Brooks v. George County, Miss.

• Citation: 84 F.3d 157
• Decision Date: 16 May 1996
• Docket Number: No. 94-60619,94-60619
• Parties: Robert W. BROOKS, Plaintiff-Appellee Cross-Appellant v. GEORGE COUNTY, MISSISSIPPI, et al., Defendants, George County, Mississippi, et al., Defendant-Appellants Cross-Appellee, Wilbur Ward and Earl Koskela, Defendants Cross-Appellees.
• Court: United States Courts of Appeals. United States Court of Appeals (5th Circuit)

Page 157

84 F.3d 157

Robert W. BROOKS, Plaintiff-Appellee Cross-Appellant v. GEORGE COUNTY, MISSISSIPPI, et al., Defendants, George County, Mississippi, et al., Defendant-Appellants

Cross-Appellee,

Wilbur Ward and Earl Koskela, Defendants Cross-Appellees.

No. 94-60619.

United States Court of Appeals, Fifth Circuit.

May 16, 1996.

Daniel H. Fairly, Walter D. Willson, Wells, Marble & Hurst, Jackson, MS, Gerald A. Dickerson, Lucedale, MS, for Appellant.

Geoffrey C. Morgan, Asst. Atty. Gen., Mike Moore, Atty. Gen., Jackson, MS, for Koskela and Ward.

David C. Frazier, Gordon, Myers, Frazier & Roberts, Pascagoula, MS, Roy W. Pike, David A. Roberts, Pascagoula, MS, for Brooks.

Appeals from the United States District Court for the Southern District of Mississippi.

Before REYNALDO G. GARZA, JOLLY and DUHE, Circuit Judges.

REYNALDO G. GARZA, Circuit Judge:

Today we have entered an order denying the Appellants' Petition for Rehearing in the above case. However, we withdraw our prior opinion on this matter, found at 77 F.3d 834, and substitute the following opinion.

Background

Robert W. Brooks successfully brought claims under the Thirteenth and Fourteenth Amendments of the United States Constitution for his continued incarceration in a county jail eight months after the charges against him had been dropped. Eugene Howell, Sheriff of George County, Mississippi ("Sheriff Howell" or "the Sheriff"), arrested Robert W. Brooks ("Brooks") in Virginia, where Brooks, who was out on bond, had fled after indictments were returned against him for grand larceny and felony burglary in Mississippi. Brooks was incarcerated in the George County jail on January 21, 1991, and was arraigned on the indictments on January 28, 1991.

On or about the same day, Gary Evans, assistant district attorney for the Nineteenth Judicial Circuit, requested that the charges against Brooks be dismissed pursuant to a nolle prosequi order. An order granting the district attorney's motion was signed on February 4, 1991, in Jackson County, Mississippi, by Judge Clinton E. Lockard. On February 5, 1992, the district attorney's office filed a copy of the order at the George County Circuit Clerk's office. The order was filed the same date by an employee of the circuit clerk of George County. Evans apparently informed Brooks's attorney, William T. Bailey, of the state's intention to seek dismissal prior to making the motion. However, neither the Sheriff's office nor Brooks was notified of the dismissal. Brooks was not released until he discovered and showed the order to Sheriff Howell on October 1, 1991.

In March 1991, during the time period in which he was confined in the George County jail, Brooks requested and was granted trusty status. Brooks specifically asked that he be made trusty. As a trusty, Brooks was not locked down in his cell, but was, instead, allowed the freedom to roam in and out of his cell, Sheriff Howell's office, the jail and the surrounding grounds area.

While incarcerated, Brooks performed, at his own request, various services for Sheriff Howell, George County and others, including several charitable and benevolent organizations. Brooks performed these services on public property as well as private property. ¹ Brooks performed these services for two reasons: (1) he was able to secure his release from jail during the day and (2) Brooks earned extra money by working on the outside. Brooks was not compensated for those services he performed on public property, but on several occasions, was paid money or received goods in exchange for the services he rendered on private property.

Brooks brought an action in the Southern District of Mississippi, Southern Division, on July 1, 1992, against Sheriff Howell and a number of deputy sheriffs of George County; members of the board of supervisors of George County; Earl Koskela, district attorney for the Nineteenth Judicial District; Public Defender William T. Bailey; Wilbur G. Ward, circuit clerk of George County; and other public officials in their official and individual capacities, as well as George County, pursuant to 42 U.S.C. § 1983. ² Brooks's claims were premised upon alleged violations of the First, Fourth, Fifth, Sixth, Eighth, Thirteenth, and Fourteenth Amendments as a result of his incarceration after the nolle prosequi order had been entered in February, 1991. Brooks claimed that he was unlawfully and falsely incarcerated during this period of time. He also alleged that, while incarcerated, he was forced or coerced into working on public and private property, amounting to involuntary servitude under the Thirteenth Amendment. Because he was not always paid for his services, he also claimed a violation of his due process rights under the Fourteenth Amendment.

On motions for summary judgment, the district court dismissed Brooks's claims of unlawful incarceration arising from the entry of the nolle prosequi order as to all parties. The district court also held that neither the district attorney nor the clerk were subject to any of Brooks's claims for damages. The remaining parties moved in limine to exclude certain evidence from the trial, notably evidence of Brooks's status after the entry of the nolle prosequi order. The district court denied the motion. After a five-day trial, the jury returned a verdict for Brooks against Sheriff Howell, James Cooper and George Miller, deputy sheriffs of George County, and George County (collectively, the "Appellants"), awarding compensatory damages in the amount of $70,000, $50,000 of which represented damages concerning Brooks's claim of involuntary servitude under the Thirteenth Amendment and $20,000 representing lost wages in connection with Brooks's due process claims under the Fourteenth Amendment. In a bifurcated proceeding, the jury awarded punitive damages against Sheriff Howell and Deputy Miller in their individual capacities in the amount of $5,000 and $500, respectively.

Appellants filed a timely notice of appeal on September 6, 1994. Brooks filed a cross-appeal with respect to the district court's granting of partial summary judgment on his claims of unlawful incarceration and dismissal of all claims against the district attorney and the clerk. We affirm in part and reverse in part the judgment for Brooks in the manner hereinafter described.

Discussion

Brooks prevailed on his claims under the Thirteenth and Fourteenth Amendments with regard to his work as a trusty while in the George County jail. Appellants argue that these claims should not have gone before the jury. We will discuss in turn the merits of each of these constitutional claims as well as the unlawful incarceration claims Brooks lost on summary judgment and dismissal from the suit of the district attorney and the clerk.

A. Claims Based on Work as a Trusty

1. Thirteenth Amendment--Involuntary Servitude Claim

Brooks alleged that his choice between staying in jail or working when he was not supposed to be in jail amounted to involuntary servitude. We begin by asking whether the record contained substantial evidence to create a jury question on involuntary servitude. Boeing v. Shipman, 411 F.2d 365, 375 (5th Cir.1969).

The Thirteenth Amendment to the Constitution provides that "[n]either slavery nor involuntary servitude, except as punishment for a crime whereof the party shall have been duly convicted, shall exist within the United States or any place subject to their jurisdiction." U.S. Const. amend. XIII, § 1. The Fifth Circuit defines involuntary servitude as "an action by the master causing the servant to have, or to believe he has, no way to avoid continued service or confinement." Watson v. Graves, 909 F.2d 1549, 1552 (5th Cir.1990). "When the employee has a choice, even though it is a painful one, there is no involuntary servitude ... A showing of compulsion is thus a prerequisite to proof of involuntary servitude." Id.

In Watson, this Circuit held that two inmates who requested to work outside of jail made such a choice voluntarily and presented no Thirteenth Amendment claim. Id. at 1552-1553. The prison context made this choice no less voluntary. Examining the record, we find Brooks's situation to be similar to that of the inmates in Watson.

The county held Brooks as a pretrial detainee. In that status, Brooks was entitled only to be confined until trial; the Appellants were under no obligation to allow Brooks the freedom he enjoyed. Brooks made the request for trusty status. He desired to leave the jail and chose to work as the price for that right. Since Brooks was not being punished by being detained until trial, the choice between this confinement and work as a trusty cannot be considered coercive because the benefits he received for working were not benefits for which he was otherwise entitled. Admittedly, the choice described might have been a painful one, but it was nonetheless a choice.

The district court granted Appellants partial summary judgment on Brooks's claims relating to unlawful incarceration, absolving Appellants of legal liability. To find the Appellants liable for involuntary servitude based on a nolle prosequi order which provides no basis for liability under unlawful incarceration would defy common sense. Like the inmates in Watson, Brooks had a choice, albeit a painful one. He was, however, not subject to involuntary servitude and thus presented no claim under the Thirteenth Amendment. ³

2. Fourteenth Amendment--Procedural Due Process Claim

Brooks claimed that Appellants' failure to compensate him for any of his work on public property, and their failure to compensate him for part of his work on private property, constituted a deprivation of property without due process of law in violation of the Fourteenth Amendment. ⁴ The jury found Sheriff Howell and Deputy Miller liable for the deprivations in their individual capacities; because the jury found the deprivations to be part of a policy or custom, Sheriff Howell and Deputy...