Kohn v. Ernst
| Decision Date | 26 September 2016 |
| Docket Number | Case No. 2:16-cv-115 |
| Parties | FLOYD E. KOHN, Plaintiff, v. UNKNOWN ERNST, et al., Defendants. |
| Court | U.S. District Court — Western District of Michigan |
Honorable Robert Holmes Bell
OPINIONThis is a civil rights action brought by a state prisoner pursuant to 42 U.S.C. § 1983. The Court has granted Plaintiff leave to proceed in forma pauperis. Under the Prison Litigation Reform Act, PUB. L. NO. 104-134, 110 STAT. 1321 (1996), the Court is required to dismiss any prisoner action brought under federal law if the complaint is frivolous, malicious, fails to state a claim upon which relief can be granted, or seeks monetary relief from a defendant immune from such relief. 28 U.S.C. §§ 1915(e)(2), 1915A; 42 U.S.C. § 1997e(c). The Court must read Plaintiff's pro se complaint indulgently, see Haines v. Kerner, 404 U.S. 519, 520 (1972), and accept Plaintiff's allegations as true, unless they are clearly irrational or wholly incredible. Denton v. Hernandez, 504 U.S. 25, 33 (1992). Applying these standards, the Court will dismiss Plaintiff's complaint for failure to state a claim against Defendants Ernst, Bertram, Lacrosse, Anderson, Hough, Connie, McLean, Horton, Woods, Barber, Myers, Seimes, Beavlev, Goings, Brown, Ball, Bassett, Mackie, Theut, Russell, LaLande, Isard, Maki, Lindenmuth, Clark, Richardson, Doolittle, and Patel.
In addition, a careful review of the complaint reveals that Plaintiff's Eighth Amendment failure to protect claims against Defendants Myron, Lancor, Sellick, Payment, Watson, and Dunton, his First Amendment retaliation claims against Defendants Gurnoe, Dunton, Ross, Bigger, Russo, and Pawley, and his Fourteenth Amendment equal protection claims against Defendants Sellick, Hall, Holden and Thomas are not clearly frivolous and may not be dismissed on initial review. Therefore, the Court will serve the complaint against Defendants Myron, Lancor, Sellick, Gurnoe, Payment, Russo, Holden, Thomas, Watson, Ross, Pawley, Bigger, Dunton, and Hall.
Discussion
Plaintiff Floyd E. Kohn, a Michigan prisoner currently incarcerated at the Ionia Correctional Facility (ICF), filed this pro se civil rights action pursuant to 42 U.S.C. § 1983 against Defendants Corrections Officers Unknown Ernst, Unknown Sellick, Unknown Gurnoe, Unknown Bertram, Unknown Payment, Unknown Anderson, Unknown McLean, Unknown Myers, Unknown Seimes, T. Beavlev, Unknown Goings, Unknown Brown, Unknown Russo, Unknown Ross, Unknown Pawley, B. Hall1, and Unknown Richardson.
Plaintiff also names Defendants Resident Unit Manager Unknown Lacrosse, Inspector Unknown Hough, Deputy Warden Unknown Connie, Unknown Horton, Warden Jeffrey Woods, Legislative Corrections Ombudsman Keith Barber, Assistant Resident Unit Supervisor K. Holden, Deputy Warden Unknown Bell, Resident Unit Manager Unknown Thomas, GrievanceCoordinator T. Bassett, Warden Unknown Mackie, Lieutenant Unknown Watson, Sergeant Unknown Bigger, Assistant Resident Unit Supervisor Unknown Dunton, School Building Administrator Unknown Theut, Grievance Director Richard D. Russell, Resident Unit Manager Unknown LaLonde, Deputy Warden Unknown Isard, Hearing Officer Unknown Maki, Sergeant Unknown Myron, Counselor Unknown Lancor, Resident Unit Manager Unknown Lindenmuth, Assistant Resident Unit Supervisor Unknown Clark, Nurse Unknown Doolittle, and Psychiatrist Unknown Patel.
Plaintiff's complaint consists of thirty-two handwritten pages, which are sometimes difficult to decipher, and is made up of disjointed and unclear descriptions of the alleged violations of his rights by the named Defendants. Plaintiff also offers three-hundred and seventy-seven pages of exhibits, including copies of grievances, grievance responses, misconduct records, and other prison records. After a careful review of the complaint and attached exhibits, the Court concludes that Plaintiff's complaint is subject to partial dismissal for failure to state a claim.
In Plaintiff's complaint, he alleges that while he was confined at the Alger Correctional Facility (LMF), Defendants Myron, Lancor, and Lindenmuth bought two bras and told Plaintiff to wear them or be sent to segregation. Defendant Myron called Plaintiff a "faggot ass bitch" and an abomination, claimed to have spit in Plaintiff's food trays, and told Plaintiff that his mother should be dead for having given birth to him. Plaintiff states that his mother had been murdered in 2006, and the harassment he was subjected to brought him to tears on several occasions. Plaintiff also claims that Defendant Myron wrote numerous false tickets on him, and that Defendant Maki found him guilty despite the lack of any evidence.
Plaintiff also claims that Defendant Lancor refused Plaintiff's requests to be moved out of a cell with inmate Simms, who was openly hostile to Plaintiff. Simms told Plaintiff that he had been given a pack of cigarettes by Defendant Myron and that Simms had received three and a half years for beating a previous cell mate with a lock in a sock. Plaintiff again asked to be moved and Defendant Lancor said he would help Plaintiff. However, Plaintiff was not moved and on May 19, 2014, inmate Simms attacked Plaintiff. On June 2, 2014, Defendant Myron told Plaintiff that he had gotten what he paid Simms for, saying that it was fun to watch another "butch" beat Plaintiff up and that he might try that again.
Plaintiff alleges that on October 24, 2014, he was placed in a cell that smelled of chemicals or paint. The smell made Plaintiff ill, and he complained to Defendant Gurnoe and Corrections Officer Libby. Plaintiff states that the smell caused him to gag and vomit, and to develop chest pain and a headache. Plaintiff claims that when he touched the wall, he realized that the paint was not dry. Defendant Gurnoe would not give Plaintiff the window opener, saying that Plaintiff deserved to die from the fumes because of all the grievances that Plaintiff had written on Defendant Dunton. Plaintiff states that the nurse gave him ibuprofen, but that he was not allowed any fresh air. Plaintiff was kept in the cell for eleven days and believes that his placement was ordered by Defendant Dunton to punish Plaintiff for filing grievances. Plaintiff further claims that Defendant Gurnoe and Corrections Officer Libby made sexually harassing comments to him regarding his breasts and whether he had female genitalia.
Plaintiff alleges that on January 5, 2015, he experienced chest pains during the night. Plaintiff told Defendant Ernst that because there was not a button he could push to alert staff if he had a heart attack or stroke, he had to get off of the top bunk. Defendant Ernst told Plaintiff that heneeded to stay on his bunk regardless of his symptoms. Defendant Ernst wrote a ticket on Plaintiff for being out of place, and the continued with his rounds without summoning medical assistance for Plaintiff. Plaintiff waited until after count and then went to Defendant Bertram seeking help. Plaintiff was told to walk to the nurse's office. Plaintiff had to go outside into a blizzard in order to see the nurse. Plaintiff claims that Defendant Ernst had previously harassed him for being transgender and gay, and had denied Plaintiff use of the restroom on several occasions.
On April 2, 2015, while he was confined at the Chippewa Correctional Facility (URF), Defendant Payment repeatedly called him "sweet tits" and "deep throat master," and told Plaintiff that he had heard that Plaintiff was transgender. Defendant Payment also told Plaintiff that he had heard that Plaintiff was good at giving oral sex. Plaintiff told Defendant Payment that he was making him uncomfortable and asked him to stop talking to him in a sexual manner. However, Defendant Payment continued asking Plaintiff about oral sex, stating that he "might as well get [his] dick sucked too." Defendant Payment also told another inmate that Plaintiff was a "slutty whore" and a "transgender whore," and to stay away from Plaintiff. Defendant Payment also said that because Plaintiff had been given breasts, he thought his "shit didn't stink." At one point, Defendant Payment called Plaintiff to the unit desk and pulled an inmate ID out of his wallet. Defendant Payment told Plaintiff that the inmate, who was gay, had been transferred, but that he had previously performed sex acts for Defendant Payment and, in return, Defendant Payment did favors for the inmate. Defendant Payment told Plaintiff that he could do the same for him. Plaintiff continued to refuse Defendant Payment's advances. Plaintiff filed a grievance on Defendant Payment, but received no help with the problem.
Plaintiff alleges that Defendant Sellick has called him a "fuckin' transgender," and told him that because he did not have the top two buttons done up on his shirt, he was trying to show his "tits" to other inmates. Defendant Sellick wrote Plaintiff a misconduct ticket for having his shirt partially unbuttoned. Plaintiff states that he wrote multiple grievances on Defendants Sellick for sexual harassment.
On April 2, 2015, Defendant Payment had Plaintiff moved to Lime Unit and assigned to share a cell with inmate Shelton, who had previously assaulted Plaintiff in 2013 while he was confined at the Kinross Correctional Facility. Plaintiff had been told that there was a SPON (Special Problem Offender Notice) on inmate Shelton. Defendant Sellick escorted Plaintiff to his new cell and when Plaintiff arrived there, Defendant Sellick smiled saying, Defendant Sellick also told Plaintiff that the previous resident of that cell had lost the key, so that Plaintiff would not have a key to his cell, so he could not come and go. Plaintiff told Defendant Sellick that he was afraid to go into the cell and that there was supposed to be a SPON on inmate Shelton. Defendant Sellick told Plaintiff that she didn't care about any SPON and that if he did...
To continue reading
Request your trial