Bradley v. White
| Decision Date | 06 November 2017 |
| Docket Number | 5:16-cv-196-FDW |
| Court | U.S. District Court — Western District of North Carolina |
| Parties | TION L. BRADLEY, Plaintiff, v. SUSAN WHITE, ET AL., Defendants. |
THIS MATTER is before the Court on initial review of Plaintiff's Complaint, (Doc. No. 1). Plaintiff is proceeding in forma pauperis. (Doc. No. 5).
Pro se Plaintiff Tion Bradley has filed a civil rights suit pursuant to 42 U.S.C. § 1983 against the following Defendants in their official and individual capacities: Alexander Correctional Institution Superintendent Susan White, Alexander C.I. Assistant Superintendent Eric Dye, and Alexander C.I. Unit Manger April Parker.
Construing the Complaint liberally and accepting its allegations as true, Plaintiff appears to allege that he fell in the shower and suffered a sprained back on May 3, 2015, due to the Defendants' negligent failure to provide a working light and mat. While Plaintiff was unconscious, Sergeant Clifton and staff carried him back to his cell and left him there while unresponsive and handcuffed. A little while later, Clifton and Lieutenant Triplett came to get the handcuffs. (Doc. No. 1 at 7). Upon standing up, Plaintiff became extremely dizzy and chose to lie back down. Plaintiff informed Clifton and Triplett of his "medical conditions" and instead of getting help, they put together and extraction team which put him in full restraints, removed legal mail from his cell and tore it up, and failed to provide a bathroom break every eight hours as dictated by policy.
Plaintiff filed a tort claim about falling in the shower and "it seems like prison officials been out to get [him] ever since." (Doc. No. 1 at 9).
The next day, May 4, 2015, Plaintiff informed Officer Gum that he had used the bathroom on himself and asked that Parker be notified. Parker came to Plaintiff's cell door and Plaintiff notified her of his "conditions" (Doc. No. 1 at 7). Parker said that Plaintiff "play[s] to[o] much" and walked away, leaving Plaintiff in his urine and feces. (Doc. No. 1 at 7). Officer Gum came into Plaintiff's room three times to feed him that day because of Plaintiff's dizziness. Plaintiff spent the whole day lying in the same spot where Clifton and Triplett left him. Nurse Bise and Officer Gum put a mat back in his cell that Sergeant Clifton had removed and given to a White inmate.
On May 5, Parker came to see a White inmate with feces all over the walls and allowed him to shower. Parker only got Plaintiff help after other African-American inmates became upset, kicking and banging on doors, because Plaintiff had not been given any help. A doctor was summoned, said Plaintiff had a sprained back, and set an appointment for an x-ray which "staff" refused to let him attend. (Doc. No. 1 at 8).
On the morning of June 21, 2015, Officers Snyder and Rodriguez, and Sergeant Collier conducted a cell search. They took all Plaintiff's legal mail dealing with the tort claim about the shower. (Doc. No. 1 at 9).
Plaintiff is allergic to carrots and pineapple so he was placed on a special diet containing no processed meat, carrots, or pineapple. When Plaintiff refused to eat processed meat that he was erroneously given, staff refused to correct the error and he was placed on Nutraloaf on Jun 29, 2015. (Doc. No. 1 at 14). Plaintiff told "prison officials" he was not eating until they gave him realfood but that never happened so Plaintiff went on a hunger strike. (Doc. No. 1 at 9).
On July 2, 2015, Plaintiff passed out in the recreation cage due to low blood sugar. Instead of taking him to medical for observation, they carried him back to his cell and later checked his blood sugar which was 35, and took his personal property. Sergeant Johnson, Parker and "everyone on that shift" stood around while the property was removed from his cell. (Doc. No. 1 at 14). "Staff" lost property including his family pictures and prayer rug. (Doc. No. 1 at 14). Plaintiff's property was returned on July 6, 2015, from Officers Setter and Coldwell, who informed him that no DC-160 property receipt form was completed and that records indicated that Plaintiff had already received his property.
The next day, July 3, 2015, Plaintiff was in restricted housing run by Parker when he passed out in his cell due to low blood sugar. When Plaintiff went to the door to have his handcuffs removed, Officers Collier, Daves and Snyder, and other officers stood around his door, blocking the camera's view, while Daves and Snyder twisted his wrist and slammed his arm repeatedly in the food trap. (Doc. No. 1 at 11). Plaintiff was yelling (Doc. No. 1 at 11). Collier, the shift supervisor, stood and watched as his officers used excessive force through the cell door, then Collier struck Plaintiff multiple times on his left arm. (Doc. No. 1 at 12). The OIC was notified and came to take pictures the same day, right before Plaintiff was placed in full-restraints. Medical did not check on him for injuries. (Doc. No. 1 at 12). The OIC, Captain Hamilton, came to take his statement for the incident report. Plaintiff was not written up until 20 days later after he wrote a grievance and had his mother call the institution. Plaintiff was then written up for assaulting an officer,which was done to justify their wrongdoings. (Doc. No. 1 at 12). Plaintiff feels these actions were strictly out of retaliation for filing the tort claim.
On August 4, 2014, Officers Ishbell and Baker came to get Plaintiff for the disciplinary hearing. Collier tried to start a conversation but Plaintiff asked him not to speak to him. While Plaintiff was at the hearing, Collier and/or Johnson searched Plaintiff's cell and ripped up his legal statement about being hit, flushed his "religious oils" down the toilet, and tore up one or two magazines, and personal books he is allowed to have. (Doc. No. 1 at 12). Plaintiff came back from the disciplinary hearing, saw that his belongings were scattered and ripped up, and asked for Officer Isbell to place him back in full restraints and get the OIC. Captain Maynor came to see Plaintiff, who explained about his destroyed belongings. Plaintiff was not written up for having contraband so there was no reason for prison officials to destroy his property. Maynor said he would fix the situation and instructed Plaintiff to write a grievance. Plaintiff did so but nothing happened. Collier's actions were retaliatory.
On August 27, 2015, Plaintiff found blood coming out of his backside during wash-up and declared a medical emergency. Nurse Schilling and prison officials Baker and Isabell laughed at Plaintiff's condition. Plaintiff asked them to leave and to speak to the OIC because he had a serious condition and their laugher was unprofessional. When the OIC showed up, Plaintiff submitted to handcuffs so prison officials could remove his personal property "because it was said that I used profane language when I only wanted medical attention for a serious matter." (Doc. No. 1 at 15). "Prison officials" including Johnson placed him in a shower and demanded that he remove his clothes. Plaintiff refused so they formed an extraction team to force him to undress. Plaintiff finally took off his clothes because he was afraid he would be beaten.
A Prison Rape Elimination Act ("PREA") investigation started on August 27, 2015. Plaintiff was interviewed. Johnson, who was not supposed to be involved in the investigation, falsely stated that other inmates refused to be interviewed in order to cover up prison officials'wrongdoings and unprofessional actions. (Doc. No. 1 at 16).
On August 28, 2015, Plaintiff was written up for having a ball of plastic wrap and "holding the trap," which he did not do. (Doc. No. 1 at 16). Plaintiff asked prison officials to place him back in full restraints while he waited for the OIC. Prison officials left his trap open; "it was said they came to get my property due to profane language but prison officials realized that wasn't good of enough reason to force me to get naked." (Doc. No. 1 at 16).
On September 24, 2015, Officer White grabbed Plaintiff's backside during a pat-down. "Other prison officials" claimed that they did not see it happen, but every officer takes up for the other even when the officer is wrong. (Doc. No. 1 at 17). Officer White had done the same thing to another inmate in 2013. Something should have been done to prevent this from happening a second time. Plaintiff wrote to Superintendent White, Assistant Superintendent Dye, and Mr. Poteat but nothing has been done. He wrote a grievance on the situation but nothing happened and Officer White is still on the unit. White and Dye both have enough "say so" to have Officer White moved off the unit. (Doc. No. 1 at 17).
On November 13, 2015, Officer Cook called Plaintiff "nigger" in the hallway and spoke to him in a sarcastic manner. (Doc. No. 1 at 18). Sergeant Johnson said he did not care and refused to get the OIC until other inmates began to "act out." (Id.). Lieutenant Beaver came to the cell and told Plaintiff to write it up. Plaintiff did so but nothing happened. On November 22, 2015, Clawson called Plaintiff "bitch" and called him "nigger" twice for no reason. (Doc. No. 1 at 19). Plaintiff asked to see the OIC and wrote a grievance.
On March 7, 2016, Officer Johnson slammed Plaintiff's hand inside the trap as Plaintiff was reaching for his lunch tray. Moments later, Lieutenant Clifton, Unit Manager Poteat, and Officers Baker, Caldwell and Clawson came to put Plaintiff in restraints and remove his personalproperty. When Plaintiff received his property back he discovered that a lot of it was destroyed or missing. Plaintiff returned his property to Officer Rorack and asked to speak to the unit manager. Clawson, who Plaintiff had written up for racial slurs, was on the DC-160 as well as the officer who inventoried the property, and had a motive to destroy/throw away Plaintiff...
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