Carter v. McCaleb

• Decision Date: 12 November 1998
• Docket Number: No. 4:97 CV 139.,4:97 CV 139.
• Citation: 29 F.Supp.2d 423
• Parties: James CARTER, Plaintiff, v. Tim McCALEB, individually; and County of Calhoun, a public body; and Marcia Leavel, individually; jointly and severally, Defendants.
• Court: U.S. District Court — Western District of Michigan

29 F.Supp.2d 423

James CARTER, Plaintiff, v. Tim McCALEB, individually; and County of Calhoun, a public body; and Marcia Leavel, individually; jointly and severally, Defendants.

No. 4:97 CV 139.

United States District Court, W.D. Michigan, Southern Division.

November 12, 1998.

William F. Piper, Durant, Piper & Connelly, L.L.P., Kalamazoo, MI, for Plaintiff.

John L. Thurber, Frank J. Kelley, Attorney General, Lansing, MI, Richard H. Winslow, Cummings, McClorey, Davis & Acho, PC, Battle Creek, MI, for Defendants.

JUDGMENT

ENSLEN, Chief Judge.

In accordance with the Opinion entered this date:

IT IS HEREBY ORDERED that Defendants' Motions for Summary Judgment (dkt.# 51, 52) are GRANTED, and that judgment is entered in favor of Defendants and against Plaintiff as to Plaintiff's federal law claims;

IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that Plaintiff's state law claims are DISMISSED without prejudice;

IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that Plaintiff's Cross Motions for Summary Judgment (dkt.# 57, 58) are DENIED.

OPINION

This matter is before the Court on the parties' cross motions for summary judgment and/or dismissal. Plaintiff brings suit, pursuant to 42 U.S.C. § 1983, against the County of Calhoun, probation officer Tim McCaleb, and Sgt. Marcia Leavell of the County Sheriff's Department. He alleges: (1) violations "of liberty interest and the interest against cruel and unusual punishment" against all defendants; (2) First Amendment retaliation against Defendant McCaleb; (3) denial of access to the courts by Defendant County; and (4) supplemental state law claims against Defendants Leavell and McCaleb.

On October 4, 1994, Plaintiff James Carter pled guilty to two counts of delivery of cocaine, less than 50 grams. On June 26, 1995, he was sentenced. The sentence included lifetime probation and a twelve month jail sentence, with credit for 61 days. A form titled "Judgment of Sentence" included a section titled "Release Authorized for the Following Purpose" and a box was checked indicating "to work or seek work." In the transcript of the judgment issued from the bench, the court stated that "[t]he plea agreement contemplated that you will be receiving a sentence on each of the two cases, possible sentence, two cases of lifetime probation with the one year county jail. Sentence will involve work release on one of the two. And I intend to follow that because the plea agreement, as I understand, has been carried out on your part." The court later stated that "the release only from the county jail on work release contemplates that you are working." The court asked if the Plaintiff was working at the time, to which he responded yes.¹ The Court went on:

To make sure that you understand what I say, that you may be on work release, that's simply an okay that you may be put on that status. It's a sheriff's work release program. It belongs to the sheriff, not the court system. I have nothing to do with it.

And you go over to the county jail and allow you to be on work release, they can disallow you from being on work release. They have rules and regulations and you are found to have marijuana on you for instance, they can revoke the — Sheriff can revoke the work release. He doesn't have to come to the Judge.

So the — the Sheriff's program you have to understand that the Judge does not interfere with the work release program. The only thing I have to do with it is to say it's okay with me.

If the sheriff wants to put you on it as part of your sentence, keep in mind that you have to abide by all the rules and regulations of the Sheriff's Department with regard to work release.

It appears that the Defendants did not process Plaintiff's work release in a timely fashion, and did not check his employment reference until one week after sentencing, at which time no job was available with the putative employer. Plaintiff subsequently sought to be released to pursue work, but was not released. He allegedly wrote numerous complaints, or "kites," in this regard, which received no response. He then wrote to the attorney who represented him at sentencing, and allegedly to the sentencing judge, but still received no action on his request for work release.

On August 25, 1995, Defendant McCaleb wrote a letter to Plaintiff, accusing him of "misrepresenting" and "manipulations to get out of jail early." He stated that he would not support early release in any form, and that since one of Plaintiff's sentences did not permit work release, it was "practically irrelevant" that the other did. He concluded:

To put it bluntly, you were given 12 months in jail, and I think it's important that you do them. If you cannot accept this reasonable retribution without the continuing whining machinations you've demonstrated thus far, you will merely confirm that you have to be more closely monitored and inflexibly responded to when you are released. I trust you see my point.

(emphasis in original)

At some point in this process, the Plaintiff alleges he again sought the help of his former attorney, but was told that a retainer would be required. He also alleges that he asked jail officials for access to materials in order to perform legal research, but was told the jail did not have a law library. The Plaintiff served his entire sentence in the County Jail.

Legal Standards

Under Rule 12(b)(6), a complaint may be dismissed "only if it is clear that no relief could be granted under any set of facts that could be proved consistent with the allegations." Hishon v. King & Spalding, 467 U.S. 69, 73, 104 S.Ct. 2229, 81 L.Ed.2d 59 (1984). The complaint must be construed in the light most favorable to the plaintiff, and its wellpleaded facts must be accepted as true. Morgan v. Church's Fried Chicken, 829 F.2d 10, 12 (6th Cir.1987). However, the Court need not accept as true legal conclusions or unwarranted factual inferences. Lewis v. ACB Business Serv., Inc., 135 F.3d 389, 405 (6th Cir.1998).

"Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 56(c) provides that summary judgment is proper `if the pleadings, depositions, answers to interrogatories and admissions on file, together with affidavits, if any, show that there is no genuine issue as to any material fact and that the moving party is entitled to judgment as a matter of law.'" City Management Corp. v. U.S. Chemical Co., 43 F.3d 244, 250 (6th Cir.1994).

"A party seeking summary judgment bears the initial burdens of specifying the basis upon which it contends judgment should be granted and of identifying that portion of the record which, in its opinion, demonstrates the absence of a genuine issue of material fact." Pierce v. Commonwealth Life Ins. Co., 40 F.3d 796, 800 (6th Cir.1994) (citing Celotex Corp. v. Catrett, 477 U.S. 317, 322, 106 S.Ct. 2548, 91 L.Ed.2d 265 (1986)). Under this test, the moving party may discharge its burden by "pointing out to the district court ... that there is an absence of evidence to support the nonmoving party's case." Hall v. Tollett, 128 F.3d 418, 422 (6th Cir.1997) (quoting Celotex, 477 U.S. at 325, 106 S.Ct. 2548). "Once this initial burden is met, it becomes the burden of the non-moving party to come forward with specific facts, supported by the evidence in the record, upon which a reasonable jury could find there to be a genuine fact issue for trial." Bill Call Ford, Inc. v. Ford Motor Co., 48 F.3d 201, 205 (6th Cir.1995) (citing Anderson v. Liberty Lobby, Inc., 477 U.S. 242, 248, 106 S.Ct. 2505, 91 L.Ed.2d 202 (1986)). Mere conclusory assertions or speculation will not suffice to avoid summary judgment, however. Moore v. Philip Morris Cos., 8 F.3d 335, 343 (6th Cir.1993). The non-moving party must go beyond the pleadings and provide sufficient facts to establish the dispute. Matsushita Elec. Indus. Co. v. Zenith Radio Corp. 475 U.S. 574, 587, 106 S.Ct. 1348, 89 L.Ed.2d 538 (1986) (citing Fed. R. Civ. Pro. 56(e)).

"`[C]redibility determinations, the weighing of the evidence, and the drawing of legitimate inferences are jury functions, not those of a judge. The evidence of the non-movant is to be believed, and all justifiable inferences are to be drawn in [the non-movant's] favor.'" Id. (quoting Anderson, 477 U.S. at 255, 106 S.Ct. 2505). The factual record presented must be interpreted in a light most favorable to the non-movant. Matsushita, 475 U.S. at 587, 106 S.Ct. 1348. This Court "cannot resolve issues of fact, but is empowered to determine only whether there are issues in dispute to be decided in a trial on the merits." Gutierrez v. Lynch, 826 F.2d 1534, 1536 (6th Cir.1987); In re Atlas Concrete Pipe, Inc., 668 F.2d 905, 908 (6th Cir. 1982).

Analysis

Procedural due process

While there are a number of subsidiary claims, this case revolves around the contention that Defendants "violated [Plaintiff's] liberty interest" in being placed on work release. While inartfully phrased by Plaintiff, this is a procedural due process claim, complaining that Plaintiff did not receive due process before being deprived of his putative liberty interest. As well, it may present a substantive due process claim. In order to succeed on either, a liberty interest must first be identified.

The due process playing field was dramatically altered by the Supreme Court in Sandin v. Conner, 515 U.S. 472, 115 S.Ct. 2293, 132 L.Ed.2d 418 (1995). Before Sandin, an inquiry into the source of a protected liberty interest was critical. Then, an enforceable liberty interest could be conferred upon prisoners through the enactment of "statutory or regulatory measures which place substantive limitations on prison officials' discretion." Klos v. Haskell, 48 F.3d 81, 86 (2d Cir.1995). In order to confer such an interest, a finding was necessary that the state law placed "substantive predicates" on the discretion of officials, and employed mandatory language requiring that the officials adhere to those predicates. See Kentucky Dep't of Corrections v. Thompson, 490 U.S. 454, 462-63, 109 S.Ct. 1904, 104 L.Ed.2d 506 (1989). Afte...