Gray ex rel. Alexander v. Bostic

• Citation: 458 F.3d 1295
• Decision Date: 07 August 2006
• Docket Number: No. 06-10216 Non-Argument Calendar.,06-10216 Non-Argument Calendar.
• Parties: Laquarius GRAY, a minor, by and through her mother and next friend, Toniko L. ALEXANDER, Plaintiff-Appellee, v. Antonio BOSTIC, individually and in his official capacity as Deputy Sheriff for Tuscaloosa County, AL, Edmund Sexton, individually and in his official capacity as Principal of Holt Elementary School, Tuscaloosa, AL, Defendants-Appellants, Joyce Sellers, individually and in her official capacity as Superintendent of Tuscaloosa County, AL, School System and/or Tuscaloosa County, AL, Board of Education, et al., Defendants.
• Court: United States Courts of Appeals. United States Court of Appeals (11th Circuit)

458 F.3d 1295

Laquarius GRAY, a minor, by and through her mother and next friend, Toniko L. ALEXANDER, Plaintiff-Appellee, v. Antonio BOSTIC, individually and in his official capacity as Deputy Sheriff for Tuscaloosa County, AL, Edmund Sexton, individually and in his official capacity as Principal of Holt Elementary School, Tuscaloosa, AL, Defendants-Appellants Joyce Sellers, individually and in her official capacity as Superintendent of Tuscaloosa County, AL, School System and/or Tuscaloosa County, AL, Board of Education, et al., Defendants.

No. 06-10216 Non-Argument Calendar.

United States Court of Appeals, Eleventh Circuit.

August 7, 2006.

Travis Russell Wisdom, Robert McCollough Spence, Hubbard, Smith, McIlwain, Brakefield & Browder, P.C., Tuscaloosa, AL, for Defendants-Appellants.

Thomas Blake Liveoak, Collins, Liveoak & Boyles, P.C., Birmingham, AL, for Gray.

Appeal from the United States District Court for the Northern District of Alabama.

Before CARNES, HULL and PRYOR, Circuit Judges.

HULL, Circuit Judge:

This is the second appeal involving the detention and handcuffing of a nine-year-old student, Laquarius Gray, during her physical education class. The first time, we reversed the district court's Rule 12(b)(6) dismissal of this § 1983 action. Gray v. Bostic, 127 Fed.Appx. 472, 2004 WL 3112657 (11th Cir.2004). This time, the defendants appeal the district court's denial of their motions for summary judgment based on qualified immunity. After review, we affirm in part and reverse in part.

I. BACKGROUND

A. The Incident

Coach Lattuce Greer Williams believed that Gray was not doing "jumping jacks" along with the rest of the physical education class. Coach Williams told Gray she needed to do her exercises. When Gray failed to comply, Coach Williams told Gray to "[c]ome to the wall" of the gym. Williams testified that as Gray walked to the wall, "[s]he told me that she would punch me or hit me, hit me in the face." A nearby teacher, Coach Tara Horton, witnessed the disagreement with Coach Williams. Coach Horton testified that Gray said, "I bust you in the head," which Coach Horton explained meant that "she was going to hit him in the head." Although Coach Williams and Coach Horton attribute slightly different language to Gray, the gist of their testimony is that Gray threatened to hit Coach Williams.

In contrast, Gray testified that she did not threaten to "bust" Coach Williams in the head. Although Gray could not remember what she said, she agreed that she threatened to "do something" to Coach Williams and that what she said was disrespectful, as follows:

Q: Then, [Coach Williams] told me that, at that point, you told him that you were going to bust him in his head; is that right?

A: No, sir.

Q: You didn't say that?

A: No, sir.

Q: Is Coach Williams lying to me?

MR. LIVEOAK: Objection

Q: (By Mr. Wisdom) You can answer. Is Coach Williams telling me a lie?

A: I guess he did. I don't remember what I said, but I didn't say that.

Q: You don't remember what you said?

A: (Witness shakes head.)

Q: You don't have any idea what you said?

MR. LIVEOAK: Is that no?

A: No.

Q: (By Mr. Wisdom) So, you don't know if you said that you might punch him; is that right: Did you say something to him that was disrespectful?

A: Yes, sir.

Q: What was that?

A: I don't remember.

Q: Did you tell him that you might do something to him?

A: Yes, sir.

. . . .

Q: What did you tell him that you were going to do to him?

A: I don't remember.¹

Because of the summary judgment posture of the case, we construe Gray's testimony as denying the coaches' version of what she said. However, Gray does not dispute that she threatened to "do something" physically to Coach Williams. Thus the precise nature of her physical threat — whether it was to hit him in the face, poke him in the eye or kick him in the shins — does not change our analysis.

After hearing Gray's threat to Coach Williams, Coach Horton instructed Gray to come over to her. Coach Williams then turned his attention back to his class.

Deputy Antonio Bostic also witnessed the exchange between Gray and Coach Williams. Deputy Bostic was employed as a Tuscaloosa County Sheriff's Deputy and served as a school resource officer ("SRO") for several schools, including Holt Elementary. Before Gray reached Coach Horton, Deputy Bostic intervened and told Coach Horton that he would talk to Gray. Coach Horton insisted that she would handle the matter. However, Deputy Bostic insisted that he would handle Gray and escorted Gray out the gym door into a lobby area.

Deputy Bostic told Gray to turn around, pulled her hands behind her back and put Gray in handcuffs. Deputy Bostic tightened the handcuffs to the point that they caused Gray pain. Deputy Bostic told Gray, "[T]his is how it feels when you break the law," and "[T]his is how it feels to be in jail." Gray began to cry. Gray stood with the handcuffs on for not less than five minutes, with Deputy Bostic standing behind her.²

In discovery responses, Deputy Bostic averred that he detained and handcuffed Gray "to impress upon her the serious nature of committing crimes that can lead to arrest, detention or incarceration" and "to help persuade her to rid herself of her disrespectful attitude." Deputy Bostic's discovery responses also stated that he "did not feel the need to apologize to LaQuarius Gray for telling her that she committed a misdemeanor in my presence and showing her what would happen if a less generous officer than I were to arrest her for her actions."³ After Deputy Bostic took the handcuffs off, Gray went to the Coaches' Office until her next class.

Neither Coach Horton nor Coach Williams was afraid of Gray or believed that Gray would actually carry out her threat. When asked whether he was "ever afraid that [Gray] would commit an act of violence towards [him] or Ms. Horton," Coach Williams replied, "No, sir." Similarly, Coach Horton replied "No," when asked if she was "ever afraid that Ms. Gray would physically assault you or another student?" When asked, "[W]hen Ms. Gray told Coach Williams that she was going to bust him in the head she's not actually physically capable of doing that, is she," Coach Horton agreed. Coach Horton planned to talk with Gray about the incident and give her a warning. Coach Horton testified that she would not have been required to write Gray up, give Gray detention, or send her to the principal's office "because it wasn't that major."

B. Court Proceedings

On November 4, 2003, by and through her mother, Gray filed suit against Deputy Bostic and Tuscaloosa County Sheriff, Edmund Sexton in their official and individual capacities.⁴ Gray's complaint contained eight counts, including claims: (1) under 42 U.S.C. § 1983 for violations of Gray's First, Fourth, Fifth, Eighth and Fourteenth Amendment rights (Count 1); (2) under 42 U.S.C. § 1981 for race discrimination (Count 2); and (3) under state law for invasion of privacy, assault and battery, false imprisonment, defamation and intentional infliction of emotional distress (Counts 4 through 8). Gray also sought declaratory and injunctive relief (Count 3). The defendants filed a motion to dismiss, which the district court granted.

Gray appealed to this Court, challenging only the district court's dismissal of her Fourth Amendment claims against Deputy Bostic and Sheriff Sexton individually and the denial of her motion for leave to amend her complaint.⁵ We reversed, stating that on remand Gray was entitled to pursue her Fourth Amendment claims against defendants Deputy Bostic and Sheriff Sexton individually and to file an amended complaint. Gray, 127 Fed.Appx. 472. The district court ordered Gray to file an amended complaint asserting only the Fourth Amendment claims that remained following her appeal. Gray then amended her complaint, asserting claims of excessive use of force and unreasonable seizure against defendants Bostic and Sexton individually.

Following discovery, the defendants moved for summary judgment based on qualified immunity. The district court denied the motion, prompting this interlocutory appeal.

II. STANDARD OF REVIEW

Although the denial of summary judgment generally is not a final appealable order subject to immediate appeal, an interlocutory appeal may be taken where the district court denies the defense of qualified immunity and the appeal involves a question of law. McMillian v. Johnson, 88 F.3d 1554, 1563, amended on other grounds, 101 F.3d 1363 (11th Cir.1996). We review de novo a district court's denial of summary judgment based on qualified immunity, viewing the evidence in a light most favorable to the opposing party. Williams v. Consol. City of Jacksonville, 341 F.3d 1261, 1266-67 (11th Cir.2003).

III. DISCUSSION

A. Qualified Immunity Principles

"Qualified immunity offers a complete protection for government officials sued in their individual capacities if their conduct `does not violate clearly established statutory or constitutional rights of which a reasonable person would have known.'" Vinyard v. Wilson, 311 F.3d 1340, 1346 (11th Cir.2002) (quoting Harlow v. Fitzgerald, 457 U.S. 800, 818, 102 S.Ct. 2727, 2738, 73 L.Ed.2d 396 (1982)). To be entitled to qualified immunity, the defendant must prove that he was acting within the scope of his discretionary authority. Id. "Once the defendants establish that they were acting within their discretionary authority, the burden shifts to the plaintiff to demonstrate that qualified immunity is not appropriate." Lumley v. City of Dade City, 327 F.3d 1186, 1194 (11th Cir.2003).

The Supreme Court has established a two-part test to evaluate whether an official is entitled to qualified immunity. First, as a threshold inquiry, we address whether the facts presented, taken in a light most favorable to the non-moving party, establish a constitutional violation. Saucier v. Katz, 533 U.S. 194, 201, 121 S.Ct. 2151, 2156, 150 L.Ed.2d 272 (2001). If we answer this...