Estate of Schroeder v. Gillespie Cnty.
| Decision Date | 02 June 2014 |
| Docket Number | Case No. A–12–CA–1139–SS. |
| Citation | 23 F.Supp.3d 775 |
| Parties | The ESTATE OF Damion Michael SCHROEDER, by and through the personal representatives Michael Schroeder and Sandra L. Keyser; and Anne M. Clancey, as guardian of L.G.C., Heir of Damion Michael Schroeder, Plaintiffs, v. GILLESPIE COUNTY; Gillespie County Sheriff's Department; Sheriff Buddy Mills; and Deputy Reagan Givens, Defendants. |
| Court | U.S. District Court — Western District of Texas |
Charles Darby Riley, Attorney at Law, Edgardo Rafael Baez, The Baez Law Firm, PC, Rosemarie Alvarado, Rosie Alvarado P.C., San Antonio, TX, for Plaintiffs.
Charles Straith Frigerio, Attorney at Law, Hector Xavier Saenz, Law Offices of Charles S. Frigerio, A Professional Corporation, San Antonio, TX, for Defendants.
BE IT REMEMBERED on this day the Court reviewed the file in the above-styled cause, and specifically Defendants' Motion for Summary Judgment [# 18], Plaintiffs' Response [# 24], Defendants' Reply [# 28], Plaintiffs' Sur–Reply [# 30], Defendants' Supplement to their Motion for Summary Judgment [# 42], and Plaintiffs' Response to Defendants' Supplement [# 44]. Having reviewed the documents, the governing law, and the file as a whole, the Court now enters the following opinion and orders GRANTING summary judgment on all claims EXCEPT the policy-related § 1983 claims against Gillespie County and Sheriff Mills in his official capacity.
This case involves the suicide of Damion Michael Schroeder while he was a pretrial detainee at the Gillespie County Jail. Schroeder came into the custody of Gillespie County after he was pulled over on his motorcycle in a traffic stop shortly after midnight on May 5, 2011. Schroeder was subsequently arrested, and the officer noted in his report that Schroeder exhibited the signs and symptoms of an individual under the influence of methamphetamine. See Defs.' Mot. Summ. J. [# 18–5], Ex. E (Texas Ranger Report), ¶ 1.6. Schroeder complained of a shoulder injury incurred during the traffic stop, and the officer summoned Emergency Medical Services (EMS), which ultimately transported Schroeder to Hill Country Hospital in Fredericksburg to be further examined. Schroeder admitted to staff at the emergency room, and he tested positive for, methamphetamine use. Id. at ¶ 1.9. He was discharged at 3:20 a.m. and transported to the Gillespie County Jail. Id. He was in custody of Gillespie County for Evading Arrest or Detention with a Vehicle, Driving While Intoxicated, Driving While License Invalid, and two out-of-county warrants. Id. at ¶ 1.10.
Upon arrival, Schroeder was lethargic and unable to go through the normal booking process, so he was placed in cell A–1 until he could answer routine booking questions. At 11:40 a.m., Jailer Travis Burrer woke Schroeder to summon him to complete the booking process, but Schroeder told him he needed more sleep. Approximately twenty minutes later, Burrer heard noises coming from Schroeder's cell, and he along with Jailer Rick Carter went to check the cell. They observed Schroeder lying on the floor with an abrasion on his cheek. They also noticed Schroeder had torn a strip from a jail blanket and fastened it to the underside of a bench support brace. When questioned, Schroeder apparently said he was trying to make a pillow, but Burrer did not believe him, instead concluding Schroeder was probably trying to hang himself. Id. at ¶ 1.15. Schroeder was then formally booked around 12:30 p.m. and placed into Cell E under "suicide watch." Id. at ¶ 1.16. Cell E is an "Intensive Supervision Cell," which is the closest cell to the booking area where the jailer is stationed. Id. Cell E has a steel door, and the door has a small "window" made from expanded metal through which jailers can observe the inmate. Id. at ¶ 1.26. To actually see an inmate, a jailer must open a plate covering the window in order to peek into the cell. According to Burrer, Schroeder was wearing a paper suit from the hospital and two different colored socks at the time he was placed in Cell E. Id.
Under suicide watch, Schroeder was checked on at approximately fifteen minute intervals as required per the then existing policy. At the Gillespie County Jail, jailers on suicide watch duty record every time they conduct an observation on a form known as an "Inmate Welfare Check" form. Id. at ¶ 1.17. Burrer maintained the suicide watch at least until 6:00 p.m. when Jailer Robert Kenzie came on duty. Kenzie monitored Schroeder through the night until Jailer Reagan Givens took over around 6:00 a.m. on May 6, 2011.
Givens knew Schroeder entered the jail the previous day but had not been immediately booked due to intoxication. Id. at ¶ 1.20. Givens learned from other personnel Schroeder was in Cell E because he had possibly tried to hang himself on a bunk support brace. Id. at ¶ 1.21; Defs.' Mot. Summ. J. [# 18–2], Ex. B (Givens Depo.), at 87:2–6. Givens was told this event explained why Schroeder was under suicide watch and being checked every fifteen minutes. Givens Depo., at 87:7–9. Around 7:00 a.m. Givens took Schroeder out of his cell to be magistrated, and Givens noted Schroeder was barefoot. Texas Ranger Report, at ¶ 1.22. After magistration, Givens returned Schroeder to his cell. Givens continued to check on Schroeder every fifteen minutes throughout the morning, and during this time Schroeder was lying down on his mat faced away from Givens. Id. at ¶ 1.24.
Defendants provided a DVD with footage from the surveillance camera in place at the Gillespie County Jail on the date in question. See Defs. Mot. Summ. J. [# 18–3], Ex. C. From this footage, the viewer can observe Givens periodically checking Cell E as part of his suicide watch responsibilities. A check essentially consists of Givens approaching Cell E's door, pulling back the small metal plate covering the window, and peeking inside the cell where Schroeder was being kept. The Court has reviewed the footage, which begins at approximately 11:00 a.m. on May 6, 2011, and Givens checked on Schroeder at the following approximate times: (1) 11:04; (2) 11:15; (3) 11:25; (4) 11:32; and (5) 11:43. On this check at 11:43, Givens observed Schroeder sitting up on his bed. Texas Ranger Report, at ¶ 1.24. Givens asked Schroeder if he was doing okay, and Schroeder indicated in the affirmative. Id. At approximately 11:56, Givens checked on Schroeder, but did not note this check on the Inmate Welfare Check form. Givens apparently did not write down the check because he was in a rush to go to the restroom. Id. Givens observed Schroeder standing and moving or turning slowly. Id.
Around 12:10, Givens re-entered the booking area outside of Cell E with a new detainee he intended to process. Givens went to check on Schroeder and saw him standing very still with his back to the door. Id. at ¶ 1.25. Givens looked more closely and realized Schroeder was hanging by his neck. Id. Schroeder had taken two socks, soaked them in water, tied them together, wedged them into the steel frame covering the light bulb on the ceiling of Cell E, and used them as a ligature. Id. at ¶¶ 1.25, 1.28. Givens opened the cell immediately and used a knife to cut the socks. Id. at ¶ 1.25. He immediately went to the jailer's office, called the dispatcher, and instructed them to call Fredericksburg EMS. Id. He returned to Schroeder with the CPR and resuscitation mask and started performing CPR on Schroeder until EMS arrived and took over. Id. Schroeder was taken to the hospital and eventually died on May 10, 2011.
Plaintiffs filed their Original Complaint [# 1] on December 14, 2012. The Plaintiffs are: (1) the Estate of Damion Michael Schroeder, Michael Schroeder, and Sandra I. Keyser, as parents and estate representatives of Damion Michael Schroeder (The Schroeder Estate); and (2) Anne M. Clancey as parent and next friend of L.G.C., the minor child of Damion Michael Schroeder (Clancey). Plaintiffs filed an Amended Complaint on June 19, 2013, asserting claims against the following Defendants: (1) Reagan Givens in his individual capacity; (2) Gillespie County; (3) the Gillespie County Sheriff's Department; and (4) Sheriff Buddy Mills in his official capacity. See Am. Compl. [# 12], at 1–2. Plaintiffs did not sue Jailers Burrer, Carter, or Kenzie. While the Amended Complaint is not a model of clarity, the Court construes it as asserting claims against all four Defendants under 42 U.S.C. § 1983 premised on alleged violations of Schroeder's rights under the Eighth and Fourteenth Amendments to the Constitution.
Defendants filed their Motion for Summary Judgment [# 18] along with a Supplement [# 42]. In short, Defendants argue: (1) Gillespie County Sheriffs Department lacks jural existence and should be dismissed from this case; (2) Mills and Givens, in their individual capacities, are entitled to qualified immunity; and (3) Plaintiffs have failed to establish a custom or policy of Gillespie County was a direct proximate cause of the alleged constitutional violation. The motion is now ripe for the Court's review.
Summary judgment shall be rendered when the pleadings, the discovery and disclosure materials on file, and any affidavits show that there is no genuine dispute as to any material fact and that the moving party is entitled to judgment as a matter of law. Fed.R.Civ.P. 56(a) ; Celotex Corp. v. Catrett, 477 U.S. 317, 323–25, 106 S.Ct. 2548, 91 L.Ed.2d 265 (1986) ; Washburn v. Harvey, 504 F.3d 505, 508 (5th Cir.2007). A dispute regarding a material fact is "genuine" if the evidence is such that a reasonable jury could return a verdict in favor of the nonmoving party. Anderson v. Liberty Lobby, Inc., 477 U.S. 242, 248, 106 S.Ct. 2505, 91 L.Ed.2d 202 (1986). When ruling on a motion for summary judgment, the court is required to view all inferences drawn from the factual record in the light most favorable to the nonmoving party. Matsushita Elec. Indus. Co. v. Zenith Radio, ...
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