Gunter v. S. Health Partners, Inc.
| Decision Date | 17 September 2021 |
| Docket Number | 1:16CV262 |
| Court | U.S. District Court — Middle District of North Carolina |
| Parties | DAVID RAY GUNTER, Plaintiff, v. SOUTHERN HEALTH PARTNERS, INC., et al., Defendants. |
Plaintiff David Ray Gunter ("Plaintiff") has brought claims arising out of injuries he sustained following his incarceration at two North Carolina jails in November 2012. This court previously issued a Memorandum Opinion and Order on March 23, 2021, (Doc. 178), granting in part and denying in part a Motion for Summary Judgment, (Doc. 123), and granting a Motion to Strike, (Doc. 142), filed by Defendants Southern Health Partners, Inc., Jason Junkins, Sandra Hunt Fran Jackson, and Manuel Maldonado (collectively, the "Medical Defendants"). In light of this court's Memorandum Opinion and Order on June 10, 2021, (Doc. 190), in which this court granted Medical Defendants' motion for reconsideration, (Doc. 179), granted in part and denied in part Plaintiff's motion for reconsideration, (Doc. 181) and reopened summary judgment, this court will strike its March 23, 2021 Memorandum Opinion and Order, (Doc. 178). This court finds, for purposes of maintaining a relatively clear record, that one opinion and order addressing all summary judgment arguments and related issues is appropriate.
Accordingly presently before this court are four motions. First, Medical Defendants have filed a Motion for Summary Judgment, (Doc. 123), to which Plaintiff has responded, (Doc. 137), and Medical Defendants have replied, (Doc. 144). Second, Medical Defendants have also filed a related Motion to Strike Affidavit of Michael Teal, (Doc. 142), from Plaintiff's Response to Medical Defendants' Motion for Summary Judgment. Plaintiff has responded, (Doc. 153), and Medical Defendants have replied, (Doc. 156). Third, Medical Defendants have filed a Motion for Summary Judgment on Reconsidered Issues, (Doc. 191), to which Plaintiff has responded, (Doc. 195), and Medical Defendants have replied, (Doc. 199). Fourth, Medical Defendants have filed a Motion to Strike the Affidavits of David Ray Gunter, Tammy J. Banas and Francis M. Hinson, IV, and the Declaration of Damian Laber, (Doc. 197), to which Plaintiff has responded, (Doc. 201), and Medical Defendants have replied, (Doc. 202).
These motions are ripe for adjudication. For the reasons stated herein, this court will grant Medical Defendants' Motion for Summary Judgment, (Doc. 123), and Medical Defendants' Motion for Summary Judgment on Reconsidered Issues, (Doc. 191) . This court will further grant Medical Defendants' Motion to Strike the Affidavit of Michael Teal, (Doc. 142), and grant in part and deny in part Medical Defendants' Motion to Strike the Affidavits of David Ray Gunter, Tammy J. Banas, and Francis M. Hinson, IV, and the Declaration of Damian Laber, (Doc. 197) .
Plaintiff was incarcerated at the Davie County and Stokes County jails over fourteen consecutive days in November 2012. (Medical Defs.' Mem. in Supp. of Mot. for Summ. J. ( ) (Doc. 124) at 2.) Defendant Southern Health Partners, Inc. (``SHP") is a corporation that contracts with county jails to provide medical services, including at Davie County and Stokes County jails. (Id.) Defendant Jackson ("Jackson") is a nurse employed by SHP who worked at Davie County jail. (Id. at 2-3.) Defendant Hunt ("Hunt") is a nurse employed by SHP who worked at Stokes County jail. (Id. at 3.) Defendant Maldonado ("Maldonado") is an independent contractor with SHP and a Physician's Assistant who served as Medical Director at both Davie and Stokes County jails. (Id.) Defendant Junkins ("Junkins") is an independent contractor with SHP who served as the company's corporate medical Director during the applicable time period. (Id.) Defendant Junkins resides in Alabama and neither treated Plaintiff nor supervised the providers who did treat Plaintiff. (Id.)
Plaintiff commenced the present action in the Randolph County Superior Court Division of the State of North Carolina on November 6, 2015, by filing an Application Extending Time to File Complaint (Petition for Removal, Ex. B (Doc. 1-2)), and a Motion Extending Statute of Limitations in Medical Malpractice Action. (Id., Ex. C (Doc. 1-3) .) Plaintiff was granted permission to file a complaint up to and including November 2 6, 2015, by order of the Assistant Clerk of Superior Court. (Doc. 1-2.) By order of the Superior Court Judge, the statute of limitations for Plaintiff's medical malpractice action was extended to and including March 4, 2016. (Doc. 1-3.)
Plaintiff filed his Complaint on November 25, 2015, against Southern Health Partners, Inc., Jason Junkins, Sandra Hunt, Fran Jackson, and others. (Complaint (``Compl. ") (Doc. 23).) On March 3, 2016, Plaintiff filed his Amended Complaint, adding Defendant Manuel Maldonado and adding a medical malpractice claim. (Doc. 26.) The Amended Complaint contained a ``9(j) Medical Malpractice Certification." (Id. at 87.)
A Petition for Removal to this court was filed on April 1, 2016. (Doc. 1.) On December 27, 2016, with leave of court, (Doc. 56), Plaintiff filed a Second Amended Complaint to substitute a defendant. In the Second Amended Complaint, Plaintiff brings claims against Medical Defendants for medical malpractice, violations of 42 U.S.C. § 1983, negligence, negligent supervision, false imprisonment, and torture and intentional infliction of emotional distress. (Id.) On January 9, 2017, Medical Defendants answered Plaintiff's Second Amended Complaint. (Doc. 61.) On February 22, 2017, Medical Defendants filed a Motion for Partial Judgment on the Pleadings, seeking dismissal of Plaintiff's medical malpractice claim for failure to comply with Rule 9(j) of the North Carolina Rules of Civil Procedure and failure to allege certain claims against certain defendants. (Doc. 63.) This court denied that motion on September 20, 2017. (Doc. 87.)
On December 14, 2018, this court approved the Amended Joint Rule 26(f) Report, (Doc. 99), prepared by the parties, (Doc. 101) . Discovery was scheduled to close on July 10, 2019. (Id.) On December 3, 2019, the parties filed a Joint Motion for Extension of Time to Complete Discovery, (Doc. 107), which this court granted in part, extending discovery until March 16, 2020. (Text Order 02/25/2020.) Plaintiff filed a Consent Motion for Extension of Time to Complete Discovery on March 13, 2020, (Doc. Ill), which this court granted, (Text Order 03/23/2020.) Discovery closed on June 15, 2020. (Id.)
Following the close of discovery, Medical Defendants filed the instant Motion and Memorandum for Summary Judgment, (Docs. 123, 124), on July 6, 2020. Plaintiff filed a response on July 30, 2020, , and Medical Defendants filed a reply on August 10, 2020, (Med. Defs.' Reply in Supp. of Mot. for Summ. J. ( ) (Doc. 144)).
On August 10, 2020, Medical Defendants filed a related Motion to Strike, (Doc. 142), and Memorandum, (Med. Defs.' Mem. in Supp. of Mot. to Strike Aff. of Michael Teal ( ) . Plaintiff responded on August 31, 2020, (PL's Opp'n to Med. Defs.' Mot. to Strike ("PL's Resp. to Mot. to Strike") (Doc. 153)), and Medical Defendants replied on September 2, 2020, (Reply in Supp. of Med. Defs.' Mot. to Strike ( ) (Doc. 156)) .
On March 2, 2021, Medical Defendants filed a Motion for Relief from Local Rule 83.1(d) (2), (Doc. 169), which the court denied on March 3, 2021. (Doc. 170 at 2.) This court also ordered the parties to "stand down from the presently scheduled trial preparation deadlines," and ordered the Clerk to set a scheduling and status conference in this matter after April 1, 2021. (Id. at 1.) This court ordered that the trial not commence on April 5, 2021, as scheduled, but instead, for a date at least 30 days thereafter. (Id.)
On March 23, 2021, this court issued a Memorandum Opinion and Order ("March Order"), (Doc. 178), in which it granted Medical Defendants' Motion to Strike, (Doc. 142), and granted Medical Defendants' Motion for Summary Judgment, (Doc. 123), as to all claims against Defendants SHP, Junkins, Hunt, and Jackson, (March Order (Doc. 178) at 75). The March Order also granted Medical Defendants' Motion for Summary Judgment as to the claims of medical malpractice, negligent supervision, violations of § 1983, false imprisonment, and intentional infliction of emotional distress against Defendant Maldonado, but denied the motion as to the claim of negligence against Defendant Maldonado. (Id.)
Following this court's March Order, Defendant Maldonado filed a Motion to Reconsider, (Doc. 179), to which Plaintiff responded, (Doc. 184), and Defendant Maldonado replied, (Doc 185). Plaintiff also filed a Motion for Reconsideration, (Doc. 181), to which Medical Defendants responded, (Doc. 183), and Plaintiff replied, (Doc. 186). On June 10, 2021, this court issued a Memorandum Opinion and Order ("June Order") granting Defendant Maldonado's Motion to Reconsider. (Doc. 190.) In the June Order, this court also granted in part and denied in part Plaintiff's motion. (Id.) This court reopened summary judgment to address three issues: (1) with regard to Plaintiff's medical malpractice claim, this court reopened summary judgment to consider whether there is a genuine dispute of material fact that Defendant Jackson breached the standard of care; (2) with regard to Plaintiff's medical malpractice claim, this court reopened summary judgment to consider whether there is a genuine...
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