Chen v. D'Amico

• Citation: 428 F.Supp.3d 483
• Decision Date: 20 December 2019
• Docket Number: CASE NO. C16-1877JLR
• Parties: Susan CHEN, et al., Plaintiffs, v. Natalie D'AMICO, et al., Defendants.
• Court: U.S. District Court — Western District of Washington

428 F.Supp.3d 483

Susan CHEN, et al., Plaintiffs,

v.Natalie D'AMICO, et al., Defendants.

CASE NO. C16-1877JLR

United States District Court, W.D. Washington, at Seattle.

Signed December 20, 2019

Susan Chen, Redmond, WA, pro se.

Naixiang Lian, Redmond, WA, pro se.

J.L., pro se.

L.L., pro se.

Nathan Thomas Alexander, Shawn J. Larsen-Bright, Tzu-Huan Augustine Lo, Brian Janura, Wendy M. Feng, Dorsey & Whitney, Michael David Myers, Myers & Company, Seattle, WA, for Plaintiffs.

Aaron P. Riensche, Geoff J.M. Bridgman, Daniel Francis Shickich, Tracy N. Grant, Ogden Murphy Wallace PLLC, Scott M. Barbara, Attorney General's Office, Seattle, WA, for Defendants.

AMENDED ORDER GRANTING IN PART AND DENYING IN PART STATE DEFENDANTS' MOTION FOR SUMMARY JUDGMENT

JAMES L. ROBART, United States District Judge

I. INTRODUCTION

Before the court is Defendants Washington State Department of Social and Health Services ("DSHS"), Bill Moss, Kimberly R. Danner, and Jill Kegel's (collectively, "State Defendants") motion for summary judgment. (MSJ (Dkt. # 189).) Plaintiffs Susan Chen and J.L., a minor child, filed a response. (Chen Resp. (Dkt. # 204).) Plaintiff Naixiang Lian joins Ms. Chen and J.L.'s response.¹ (Lian Resp. (Dkt. # 201).) State Defendants filed a reply. (Reply (Dkt. # 219).) The court has considered the motion, the parties' submissions concerning the motion, the relevant portions of the record, and the applicable law.² Being fully advised, the court GRANTS in part and DENIES in part State Defendants' motion as set forth below.

II. BACKGROUND

This case involves a dispute about the removal of a minor child, J.L., from his parents' custody. J.L.'s parents, Ms. Chen and Mr. Lian, initially brought claims against defendants affiliated with the City of Redmond (the "City Defendants") and a number of DSHS officials ("State Defendants"). (See FAC (Dkt. # 96) ¶¶ 132-286.) The court granted summary judgment in favor of the City Defendants on May 24, 2019. (See 5/24/19 Order (Dkt. # 170) at 60.) The remaining State Defendants—Kimberly Danner, Bill Moss, Jill Kegel, and DSHS—now move for summary judgment on Plaintiffs' remaining claims.³

A. J.L.'s Hospital Visit and the Child Protective Services ("CPS") Referral

On October 7, 2013,⁴ Ms. Chen took J.L. to see Dr. Kate Halamay at Pediatric Associates Inc., P.S. ("Pediatric Associates"). (RED00351-53.⁵ ) Dr. Halamay had seen J.L. previously. (See, e.g. , RED00339.) According to the notes from the October 7 appointment, J.L. had been experiencing abdominal pain for around six weeks. (RED00351.) Dr. Halamay recommended that Ms. Chen take J.L. to the Gastroenterology ("GI") department at Seattle Children's Hospital ("SCH"), but Ms. Chen declined, stating that "she has seen them for the past 14 months and they ‘have not done anything for [J.L.]’ " (RED00352.) Dr. Halamay's notes show that J.L. visited the SCH GI department only once in the prior year. (Id. ) Ms. Chen then asked Dr. Halamay to order a number of labs, but Dr. Halamay refused because she was "unfamiliar with several of them and would not know how to interpret them." (RED00353.)

On October 19, 2013, Ms. Chen and Mr. Lian took J.L. to Dr. Julie Ellner at Mercer Island Pediatrics, in part hoping that Dr. Ellner would order the labs they were seeking. (See RED00107; 1st Chen Decl. (Dkt. # 131) ¶ 27-28.) Dr. Ellner's notes state that Ms. Chen was worried that J.L. has a "severe problem with kidney or liver," that he was losing weight, and was eating poorly. (RED00107.) Ms. Chen told Dr. Ellner that J.L. had laboratory tests at a hospital in New York, as well as an ultrasound, which showed that there was something wrong with J.L.'s liver. (Id. ) However, Ms. Chen did not bring the lab results to Dr. Ellner; nor was she able to remember the doctor or the hospital where the tests were performed. (Id. ) Dr. Ellner referred J.L. to the emergency room. (Id. )

Later that day, instead of going to the emergency room, Ms. Chen took J.L. to Pediatric Associates. (See RED00356-58; D'Amico Decl. (Dkt. # 107) ¶ 3h, Ex. H ("CPS Docs") at RED00050-51.) Similar to Dr. Ellner, Dr. Roberta Winch at Pediatric Associates told Ms. Chen to take J.L. to emergency care. (RED00358 ("IT IS VERY IMPORTANT [J.L.] BE SEEN FOR FURTHER EVAL IN THE ED [emergency department] AT SCH. I RECCOMEND [sic] THEY GO NOW. PARENTS AGREED TO BE SEEN AT SCH ED AND SAID THEY WILL GO THERE NOW.").) Ms. Chen says that she did not understand Dr. Winch's instruction. (See 1st Chen Decl. ¶ 27.) Instead, Ms. Chen took J.L. to SCH's urgent care to have lab work done. (Id. ; RED00853-55.)

Ms. Chen returned to SCH urgent care on October 20, 2013, to pick up J.L.'s lab work. (1st Chen Decl. ¶ 28.) Once there, doctors told Ms. Chen that J.L.'s lab work was abnormal, showing elevated levels of creatinine

and blood urea nitrogen ("BUN"). (Id. ) Ms. Chen then took J.L. to SCH emergency care. (Id. ; CPS Docs at RED00050-51.) That day, Dr. Russell Migita in SCH's emergency department examined J.L. and performed additional tests, which showed J.L. improved since October 19, 2013, but that his lab results were still "not normal." (RED00370-75.) A nurse's report states that J.L. "seemed irritable, tired, limp." (RED00805.) It also states that Ms. Chen "refused transport or interpreter services. NOTE!! this child was a no show to the ED yest[erday] for same issues, swollen abd[omen]." (Id. )

Dr. Migita expressed that J.L. "would benefit from having a coordinated workup that includes endocrinology, gastroenterology, and nephrology." (RED00374.) However, Dr. Migita discharged J.L. from the hospital on October 20, 2013, because he did not have "hypertensive emergency at this time and d[id] not meet the eminent risk criteria for medical hold." (See RED00374-75.) Dr. Migita released J.L. on the understanding that Ms. Chen and Mr. Lian would follow-up with J.L.'s primary care provider. (RED00374-75 (noting "Plan" to see Dr. Halamay "[w]ithin 1 to 3 days").)

On October 23, 2013, Ms. Chen brought J.L. to see Dr. Gbedawo, a naturopathic physician, who saw J.L. nine times between April 2013 and October 2013. (1st Chen Decl. ¶ 31; Gbedawo Decl. (Dkt. # 158) ¶¶ 2, 7, 8.) Dr. Gbedawo understood that J.L. had been to emergency and urgent care a few days earlier and that he had been discharged "as non-emergent." (Gbedawo Decl. ¶ 8.) At the appointment, Dr. Gbedawo "did not recommend that [Ms. Chen] take J.L. to the emergency department." (Id. ) Rather, he recommended that Ms. Chen take J.L. "to a nephrologist and a nutritionist for additional consultations and ordered additional labs and imaging." (Id. )

Later that day, Ms. Chen took J.L. to Dr. Halamay, as she had been instructed by Dr. Migita. (1st Chen Decl. ¶ 32.) According to Dr. Halamay's notes, Ms. Chen "declined [a] phone interpreter although offered several times" and "refus[ed] to make eye contact, t[ook] a long time to answer questions or refuse[d] to answer at all." (RED00397.) Dr. Hal Quinn at Mercer Island Pediatrics, who had seen J.L. previously, called Dr. Halamay before the appointment. (RED00397; RED00105-06.) Dr. Quinn:

expressed great concern about this [patient] as well as family, feels that he his [sic] very sick, concern about failure to thrive, has lost several pounds since April, concerned that family has been going from dr to dr but that pt is not actually receiving appropriate medical attention.

(RED00397.) Dr. Halamay noted that J.L. appeared "[v]ery tired" and continued to "have distended abdomen," though Ms. Chen said his condition was improving. (RED00397.) Dr. Halamay also noted that Ms. Chen was confused about doctors' instructions from October 19 and 20 to take J.L. to certain specialists, and that the Chen family "did not go to [ED] as recommended." (Id. ) Dr. Halamay recommended that Ms. Chen admit J.L. to the hospital "at once" so that he could be seen by renal, endocrine, and GI specialists. (Id. ) Ms. Chen "refused to take [J.L.] for admission, even after [Dr. Halamay] stated that [she] felt admission was medically necessary given his abdominal distension, weight loss, and worsening lab values compared to those drawn a few weeks ago." (Id. ) Dr. Halamay further noted that she spoke with Dr. Metz, a doctor on the SCH Suspected Child Abuse Network ("SCAN") team, "who again recommended admission for this patient for coordination of care as well as to provide social support for the family and also to determine if SCAN team involvement is necessary." (Id. )

Dr. Halamay further recommended to Ms. Chen that they arrange an admission for J.L. to coordinate several services, but Dr. Halamay's notes indicate that Ms. Chen "refused to take him for admission, even after [Dr. Halamay] stated that [he] felt admission was medically necessary given [J.L.'s] abdominal distension, weight loss, and worsening lab values compared to those drawn a few weeks ago." (Id. ) Ms. Chen remarked " ‘I have no confidence in [SCH].... I will find my own specialists. This is a waste of time and a waste of money. I have no time to sit in the hospital.’ " (Id. ) Given Ms. Chen's refusal, Dr. Halamay "again spoke [with] Dr. Metz who agreed that given [J.L.]'s medical issues, if [Ms. Chen] does not agree to admission that it would be appropriate to contact CPS." (Id. ) Dr. Halamay then told Ms. Chen again that he felt that J.L.'s admission was medically necessary, and that if Ms. Chen did not admit J.L., that Dr. Halamay would "have to contact CPS in order to ensure that [J.L.] receives proper medical attention." (Id. ) Ms. Chen again refused to agree to admission, and according to Dr. Halamay, "became angry, stood up, picked [J.L.] up and left the office." (Id. ) Dr. Halamay then contacted CPS, and then contact SCH's emergency department that J.L. "may be coming in and that he needs to be admitted." (Id. )

Ms. Chen recalls that she "felt as though Dr. Halamay and SCH were dismissive and had not provided proper care for [J.L.]" (1st Chen Decl. ¶ 32.) Further, Ms. Chen told Dr....