Briscoe v. Klaus
| Decision Date | 06 August 2008 |
| Docket Number | No. 04-4162.,04-4162. |
| Parties | Orland BRISCOE, Appellant v. Kenneth KLAUS; Martin L. Dragovich; Miller; Stender; Smith; Prave; Pelter; Leggore; Moore; Aliarnello; Marsha Hancock; John Doe. |
| Court | U.S. Court of Appeals — Third Circuit |
Before: AMBRO, FISHER and MICHEL,* Circuit Judges.
Orland Briscoe appeals the District Court's decision to dismiss his case for failure to prosecute and comply with its orders pursuant to Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 41(b). Briscoe's complaint alleged that several prison officials at the State Correctional Institution at Camp Hill ("SCI-Camp Hill") and the State Correctional Institution at Pittsburgh ("SCI-Pittsburgh") violated his constitutional rights under the Eighth and Fourteenth Amendments. After prison officials notified the District Court that Briscoe refused to be transported to the final pretrial conference, the District Court cancelled the pretrial conference, and two days later, it dismissed Briscoe's case. We hold that the District Court abused its discretion in dismissing Briscoe's case sua sponte without providing him with a full and fair opportunity to be heard regarding the reason he failed to attend the pretrial conference. For the following reasons, we will vacate the District Court's order and remand the case to the District Court for proceedings consistent with this opinion.
On July 6, 2001, Orland Briscoe filed a complaint in the District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania. Briscoe, a Pennsylvania state prisoner, alleged that two incidents occurred in which prison officials at SCI-Camp Hill and SCI-Pittsburgh violated his constitutional rights.
The first instance occurred on December 17, 1999 when several Corrections Officers ("COs") arrived to return Briscoe to his cell after he had been released from the infirmary at SCI-Camp Hill. He alleged that Sergeant Paul Leggore, CO Moore, CO Nicholas Prave, CO James Zihmer, Lieutenant Miller, and CO Anthony Alianiello entered his infirmary cell, and proceeded to strike him with a riot shield, beat him, kick him, and carry him to the strip search area. He was then strip searched in the presence of Leggore, Prave, Alianiello, Zihmer, CO Kenneth Klaus, CO Adam Huber, and CO Randy McCauslin.
The second instance occurred on April 12, 2000, when several COs transferred Briscoe from SCI-Camp Hill to SCI-Pittsburgh. The COs took Briscoe to the strip search area, and the following officers conducted the search: Leggore, McCauslin, Prave, Klaus, Smith, CO Clifford Pelter, CO Edward Hatcher, and CO Raymond Stender. After Briscoe failed to follow the COs' instructions during the strip search, Smith ordered the officers to take him down to the floor. While he was on the floor, Klaus kneed him in the face. The COs then took Briscoe to the van to transfer him. During the transfer, Briscoe claims that Stender elbowed him in the mouth, damaging one of his teeth. He also claims that Smith used an electronic immobilizing device on him.1 Upon arriving at SCI-Pittsburgh, the nurse, Marsha Hancock, examined and treated Briscoe.
Based on these facts, Briscoe instituted this litigation against the prison officials pursuant to 42 U.S.C. § 1983, alleging that the prison officials violated his Eighth and Fourteenth Amendment rights in the following ways: (1) Miller, Leggore, Moore, Alianiello, Prave, and Zihmer used excessive force on him in the infirmary cell on December 17, 1999; (2) Miller, Leggore, Moore, Alianiello, Prave, and Zihmer used excessive force on him during the strip search on December 17, 1999; (3) Miller, Stender, Leggore, McCauslin, Pelter, Prave, Smith, and Klaus used excessive force on him during the strip search on April 12, 2000; (4) Stender and Smith used excessive force on him while transporting him to SCI-Pittsburgh on April 12, 2000; and (5) Nurse Hancock refused to provide him with the medical treatment he requested.
In July 2002, Briscoe did not attend his scheduled deposition. On September 4, 2002, defendant Klaus filed a motion to dismiss Briscoe's case for failure to prosecute. On September 30, 2002, Briscoe submitted a brief in opposition to the motion. In it, he explained that, prior to the hearing, prison officials had confiscated all of his legal documents and his clothing. He attached a declaration from an inmate who supported his assertion of these facts. He further stated that he had contacted Klaus' counsel, requesting that the deposition be rescheduled when he had access to all of these materials. On March 19, 2003, the District Court denied Klaus' motion to dismiss.
After completion of discovery, the parties filed cross-motions for summary judgment. On March 31, 2004, the District Court denied Briscoe's motion for summary judgment, but granted the defendants' motion for summary judgment in part, finding that several of the defendants had not violated Briscoe's Eighth and Fourteenth Amendment rights. Specifically, the District Court granted summary judgment in favor of the following defendants: (1) Miller, Leggore, Moore, Alianiello, Prave, and Zihmer, finding that they had not used excessive force during the strip search on December 17, 1999; (2) Miller, Stender, Leggore, McCauslin, Pelter, and Prave, finding that they had not used excessive force during the strip search on April 12, 2000; and (3) Nurse Hancock, finding that she had not acted with deliberate indifference in treating Briscoe. Therefore, Briscoe's remaining claims that survived summary judgment were: (1) Miller, Leggore, Moore, Alianiello, Prave, and Zihmer used excessive force on him in the infirmary cell on December 17, 1999; (2) Smith and Klaus used excessive force on him during the strip search on April 12, 2000; and (3) Stender and Smith used excessive force on him while transporting him to SCI-Pittsburgh on April 12, 2000.
On August 5, 2004, the District Court filed a Scheduling Order. It scheduled the final pretrial conference for September 9, 2004, and it set the trial to begin on September 27, 2004. Briscoe filed a motion, requesting a sixty-day extension to file his jury instructions and subpoena his witnesses. The District Court did not rule on this motion.
On September 8, 2004, the District Court entered an order, stating that it had been "notifi[ed] from Plaintiff's custodian, the State Correctional Institution at Fayette, Labelle, Pennsylvania, that the Plaintiff is refusing to be transported for purposes of attending the Final Pretrial Conference scheduled in this matter for Thursday[,] September, 9, 2004." As a result of this notification, it entered the following order:
1. The Plaintiff's refusal to appear at the Final Pretrial Conference in this matter could be construed as a failure to prosecute the action, as well as a failure to comply with the rules of court and will result in an involuntary dismissal of the action, on the merits, pursuant to Fed.R.Civ.P. 41(b);
2. The Clerk of Court is hereby directed to serve this Order on the Plaintiff's custodian via facsimile;
3. Plaintiff's custodian is ordered to serve this Order upon the Plaintiff forthwith;
4. Plaintiff's custodian is further ordered to notify this Court of the Plaintiff's status by 3:00 p.m. on this date.
Pursuant to this order, the prison officials notified the District Court that Briscoe continued to refuse to be transported. Thus, the District Court entered a second order, cancelling the conference.
On September 10, 2004, the District Court dismissed Briscoe's case for failure to prosecute and comply with its orders pursuant to Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 41(b). In its order, the court considered the six factors applicable to dismissing a case pursuant to Rule 41(b) as set forth in Poulis v. State Farm Fire and Casualty Co., 747 F.2d 863, 868 (3d Cir. 1984). It noted that Briscoe's claims "were based in some merit" because they "had successfully cleared the summary judgment hurdle and were in posture to proceed to trial." However, it found that the remaining factors were not in favor of Briscoe. It found that Briscoe was personally responsible for his refusal to attend the conference, his refusal was willful because he had ignored the court's specific warning to him, and his failure to attend the conference prejudiced the defendants because the defendants could not "effectively prepare for trial so as to bring the litigation to a resolution." Additionally, it found that, although Briscoe did not have a history of dilatoriness, his refusal to attend the conference was a dilatory tactic in light of his request for an extension of time to comply with the court's order regarding pretrial documentation. Finally, it found that alternative sanctions were unavailable in the present case. Based on its evaluation of these factors, the District Court dismissed Briscoe's case. Its order stated:
1. The Plaintiff's action is DISMISSED ON THE MERITS for failure to prosecute and comply with orders of [the] Court pursuant to Fed.R.Civ.P. 41(b);
2. The Clerk of Court is directed to CLOSE this case;
3. Any appeal from this Order will be deemed frivolous, lacking in probable cause and not in good faith.
On September 29, 2004, Briscoe filed a timely notice of appeal to this Court.2
The District Court had jurisdiction over this case pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1343(a)(3), and we have jurisdiction over this appeal pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1291. We re...
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