Black v. May
| Decision Date | 06 September 2013 |
| Docket Number | Case No. 2:12-cv-00790-JHH-MHH |
| Parties | MICHAEL EUGENE BLACK, Plaintiff, v. RONNIE MAY, et al., Defendants. |
| Court | U.S. District Court — Northern District of Alabama |
Michael Eugene Black, hereinafter referred to as "plaintiff," filed a pro se complaint pursuant to 42 U.S.C. § 1983 alleging that rights, privileges, or immunities afforded him under the Constitution or laws of the United States were abridged during his incarceration at the Colbert County Jail in Tuscumbia, Alabama. (Doc. 1). Plaintiff is currently incarcerated at Staton Correctional Facility in Elmore, Alabama. Plaintiff names as defendants Colbert County Sheriff Ronnie May, Jail Administrator Anthony Pace, Jailers Mike Briley, "Roger," and Toby Carruthers, "Dr. Bates," Nurse Doris Pilkinton, and inmate Timothy Garner. Plaintiff seeks monetary relief. For the reasons stated below, this action is due to be dismissed pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1915A(b).
The Prison Litigation Reform Act of 1995, Pub. L. No. 104-134, § 804, 110 Stat. 1321, and 28 U.S.C. § 1915A, requires this Court to screen complaints filed by prisoners against officers or employees of governmental entities and to dismiss the complaint or any portion of the complaint that is frivolous, malicious, fails to state a claim upon which relief can be granted, or seeks monetary relief from a defendant who is immune from such relief. Thus, under § 1915A, the Court may sua sponte dismiss a prisoner's complaint prior to service. In order to protect a pro se prisoner's right of access to the courts, these complaints are read by less stringent standards than formal pleadings drafted by lawyers. See, e.g., Haines v. Kerner, 404 U.S. 519, 520-21 (1972); Harmon v. Berry, 728 F.2d 1407, 1409 (11th Cir. 1984); Watson v. Ault, 525 F.2d 886, 891 (5th Cir. 1976).
On September 2, 2011, while he was housed in the sick bay of the Colbert County Jail, plaintiff called Ervin Fisher.1 (Doc. 1 at p. 7). Plaintiff alleges, "[t]he phone call revealed that Fisher and I knew everything about the jury rigging in my trial, Aug. 23-24, 2011." (Id.). Plaintiff claims that as a result of his knowledge, "thepeople in power of Colbert County" arranged a "hit" on him. (Id.). Plaintiff contends that Timothy Garner was appointed to be the "hitman." (Id.).
On September 13, 2011, Colbert County Jailer Roger placed inmate Timothy Garner in a sick bay cell with plaintiff upon Nurse Doris Pilkinton's orders. (Doc. 1 at p. 5.) Within thirty minutes, inmate Garner told plaintiff, "'What do you expect when I stomp your sissy ass?'" (Id.). Plaintiff contacted Ervin Fisher and informed him of Garner's threat. (Id.). Fisher then called plaintiff's attorney, Steve Aldridge, who called Sheriff Ronnie May. (Id.). Sheriff May contacted the jail, and plaintiff was placed in isolation. (Id.).
On September 14, 2011, plaintiff asked Jailer Toby Carruthers for the name of the inmate who threatened him. (Doc. 1 at p. 5). At first, Carruthers refused to give plaintiff the inmate's name. (Id.). Plaintiff informed Carruthers that he was reporting the incident to federal authorities. (Id.). Carruthers wrote Timothy Garner's name on a piece of paper and gave it to plaintiff. (Id.). Plaintiff mailed the paper to Ervin Fisher along with a brief account of the incident that took place with Garner. (Id.). Carruthers mailed plaintiff's letter, and it reached Fisher. (Id.).
Also on September 14, 2011, plaintiff wrote detailed letters to Fisher and plaintiff's attorney, Steve Aldridge, concerning the incident with Garner. (Doc. 1 at p. 5). Plaintiff instructed Aldridge to subpoena jury foreman Joe Garrett for a hearingon plaintiff's motion for a new trial, which was scheduled for September 20, 2011. (Id.). Joe Garrett had a business relationship with the Spring Valley Water System and is related to Johnny Garrett, a board member of the Spring Valley Water System. (Id.). Plaintiff was charged with a crime in which the alleged victim, Tony Jones, is an employee of the Spring Valley Water System. (Id.). Plaintiff gave the letters to jail staff in sealed, stamped envelopes, but Fisher and Aldridge did not receive the letters. (Id.). Jail staff also held plaintiff's subsequent letters to Fisher for many days before mailing them. (Id.).
On September 19, 2011, plaintiff called Ervin Fisher. (Doc. 1 at p. 5). Fisher informed plaintiff that jail staff denied that Timothy Garner was in the jail on September 13, 2011. (Doc. 1 at p. 6). Fisher also stated that he still had not received plaintiff's letter, which was mailed on September 14, 2011.2 (Id.). Plaintiff told Fisher that he feared for his life, and Fisher contacted plaintiff's attorney, Steve Aldridge. (Id.). Aldridge contacted Sheriff Ronnie May, who then called the jail. (Id.). Around 5:40 p.m., Jailer Mike Briley came to the sick bay where plaintiff was housed and insisted that plaintiff stop calling Aldridge. (Id.). Briley told plaintiff that his safety would be handled "'within the walls of the Jail.'" (Id.). Plaintiffresponded that jail staff was not concerned about his safety and had stopped his mail. (Doc. 1 at p. 6). Briley replied, " " (Id.). Later, the sick bay phone, which had been turned off intermittently before then, was turned off for "days at a time." (Id.). Plaintiff alleges that the "actions of the jailers made [him] fear for [his] life." (Id.).
On September 20, 2011, a hearing was held in plaintiff's criminal case on his motion for a new trial. (Doc. 1 at p. 6). Plaintiff's attorney did not receive plaintiff's September 14, 2011, letter instructing him to subpoena jury foreman Joe Garrett. (Id.). Therefore, plaintiff was not able to question Joe Garrett about his connection to the Spring Valley Water System and the alleged victim, Tony Jones. (Id.). Plaintiff also could not question Joe Garrett about his family relationship with Johnny Garrett, a board member of the Spring Valley Water System. (Id.).
Plaintiff alleges that his knowledge of jury rigging resulted in two attempts on his life by "the people in power." (Doc. 1 at p. 7). He claims, "I was not provided a safe environment to live and was targeted for injury and death to cover up their denial of my rights to due process of law, denial of my rights to consult and instruct my attorney, denial of my rights to the U.S. mail and denial of my first amendment rights of freedom of speech and freedom of expression." (Id.).
On September 24, 2011, Nurse Doris Pilkinton was on duty at the jail. (Doc. 1 at p. 7). About 1:00 p.m., a jailer gave plaintiff Amantadine, a medication prescribed to him for tardive dyskinesia. (Id.). After taking the medication, plaintiff began to experience severe chest pains. (Id.). Plaintiff was prescribed Amantadine since 2010 and had not experienced any ill effects. (Id.). At 9:00 p.m., plaintiff took another dose of Amantadine and experienced severe chest pains again. (Id.).
On September 25, 2011, plaintiff took a morning dose of Amantadine and had another occurrence of chest pains. (Doc. 1 at p. 7). Plaintiff alleges, "I came to the conclusion that there was a connection between the medication that they claimed was [A]mantadine and the chest pain I was experiencing." (Id.). Plaintiff began to "cheek" the medication each time it was brought to him. (Id.). Plaintiff placed a sick call request and was seen by Pilkinton on September 29 or 30, 2011. (Id.). Plaintiff requested an EKG but Pilkinton refused. (Id.). Pilkinton became irate over plaintiff "cheeking" the pills. (Id.). Jailer Heath went to the sick bay to retrieve the pills. (Doc. 1 at p. 7). Plaintiff alleges that Pilkinton was under the supervision of Dr. Bates and that Anthony Pace was the Jail Administrator at all relevant times. (Id.).
The Eighth Amendment's prohibition on cruel and unusual punishment imposes upon institutional officials the duty to "'take reasonable measures to guarantee the safety of the inmates'" in their custody. Farmer v. Brennan, 511 U.S. 825, 832 (1994) (quoting Hudson v. Palmer, 468 U.S. 517, 526-27 (1984)). It is clear, however, that not every injury suffered by an inmate "translates into constitutional liability for prison officials responsible for [the inmate's] safety." Farmer, 511 U.S. at 834; see also Zatler v. Wainwright, 802 F.2d 397, 400 (11th Cir. 1986).
"In order to state a § 1983 cause of action against prison officials based on a constitutional deprivation resulting from cruel and unusual punishment, there must be at least some allegation of a conscious or callous indifference to a prisoner's rights, thus raising the tort to constitutional stature." Williams v. Bennett, 689 F.2d 1370, 1380 (11th Cir. 1982) (quoting Wright v. El Paso County Jail, 642 F.2d 134, 136 (5th Cir. 1981)). It is only when institutional officials' deliberate indifference to a known danger or risk exposes an inmate to objectively, "sufficiently serious" harm that a constitutional violation occurs. Farmer, 511 U.S. at 834 (quoting Wilson v. Seiter, 501 U.S. 294, 298 (1991)); see also Brown v. Hughes, 894 F.2d 1533, 1537(11th Cir. 1990) ().
A danger or risk is "known" only if the institutional official is both "aware of facts from which the inference could be drawn that a substantial risk of harm exists, and he . . . draw[s] th[at] inference." Farmer, 511 U.S. at 837. "[A]n official's failure to alleviate a significant risk that he should have perceived, but did not," is not sufficient to establish liability on the part of the official. Id. at 838. Furthermore, "the known risk of injury must be a 'strong...
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