Estate of Hammers v. Douglas Cnty.
| Citation | 303 F.Supp.3d 1134 |
| Decision Date | 28 March 2018 |
| Docket Number | Case No. 15–7994–CM |
| Parties | The ESTATE OF Rachel M. HAMMERS, Deceased, et al., Plaintiffs, v. DOUGLAS COUNTY, KANSAS BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS, et al., Defendants. |
| Court | U.S. District Court — District of Kansas |
Arthur A. Benson, II, Jamie Kathryn Lansford, Arthur Benson & Associates, D. Adam Leatherwood, Leatherwood Firm, LLC, Kansas City, MO, for Plaintiff.
Amy J. Luck, Robison, Curphey & O'Connell, Toledo, OH, Kenneth J. Berra, Michael K. Seck, Fisher, Patterson, Sayler & Smith, LLP, Overland Park, KS, for Defendant.
CARLOS MURGUIA, United States District JudgeOn May 12, 2012, Rachel M. Hammers died in her cell at the Douglas County Corrections Facility ("DCCF"). Her estate and three minor children, through her father Joseph M. Harvey, the administrator of the estate and conservator of the children, bring this action against Douglas County, Kansas Board of Commissioners ("BOCC"), and Sheriff Kenneth M. McGovern and Undersheriff Kenneth L. Massey in their individual and official capacities. Plaintiffs claim that Hammers's death was the result of inadequate policies or practices implemented by defendants and because of inadequate training as to the proper implementation of policies and practices. The matter is currently before the court on defendants' Motion for Summary Judgment (Doc. 208). For the reasons discussed below, the court grants defendants' motion in part and denies it in part.
The following facts are summarized and viewed in the light most favorable to plaintiff. There is little dispute as to the general events that took place leading up to Hammers's death. Hammers suffered from alcoholism and had a history of seizures, high blood pressure, and alcohol withdrawal. On February 24, 2012, Hammers pled guilty to two counts of Driving Under the Influence in Douglas County District Court and was sentenced to 12 months of supervised parole in lieu of six months incarceration. She was also ordered to serve 48 hours on each charge. Prior to this incarceration, Hammers consulted with her primary care physician, Dr. Molly Imber, regarding her concerns with alcohol withdrawal and hypertension
. Hammers was afraid of having another seizure while incarcerated. Dr. Imber prescribed a tapering course of Librium for alcohol withdrawal and faxed Hammers's medical records to DCCF.
When Hammers arrived at DCCF on March 23, 2012 to serve her sentence, DCCF staff conducted a Booking Initial Assessment ("BIA") in which Hammers reported a history of depression, daily alcohol use, a history of alcohol withdrawal, related seizures, and high blood pressure
. She also reported taking medications for depression and high blood pressure and Librium to prevent seizures. While Hammers was incarcerated during this time, she experienced both moderate and severe alcohol withdrawal. She was released on March 27, 2012.
On April 5 and April 12, 2012, the Douglas County District Court issued bench warrants for Hammers's arrest due to parole violations. On April 19, 2012, Hammers checked herself into Lawrence Memorial Hospital for alcohol intoxication, depression, and suicidal thoughts. She was arrested again on April 22, 2012 and during her BIA she reported a history of depression, monthly alcohol use, a history of alcohol withdrawal-related seizures, and high blood pressure
. She reported taking medication for depression and high blood pressure and Librium to prevent seizures. Hammers was incarcerated at DCCF until April 30, 2012 without any incidents related to alcohol withdrawal.
On May 3, 2012, the Douglas County District Court issued a third bench warrant for Hammers's arrest for failing to appear on a parole violation charge. On the morning of May 11, 2012, Hammers called her mother, Mary Harvey, requesting help with her children because the police were at her door. Mary Harvey picked up Hammers's daughter, drove her to school, and then ran errands. When she arrived back at Hammers's apartment around 10:00 a.m., she found Hammers intoxicated. Later that afternoon, Mary Harvey and Rachel's father, Dr. Joseph Harvey, decided to call the police. Around 4:30 p.m., police arrived and noted in the arrest report that Hammers was "drunk" but cooperative. At 5:57 p.m., Officer Troy Miller conducted Hammers's BIA. In the BIA, Officer Miller noted that pursuant to his observation, Hammers was not alcohol intoxicated and did not display withdrawal symptoms. Hammers reported to Officer Miller that she had depression and high blood pressure and had a seizure in 2010. She reported that she drank alcohol daily and had her last drink at 10:00 a.m. that day. Based on his observations, Officer Miller did not see any indication Hammers had any mental or physical problems before he transferred her to the housing unit. Pursuant to DCCF policy, Hammers was scheduled to see the nurse the following day.
At approximately 6:45 p.m., Hammers arrived in the women's housing pod. Officer Megan Walker briefed Hammers and provided her an Inmate Handbook. She did not notice Hammers displaying any symptoms of alcohol withdrawal. Hammers was placed in a cell with another inmate, Ashley Dubree, who also did not notice Hammers demonstrating any signs or symptoms of withdrawal and did not consider Hammers to be drunk.
The overnight officer who performed "well checks" throughout the women's pod every 30 minutes did not report any issues of concern involving Hammers. At approximately 7:15 a.m. on May 12, 2012, Dubree and Hammers left their cell to obtain a meal tray. After 15 or 20 minutes, they returned to their cell and went back to sleep. Dubree noticed Hammers was snoring and sounded like she was congested and having a hard time breathing, but otherwise did not think anything was wrong with her. At some point, Officer Walker called Dubree and Hammers to tell them to take a shower and clean up their cell. Dubree eventually finished cleaning the cell and left to take a shower. Officer Walker used the intercom system to ask Hammers if she wanted to take free time. When she did not respond, Officer Walker opened the door to the cell to ask Hammers if she wanted free time, and Hammers appeared to be sleeping. Officer Walker contacted another officer for back-up, but decided to enter the cell alone. She shook Hammers to try to wake her, and when she did not respond, Officer Walker called a code 900 medical emergency. After determining Hammers did not have a pulse, Officer Walker began CPR. At 10:04 a.m., EMTs from the Lawrence Douglas County Fire and Medical entered the cell and took Hammers to Lawrence Memorial Hospital, where she was pronounced dead at 10:46 a.m. The cause of death on Hammers's death certificate listed sudden death due to seizure disorder probably related to ethanol withdrawal due to chronic ethanolism.
Because plaintiffs' claims focus on policies and procedures at DCCF, it is necessary to summarize any relevant police and procedures for purposes of this order. Prior to Hammers's death, Douglas County acknowledged a high incidence of alcohol dependency among DCCF inmates. In a response to a Request for Proposals issued by the City of Lawrence for 2009 Alcohol Tax Funds, the Douglas County Sheriff's Office—Corrections Division, requested funds for substance abuse therapies and care for inmates. Year-end reports in 2009, 2010, 2011, and 2012 issued by DCCF note that many times arrestees are brought to jail under the influence of alcohol and drugs.
Defendant Sheriff McGovern and defendant Undersheriff Massey (who served as the Corrections Division Undersheriff) were responsible for the safety of DCCF prisoners. The Corrections Division Policy and Procedure Manual contains departmental policies that pertain to the operations of the corrections division. This includes policies and procedures for the booking, house, and medical units. The BOCC was responsible for developing medical contracts for DCCF. On January 10, 2011, the BOCC approved and executed contracts with Dr. Dennis Sale and the Visiting Nurses Association ("VNA") to provide medical services for DCCF. Both contracts are between the practitioners and the BOCC and are signed by the chair of the BOCC. The contracts outline the duties of the providers, including providing comprehensive health care to inmates and to provide policies and procedures for health services specifically developed for [DCCF] in accordance with American Correctional Association ("ACA") standards. The contract also specifies the hours of services for the providers. According to the contracts, Dr. Sale was to provide an on-call physician 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, and a licensed physician on-site two days per week for a minimum of three hours a day. Under the VNA contract, VNA was to provide a 24/7 on-call system for nursing staff and the following on-site schedule:
3.Hours of Services. VNA shall provide the Services during the following days and times:
B. On Saturday and Sunday, VNA shall provide on-site staff (at the Facility and not elsewhere), as follows:
(Doc. 221–21, at 2.) Therefore, at the time Hammers arrived at DCCF until the time she was taken to the hospital, the personnel scheduled to be at DCCF were:
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