Allen v. Wetzel

• Decision Date: 07 September 2022
• Docket Number: Civil Action 19-1258
• Parties: MICHAEL SHERMAN ALLEN, Plaintiff, v. SECRETARY JOHN WETZEL, REGIONAL SECRETARY TREVOR WINGARD, SUPERINTENDENT ERIC ARMEL, CO ROBERT HOLLOWOOD, CO PAUL GAFFEY, SGT. CHRISTOPHER SHELDON, LIEUT. POSKA, LIEUT. DAILEY, LIEUT. RUSNAK, CO JUAN MACIAS, CO MERRILL, CO WHEELER, CO DORAN, CO HOLT, CO EICHER, CO RUBISH, CO HIRAK, CO CUMMINGS, and JOHN and JANE DOES, Defendants.
• Court: U.S. District Court — Western District of Pennsylvania

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MICHAEL SHERMAN ALLEN, Plaintiff, v. SECRETARY JOHN WETZEL, REGIONAL SECRETARY TREVOR WINGARD, SUPERINTENDENT ERIC ARMEL, CO ROBERT HOLLOWOOD, CO PAUL GAFFEY, SGT. CHRISTOPHER SHELDON, LIEUT. POSKA, LIEUT. DAILEY, LIEUT. RUSNAK, CO JUAN MACIAS, CO MERRILL, CO WHEELER, CO DORAN, CO HOLT, CO EICHER, CO RUBISH, CO HIRAK, CO CUMMINGS, and JOHN and JANE DOES, Defendants.

Civil Action No. 19-1258

United States District Court, W.D. Pennsylvania

September 7, 2022

Robert J. Colville, District Judge

REPORT AND RECOMMENDATION

RE: ECF NO. 142

MAUREEN P. KELLY, UNITED STATES MAGISTRATE JUDGE

I. RECOMMENDATION

This is a counseled prisoner civil rights action filed by Plaintiff Michael Sherman Allen (“Plaintiff”), an inmate incarcerated at the State Correctional Institution at Dallas (“SCI-Dallas”). Plaintiff brings this action pursuant to 42 U.S.C. §§ 1983, 1985 and 1986 arising out of allegations that prison officials at the State Correctional Institution at Fayette (“SCI-Fayette”) used excessive force and retaliated, conspired, and discriminated against him in violation of his First, Eighth and Fourteenth Amendment rights. ECF No. 96.

Presently before the Court is a Motion for Summary Judgment filed by Defendants Robert Hollowood (“Hollowood”), Paul Gaffey (“Gaffey”),^[1]Christopher Sheldon (“Sheldon”), Lieut. Poska (“Poska”), Lieut. Dailey (“Dailey”), Lieut. Rusnak (“Rusnak”), Juan Macias (“Macias”), CO Merrill (“Merrill”), CO Wheeler (“Wheeler”), CO Doran (“Doran”), CO Holt (“Holt”), CO Eicher (“Eicher”), CO Rubish (“Rubish”), CO Hirak (“Hirak”), CO Cummings (“Cummings”), John Wetzel (“Wetzel”), Trevor Wingard (“Wingard”), and Eric Armel (“Armel”) (collectively, “Defendants”). ECF No. 142. For the following reasons, it is respectfully recommended that the Motion for Summary Judgment be granted in part and denied in part.

II. REPORT

A. FACTUAL AND PROCEDURAL BACKGROUND

1. Factual Background

a. The Parties

Plaintiff is an African-American inmate. ECF No. 96 ¶ 3. His claims arise out of events that occurred while he was incarcerated at SCI-Fayette. ECF No. 141 ¶ 2.

During the relevant time, Defendants were employees of the Pennsylvania Department of Corrections (“DOC”). Wetzel was the Secretary of the DOC. Id. ¶ 3. Wingard was the Deputy Secretary of the Western Region for the DOC. Id. ¶ 4.

Except for Wingard and Wetzel, all other Defendants worked at SCI-Fayette. Hollowood, Gaffey, Macias, Merrill, Wheeler, Doran, Holt, Eicher, Rubish, Hirak and Cummings were Corrections Officers. Id. ¶ 6. Sheldon was a Sergeant. Id. ¶ 7. Poska, Dailey and Rusak were Lieutenants. Id. ¶ 8. Armel was the Superintendent of SCI-Fayette. Id. ¶ 5.

Other than Hirak and Sheldon, Plaintiff did not have prior relationships with any of the named Defendants before the alleged use of excessive force on February 25, 2019. Id. ¶ 11.

b. SCI-Graterford Lawsuit

Plaintiff previously filed a lawsuit in 2015 against various prison officials arising out of an alleged assault at the State Correctional Institution at Graterford (the “SCI-Graterford lawsuit”), where he was formerly incarcerated. Id. ¶ 9; Allen v. Settle, No. 2:15-cv-4011 (E.D. Pa. 2015). While that lawsuit was pending, one of the defendants, Edward Settle (“Settle”), died. ECF No. 96 ¶ 24. The case resolved before trial. Id. No Defendants in this action were parties in the SCI-Graterford lawsuit. ECF No. 141 ¶ 9.

Plaintiff was transferred to SCI-Fayette in 2015. ECF No. 96 ¶ 25. After his transfer, he discussed the incident at SCI-Graterford with Hirak. ECF No. 141 ¶ 10. Plaintiff testified that various individuals at SCI-Fayette called him a “rat,” “snitch” and “scumbag,” and that he believes he suffered harassment as a result of the SCI-Graterford lawsuit. ECF No. 141-2 at 38, 60.

c. February 25, 2019 Incident

Plaintiff uses a CPAP machine to breathe at night. ECF No. 141 ¶ 92. Hollowood and Macias testified that they received information from the security lieutenant that Suboxone, a contraband substance, might be hidden in Plaintiff's CPAP machine. Id. ¶ 14. On February 25, 2019, Hollowood and Macias entered Plaintiff's cell to conduct an investigative search, while Gaffey stood outside the cell. Id. ¶ 16.

At the time, Plaintiff was on the phone with his pastor in another room. Id. ¶ 85. When Plaintiff saw the prison officials enter his cell, he ended the call and returned to his cell. Id. ¶ 17. According to Plaintiff, Sheldon followed him back to his cell. Id. ¶ 90.

Gaffey stopped Plaintiff from entering his cell and performed a pat-down search of Plaintiff. Id. ¶¶ 18-19. An altercation ensued, resulting in various injuries to Plaintiff. Those events were captured as follows by an external security camera (without audio).^[2]

19:08:16 Video begins. Plaintiff is standing outside of his cell with Gaffey and Sheldon. Plaintiff is facing away from his cell, towards Gaffey. Sheldon is observing from the back, right-hand side.

19:08:18-28 Plaintiff turns around to face his cell and raises his arms parallel to the ground. Gaffey conducts a pat-down search of Plaintiff's upper body and waist.

19:08: 29-30 Plaintiff lowers his arms and points inside his cell. Plaintiff appears to speak to someone inside his cell.

19:08:31-43 Plaintiff turns around towards Gaffey and then resumes his position facing his cell. He then turns to the side and lowers his outer pair of sweatpants.^[3]At this point, Plaintiff's hands are down by his side.

19:08:44-45 Plaintiff bends his left arm slightly. Hollowood emerges from the cell and grabs Plaintiff's left arm.

19:08:46- 55 Plaintiff pulls his arm away from Hollowood and appears to say something. A struggle ensues, with Sheldon grabbing Plaintiff from behind, and Sheldon, Hollowood and Macias encircling Plaintiff in an apparent attempt to detain him.

19:08:55-59 Hollowood presses his left arm against Plaintiff's throat area.

19:09:00-20 After Plaintiff briefly breaks free from Hollowood's arm, Hollowood grabs at Plaintiff's throat area. Hollowood then presses his arm into and against Plaintiff's throat area.

19:09:20-43 Plaintiff, Sheldon, Gaffey and Hollowood collectively fall to the floor in a pile. While in the pile, Plaintiff is obscured from the camera, and it is unclear what is happening. Another unidentified prison official arrives.

19:09:44-52 Six more unidentified prison officials arrive at the scene.

19:10:02-11 A second wave of six additional unidentified prison officials arrive at the scene.

19:12:29- The pile disperses, and Plaintiff is brought to his feet. A

19:14:12 spit hood is placed over his head.

19:14:13-25 Multiple prison officials guide Plaintiff down the stairs to the bottom floor of the unit. He appears to stumble and have trouble remaining upright on the way down.

19:14:25- After Plaintiff reaches the bottom of the stairs, he falls or

19:20-15 lays on the ground. He then appears to suffer a seizure. Several prison officials hold him to the ground.

19:20:23- Prison officials assist Plaintiff into a wheelchair and then

19:22-55 escort him from the unit in the wheelchair.

ECF No. 141-1 at Exhibit I.

Based on the Court's review, it is unclear from the video why Hollowood grabbed Plaintiff's arm, what was said just before and during the altercation, and what exactly occurred during the several minutes that Plaintiff and other correctional officers were piled into the floor. Those facts are in dispute.

According to Plaintiff, he noticed Hollowood mishandling his CPAP machine and asked him to be easy with it. ECF No. 141 ¶¶ 91, 93. Hollowood responded, “I'm a fucking American, I will do whatever the fuck I want,” and he called Plaintiff the “n-word.” Id. ¶¶ 93-94. Plaintiff also asked to be present while his cell was searched, which he believed he had a right to do under DOC policy. Hollowood instructed him to remain outside the cell. Id. ¶¶ 95-97.

During the pat-down search, Gaffey told Plaintiff he did not have to strip completely down, however, he would need to remove and hand over anything in his pockets.^[4] Id. ¶¶ 102-03. When Plaintiff reached into his pocket to grab his cigarette and lighter, Hollowood shouted “this fucking [n-word]” and ran out of Plaintiff's cell. Id. ¶¶ 104-05. Hollowood grabbed Plaintiff by his neck and began choking him. Id. ¶ 106. Plaintiff asked Sheldon to intervene and expressed his fear that Hollowood would kill him, but Sheldon and other prison officials refused to help him. Id. ¶¶ 10708.

At some point, Hollowood falsely claimed that Plaintiff hit him, again referring to him as the “n-word.” Id. ¶¶ 110-11. Other corrections officers ran in to help, and many jumped on top of him-causing him to fall to the ground.^[5]Id. ¶¶ 112-13. Corrections officers kicked Plaintiff in the head, and at least one shouted to “break the [n-word's] fingers.” Id. ¶¶ 114-15. Plaintiff felt crushed under the officers, and he went in and out of consciousness. Id. ¶¶ 116-17.

According to Defendants, Plaintiff did not fully cooperate with Gaffey's pat-down search. Id. ¶¶ 21-23. Hollowood testified that Plaintiff kept dropping his arms and turning around to argue with Gaffey. Id. ¶ 23. When Plaintiff reached towards his pocket, Hollowood believed that he saw Plaintiff reach in to grab a chunk of wood.^[6]Id. ¶ 26. He grabbed Plaintiff's arm to prevent him from attacking Gaffey. Id. ¶ 27. At that point, Plaintiff was “being combative,” not complying with orders, and was pushing Hollowood forward into the railing. Id. ¶¶ 28-29. Hollowood instructed Macias to make a radio call for help, which resulted in all available personnel responding to the scene. Id. ¶¶ 30-33. Defendants deny that anyone used racial slurs during the incident. Id. ¶¶ 76-84.

Based on this, it is undisputed that Macias, Hollowood, Sheldon,...