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment.

A bench trial was held before District Judge McRae on December 3-4, 1984, with Franklin appearing pro se. As to the disciplinary hearing, Franklin testified that he was never advised of the jail's rules governing disciplinary proceedings and the procedures of the Disciplinary Board. He also stated that he did not receive a copy of the write-up issued by Walker or notice of the disciplinary hearing. He further stated that he requested, but was denied, assistance in preparing and presenting his defense, although he conceded that he was permitted to present three witnesses at the disciplinary hearing. Lastly, Franklin testified that he did not receive a statement setting forth the evidence relied on by the Board or the Board's reasons for placing him in disciplinary segregation. Based on these alleged procedural infirmities, Franklin asserted he was punished, by being placed in disciplinary segregation, without due process of law.

On direct examination of Franklin, it was shown that Franklin refused to accept a copy of the write-up issued by Walker. Also, Max Aycock, a member of the Disciplinary Board, testified that it was the jail's policy to provide all prisoners with a copy of the jail's rules and regulations. Aycock further stated that pursuant to the jail's rules a prisoner is not entitled to an attorney or assistance at a disciplinary hearing unless the prisoner is unable to read or write or unable to comprehend the disciplinary proceedings. With regard to appeals, Aycock testified that inmates customarily are issued an appeals form by the Board which the inmates can complete and submit to the chief jailer, who decides appeals from decisions of the Board.

Franklin also testified as to the events of April 11, 1982. Franklin stated that he was not among the inmates who were kicking and shaking their cell doors, but nevertheless correctional officer Allen Smith ordered him out of his cell. Smith was the supervisor on duty that day. Smith, along with correctional officers W.R. McElhaney, J.L. Taylor, Frank Hefner, Michael Watts and Wayne Gowdy, escorted Franklin to the sally port. Franklin claimed that once they were in the secluded area, Smith struck Franklin with his fist and Franklin fell to the floor. Franklin stated that he was kicked for seven or eight minutes until Taylor pulled him away from the kicking and told him to stop causing trouble. Franklin primarily accused Smith, McElhaney and Taylor of kicking him and at one point testified that he could see the feet of Smith, McElhaney, Taylor and Gowdy while he was being kicked. According to Franklin, he was then escorted back to his cell and sometime thereafter three correctional officers arrived and shackled him to his bed, stating that they were acting upon Smith's orders. Franklin testified that he was not released until the correctional officers' shift changed later in the day.

The prison officials presented a different version of the events on April 11, 1982. Smith testified that Franklin, whom Smith called a troublemaker, was shaking his cell door that day and had jammed the door with either clothing or towels. Smith expressly denied striking Franklin. Taylor described Franklin as an instigator and admitted helping escort Franklin to the sally port, but denied touching Franklin. McElhaney, who also called Franklin an instigator, testified that he and Smith found Franklin's cell door jammed with clothing and a towel. McElhaney also stated that he, Smith and other correctional officers escorted Franklin to the sally port. McElhaney denied seeing any shackles or knowing that Franklin was shackled. A correctional officer whom Franklin accused of shackling him also denied handling or seeing any shackles.

Other evidence presented at the trial included an April 11 entry from the jail's medical records stating that Franklin had "[s]ustained trauma and abrasions to back and shoulder, left ankle" and was "[s]ent to John Gaston Hospital for further exam." Also, Franklin's mother and his aunt testified that they visited Franklin on April 12, 1982, after his aunt received a telephone call stating that Franklin had been beaten at the jail. Both women stated that they observed bruises and marks on Franklin's body, including his forehead, back, shoulders and arms. They further testified that Franklin's mother contacted Internal Affairs immediately after seeing Franklin. A representative from Internal Affairs investigated the incident but testified that he was unable to prove that Franklin's injuries were inflicted by a third party. The representative did observe marks on Franklin's body.

At the close of the evidence, the district court made its ruling from the bench. With regard to Franklin's claim concerning the disciplinary hearing, the court found that the conduct of the Disciplinary Board failed to comport with the minimal due process requirements set forth in Wolff v. McDonnell, 418 U.S. 539, 94 S.Ct. 2963, 41 L.Ed.2d 935 (1974). In particular, the court found that the Board failed to provide Franklin with a written statement concerning the evidence relied on and the reasons for the Board's action. Without such a statement, the court observed, there was nothing to enable appellate review. The court further held that Franklin was tendered, but refused to accept, written notice of the disciplinary charge against him. The court also found that Franklin was properly afforded the opportunity to present witnesses at the hearing and was properly denied the assistance of counsel or a counsel substitute.

Even though the court found a procedural due process violation, it declined to award any damages arising from that violation. The court ruled that it was "too speculative" to find that Franklin "would have perfected an appeal successfully or [that] the result might have been different" had the Board supplied Franklin with a written statement. The court did award a declaratory judgment, ordering the members of the Board to comply with the post-hearing, written statement requirement of Wolff.

With regard to Franklin's claim...