Bailey v. Feltmann

• Decision Date: 15 January 2016
• Docket Number: No. 14–3859.,14–3859.
• Citation: 810 F.3d 589
• Parties: Shane BAILEY, Plaintiff–Appellant, v. Don FELTMANN, in his individual capacity, Defendant–Appellee.
• Court: U.S. Court of Appeals — Eighth Circuit

810 F.3d 589

Shane BAILEY, Plaintiff–Appellant,

v.Don FELTMANN, in his individual capacity, Defendant–Appellee.

No. 14–3859.

United States Court of Appeals, Eighth Circuit.

Submitted: Sept. 23, 2015.

Filed: Jan. 15, 2016.

James Schottel, Jr., Saint Louis, MO, for Plaintiff–Appellant.

Jason Scott Retter, Saint Louis, MO, Defendant–Appellee.

Before WOLLMAN, COLLOTON, and KELLY, Circuit Judges.

COLLOTON, Circuit Judge.

Shane Bailey brought a civil rights action under 42 U.S.C. § 1983 against Deputy Don Feltmann of the Jefferson County, Missouri Sheriff's Department, alleging that Feltmann had denied him emergency medical care in violation of his constitutional rights. The district court¹ granted summary judgment for Feltmann, ruling that Bailey had failed to present sufficient evidence to prove a constitutional violation. Bailey appeals, and we affirm.

I.

On the afternoon of March 13, 2012, Bailey was at a friend's house. After arguing with his friend, Bailey left the house upset. Once outside, Bailey punched the driver's side mirror of his truck and punched and kicked out the truck's windshield, cutting his right hand in the process. Bailey drove away in his truck but ran out of gas shortly thereafter. Bailey then called for emergency assistance.

Paramedics arrived at the scene at 3:05 p.m. Bailey, who was eighteen years old, told the paramedics that he had been drinking alcohol earlier that day. Bailey eventually allowed the paramedics to evaluate and treat his right hand. The paramedics examined his hand, noting that the area around the lacerations was bruised and swollen and that the bleeding was controlled. The paramedics dressed the wound

. The paramedics reported that Bailey then cursed at them and refused further treatment, but Bailey averred by affidavit that he did not refuse treatment.

Deputy Feltmann arrived at the scene shortly thereafter. Feltmann observed the damage Bailey had inflicted on the truck and also saw a large amount of blood on the truck's rear window. Because of the bandages on Bailey's hand, Feltmann could not determine the full extent of Bailey's injuries, but he was aware that Bailey's hand was cut and had been bleeding. Feltmann also could see blood soaking through, and leaking out of, the bandages on Bailey's hand. Feltmann asked Bailey how he sustained the injuries to his hand; Bailey explained that he had punched his truck mirror and windshield. Due to the strong odor of alcohol on Bailey's breath, Feltmann administered a field sobriety test. Feltmann determined that Bailey was intoxicated and placed Bailey under arrest. He later issued summonses to Bailey for the offenses of careless driving and possession of alcohol as a minor.

Feltmann could not recall what he discussed with the paramedics, but one of the two paramedics who treated Bailey testified that the paramedics advised the deputy at the scene that Bailey's right hand needed sutures and that Bailey needed to be taken to an emergency room for evaluation. The paramedic's report reflected that a deputy agreed to transport Bailey to a hospital before taking him to jail. According to Feltmann, however, he believed that the paramedics' treatment of Bailey's hand was sufficient, and he drove Bailey directly to the county jail. During the short time that Bailey was in Feltmann's custody, blood continued to seep through Bailey's bandages, but Bailey did not complain about his hand or request additional medical treatment. When they arrived at the jail, Feltmann released Bailey into the custody of jail personnel. Bailey never saw Feltmann again.

Early the next morning, Bailey's family picked him up from the jail and took him to an emergency room. A physician examined Bailey's right hand, noted that Bailey's pain was mild, determined that his hand was not tingling or numb, and found that he had no loss of sensation in his hand. An x-ray of Bailey's hand showed no fractures. The physician cleaned the wounds

and removed a small glass fragment from one of the cuts on Bailey's hand but chose not to suture any of the cuts, because the injuries had occurred nearly twenty-four hours earlier, and the skin was "too rotted" to stitch. He also treated a laceration on Bailey's forehead that was sustained at the jail and sent Bailey home with ibuprofen. A few days later, Bailey returned to the hospital, and a physician removed the stitches on his forehead but did not examine the injured hand. Bailey never sought additional treatment for his hand.

Bailey testified that he suffers from pain in his right hand between his index and middle fingers, but that the pain occurs only rarely. He did not miss any time from work due to his injuries. Bailey's right hand also has several scars from the lacerations. One scar is on the back of Bailey's hand and is approximately one inch long; the others are located on and between his index and middle fingers. Aside from expenses associated with his first visit to the hospital, Bailey could not recall any other costs incurred as a result of the injuries to his hand.

Bailey brought a claim under 42 U.S.C. § 1983 against Feltmann, alleging that Feltmann's decision to transport him to the jail rather than a hospital denied him emergency medical care in violation of the Constitution. The district court ruled that Feltmann's conduct had not violated Bailey's constitutional rights and granted summary judgment for the defense. We review de novo the district court's order granting summary judgment, viewing the evidence and all reasonable inferences therefrom in the light most favorable to Bailey.

II.

In a § 1983 action, qualified immunity shields a government official from liability unless the official's conduct violated a clearly established constitutional or statutory right of which a reasonable official would have known. Harlow v. Fitzgerald, 457 U.S. 800, 818, 102 S.Ct. 2727, 73 L.Ed.2d 396 (1982). To overcome Feltmann's assertion of qualified immunity, Bailey must show (1) that the facts taken in the light most favorable to his case establish a violation of a constitutional right, and (2) that the constitutional right was clearly established as of March 2012, such that a reasonable official in Feltmann's position would have known that his actions were unlawful. Pearson v. Callahan, 555 U.S. 223, 231–32, 129 S.Ct. 808, 172 L.Ed.2d 565 (2009) ; Howard v. Kan. City Police Dep't, 570 F.3d 984, 987–88 (8th Cir.2009).

Bailey first argues that we should analyze his § 1983 claim against Feltmann for denial of medical care under the objective reasonableness standard of the Fourth Amendment. The Fourth Amendment governs an arrestee's claim alleging excessive use of force, Graham v. Connor, 490 U.S. 386, 395, 109 S.Ct. 1865, 104 L.Ed.2d 443 (1989), but this court has not resolved whether an arrestee's claim alleging denial of medical care is analyzed under the Due Process Clause or the Fourth Amendment. One recent decision, Carpenter v. Gage, 686 F.3d 644, 650 (8th Cir.2012), applied due process analysis to the claim of an arrestee, but the plaintiff there did not invoke the Fourth Amendment, and the issue was not joined. Earlier cases seem to imply—also without discussion of the Fourth Amendment—that the Due Process Clause may govern, e.g., Spencer v. Knapheide Truck Equip. Co., 183 F.3d 902, 905 & n. 3 (8th Cir.1999), and there is a conflict in authority elsewhere about how to evaluate this type of claim. Compare ...