Beck v. Texas State Bd. Dental Examiners

• Decision Date: 03 March 2000
• Docket Number: No. 98-51111,98-51111
• Citation: 204 F.3d 629
• Parties: (5th Cir. 2000) ROBERT LEE BECK, MD, DMD, Plaintiff-Appellant, v. TEXAS STATE BOARD OF DENTAL EXAMINERS; ET AL, Defendants, MICHAEL PITCOCK; WILLIAM S. NAIL; WILLIAM J. KEMP, DR; BRIAN BABIN, DR; JACK L. BOLTON, DR; RANDOLPH D MINATRA, DR; FRANK SANTOS, DR; TERRY R. DICKINSON, DR; ROGER BYRNE, DR; CHARLES T. KU, DR; RONALD H SHAMBLIN, DR, Defendants-Appellees
• Court: U.S. Court of Appeals — Fifth Circuit

Page 629

204 F.3d 629 (5th Cir. 2000)

ROBERT LEE BECK, MD, DMD, Plaintiff-Appellant, v. TEXAS STATE BOARD OF DENTAL EXAMINERS; ET AL, Defendants, MICHAEL PITCOCK; WILLIAM S. NAIL; WILLIAM J. KEMP, DR; BRIAN BABIN, DR; JACK L. BOLTON, DR; RANDOLPH D MINATRA, DR; FRANK SANTOS, DR; TERRY R. DICKINSON, DR; ROGER BYRNE, DR; CHARLES T. KU, DR; RONALD H SHAMBLIN, DR, Defendants-Appellees.

No. 98-51111

IN THE UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE FIFTH CIRCUIT

March 3, 2000

Rehearing Denied April 4, 2000.

[Copyrighted Material Omitted]

Appeal from the United States District Court for the Western District of Texas

Before WIENER and STEWART, Circuit Judges^*.

CARL E. STEWART, Circuit Judge:

This case involves a suit filed by a dental practitioner in the state of Texas against a state regulatory board and its members and staff. The plaintiff claims that the defendants improperly initiated disciplinary proceedings against him and revoked his dentistry license in an effort to retaliate against him from joining in a previous lawsuit filed by a group of dentists against the defendants. For the reasons stated below, we find that the board and its members are immune from liability under absolute immunity, and the board investigator Michael Pitcock is immune from liability under qualified immunity.

FACTUAL AND PROCEDURAL HISTORY

Robert Lee Beck ("Beck") has been a dental practitioner in Texas since 1967. In 1980, Beck joined with other dentists in a lawsuit against the Texas State Board of Dental Examiners (the "Board") contesting the Board's regulations against dentists advertising their services. The Board was composed of nine licensed dentists appointed by the Governor of Texas and was supported by several staff personnel. The Board was responsible for promulgating rules and regulating the dentistry profession in Texas. The lawsuit challenging the Board's regulations against advertising was resolved in favor of the plaintiffs.

In July 1986, Michael Pitcock ("Pitcock") and Wayne Youngblood ("Youngblood"), both staff members and investigators for the Board, accompanied Frank Perez, a Department of Public Safety ("DPS") agent, on an inspection of Beck's dental office. Pitcock stated in his deposition that information was forwarded to him alleging that Beck had ordered unusually high volumes of controlled substances. During the inspection, Beck was asked to produce documentation regarding his orders and prescriptions for controlled substances. The inspection revealed, inter alia, an unaccounted for shortage of certain controlled substances. The officers also discovered that Beck had self-prescribed drugs. Beck also failed to make available the necessary records for inspection. Based on these findings, a formal complaint was filed to revoke Beck's license.¹

In 1987, the Board held a hearing to determine whether Beck's license should be revoked. Beck failed to attend the hearing. A plea of "untrue" was entered on Beck's behalf, and the Board conducted the hearing. After the presentation of evidence, the Board members unanimously voted to revoke Beck's license.

After the Board's final order to revoke Beck's license was issued, Beck filed an action in state district court to contest the Board's ruling. While Beck's challenge to the Board's order was pending before state district court, the Board and Beck entered into an Agreed Judgment in April 1992. The Board agreed to conditionally reinstate Beck's license if he agreed to satisfy certain conditions. Beck satisfied the conditions and his license was reinstated.

Beck maintains that in 1992, Youngblood testified at a Sunset Committee that the Board targeted certain dentists for selective prosecution because of their participation in the lawsuit challenging the Board's regulations against advertising. Based on this information, Beck claims that the investigation of his dental practice and the disciplinary proceedings which led to the revocation of his license were based on improper retaliatory motivations.

In April 1994, Beck sued the Board, its members, and staff personnel (the "defendants") in their individual and official capacities in federal district court claiming violations of 42 U.S.C. 1983, the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organization Act ("RICO"), the Fourth Amendment of the United States Constitution, the Commerce Clause, and the Texas State Constitution. The defendants moved for summary judgment. The district court issued a mixed ruling in which it denied in part and granted in part the defendants' motion for summary judgment. The district court dismissed all of Beck's claims against the Board and the individual defendants in their official capacities. The district court also dismissed Beck's claims against several individual defendants named in his complaint, but preserved his claims against the remaining individual defendants named in the instant appeal. Beck moved to file a second amended complaint, moved for relief from judgment, and moved to correct summary judgment. The district court denied Beck's motions. The remaining defendants filed a second motion for summary judgment to dispose of Beck's remaining claims. The district court granted the motion based on absolute immunity. Beck now appeals the district court's grant of the defendants' second motion for summary judgment. He also appeals the court's denial of his post-judgment motions.

STANDARD OF REVIEW

We review de novo, a district court's grant of summary judgment, applying the same standard as the district court in the first instance. See Burge v. Parish of St. Tammany, 157 F.3d 452, 465 (5th Cir. 1999). Summary judgment is appropriate where the moving party establishes that "there is no genuine issue of material fact and that it is entitled to judgment as a matter of law." FED R.CIV.P. 50(c). The moving party must show that if the evidentiary material of record were reduced to admissible evidence in court, it would be insufficient to permit the nonmoving party to carry its burden. Celotex v. Catrett, 477 U.S. 317, 327, 106 S.Ct. 2548, 2554, 91 L.Ed.2d 265 (1986).

Once the moving party has carried its summary judgment burden, the opposing party must set forth specific facts showing a genuine issue for trial and may not rest upon the mere allegations or denials of its pleadings. Anderson v. Liberty Lobby, Inc., 477 U.S. 242, 249, 106 S.Ct. 2505, 2511, 91 L.Ed.2d 202 (1986). Thus, this showing requires more than some metaphysical doubt as to the material facts. Matsushito Elec. Indus. Co v. Zenith Radio Corp., 475 U.S. 574, 584-86, 106 S.Ct. 1348, 89 L.Ed.2d 538 (1986).

DISCUSSION

Beck argues that the district court erred when it granted summary judgment to the Board members and the Board's staff member, Pitcock. Specifically, Beck argues that the Board members are not entitled to absolute immunity because the Board members failed to demonstrate that they performed a quasi-judicial function when they initiated disciplinary proceedings to revoke his license. Beck also contends that Pitcock in his role as an investigator is not entitled to absolute immunity.

I. Board members

Beck argues that the record is insufficient to support the Board members' claim that they performed a "quasi-judicial" function regarding the disciplinary proceedings conducted against him. Specifically, Beck claims that the defendants failed to articulate facts sufficient to demonstrate they performed "quasi-judicial" functions under the factors set forth in Butz v. Economou, 438 U.S. 478, 98 S.Ct. 2894, 57 L.Ed.2d 895 (1978). Beck additionally argues that the district court improperly invoked our decision in O'Neal v. Mississippi Board of Nursing, 113 F.3d 62 (5th Cir. 1997)(holding that state nursing regulatory board and its members were entitled to absolute immunity for performing quasi-judicial functions). The defendants, on the other hand, maintain that absolute immunity is applicable because the Board performed quasi-judicial functions. In the alternative, the defendants assert that qualified immunity is applicable because the actions taken against Beck did not violate a clearly established constitutional right, and were not objectively unreasonable.

Before we discuss the merits of the absolute immunity issue, we find at the outset that Beck erroneously characterizes the burden of proof for summary judgment. Beck argues that the burden rests on the defendants to articulate facts to support their claim of immunity. Our well established summary judgment jurisprudence clearly shows otherwise. The moving party is not required to put forth evidence to meet its summary judgment burden for a claim of immunity. It is sufficient that the movant in good faith pleads that it is entitled to absolute or qualified immunity. See Salas v. Carpenter, 980 F.2d 299, 306 (5th Cir. 1992). "Once the [movant] asserts this affirmative defense, the burden shifts to the plaintiff to rebut it." Whatley v. Philo, 817 F.2d 19, 20 (5th Cir. 1987) (emphasis added). The movant can support its motion by solely relying on the pleadings. See Salas 980 F.2d at 299 (citing Celotex, 477 U.S. at 324, 106 S.Ct. at 2553). In the instant case, the defendants' motion for summary judgment asserted that they were entitled to absolute immunity because they performed quasi-judicial functions. As such, this assertion was sufficient to meet their summary judgment burden below. Having done so, the burden shifts to Beck to show that the defendants were not entitled to immunity.

As to the merits of the immunity issue, in a 1983 action, the Supreme Court has recognized that a defendant may assert "absolute immunity." See Bogan v. Scott-Harris, 523 U.S. 44, 119 S.Ct. 966, 140 L.Ed.2d 79 (1999); Kalina v. Fletcher, 522 U.S. 118, 118 S.Ct. 502, 139 L.Ed.2d 471 (1997). Absolute immunity prevents a person whose federal rights have been violated by a government official any type of remedy, regardless of the conduct. Because absolute immunity denies a plaintiff...