Montanez v. Sec'y Pa. Dep't of Corr.

• Decision Date: 15 August 2014
• Docket Number: 13–1478.,Nos. 13–1380,s. 13–1380
• Parties: Domingo Colon MONTANEZ; Timothy A. Hale v. SECRETARY PENNSYLVANIA DEPARTMENT OF CORRECTIONS; SCI Rockview Inmate Accounting Office; Superintendent F.J. Tennis; Francis M. Dougherty; Earl E. Walker; Raymond Cingel; Pennsylvania DOC; Michael Oppman; Dian Detwiler; Harry E. Wilson Domingo Colon Montanez, Appellant in 13–1380 Timothy Hale, Appellant in 13–1478.
• Court: U.S. Court of Appeals — Third Circuit

773 F.3d 472

Domingo Colon MONTANEZ; Timothy A. Hale

v. SECRETARY PENNSYLVANIA DEPARTMENT OF CORRECTIONS; SCI Rockview Inmate Accounting Office; Superintendent F.J. Tennis; Francis M. Dougherty; Earl E. Walker; Raymond Cingel; Pennsylvania DOC; Michael Oppman; Dian Detwiler; Harry E. WilsonDomingo Colon Montanez, Appellant in 13–1380Timothy Hale, Appellant in 13–1478.

Nos. 13–1380

13–1478.

United States Court of Appeals, Third Circuit.

Argued Nov. 7, 2013.

Opinion filed: Aug. 15, 2014.

Ernest D. Preate, Jr., Esquire, (Argued), Scranton, PA, for Appellant Domingo Colon Montanez.

Su Ming Yeh, Esquire, (Argued), Pennsylvania Institutional Law Project, Philadelphia, PA, for Appellant Timothy A. Hale.

Howard G. Hopkirk, Esquire, (Argued), Office of Attorney General of Pennsylvania, Harrisburg, PA, for Appellees.

Before: GREENAWAY, JR., VANASKIE and ROTH, Circuit Judges.

AMENDED OPINION

ROTH, Circuit Judge:

Plaintiffs Domingo Colón Montañez and Timothy Hale appeal the District Court's order granting summary judgment in favor of the defendants on claims for damages and injunctive relief pursuant to 42 U.S.C. § 1983. Defendants are officials of the Pennsylvania Department of Corrections (DOC) and its related prisons. For the reasons that follow, we will affirm in part and reverse in part the District Court's judgment.

I.

This appeal involves the consolidated challenges of two inmates in the Pennsylvania Department of Corrections prison system to the DOC's implementation of a program that automatically deducts funds from prisoners' inmate accounts to cover court-ordered restitution, fines, and costs. The DOC maintains bank accounts for the inmates incarcerated in its facilities. Inmates use the funds in these accounts to cover the costs of certain goods and services they purchase during their time of incarceration. The DOC provides for the most basic needs of the inmates—such as food and shelter—without charge to the inmates' accounts. Inmates must pay for access to additional products and services, unless they qualify as indigent. For example, inmates must purchase items such as soap, deodorant, toothpaste, and over-the-counter medications. Inmates are also responsible for medical co-pays and the cost of access to legal services, although in some circumstances inmates' constitutional rights compel the DOC to provide access to these services without regard to inmates' ability to pay. See, e.g., Reynolds v. Wagner, 128 F.3d 166, 174 (3d Cir.1997). Inmates accrue money in their accounts through wages—capped at 51 cents an hour—for work conducted for the prison system or through gifts from friends and family.

In 1998, the Pennsylvania Legislature enacted Act 84, which amended section 9728(b) of the Pennsylvania Sentencing Code. Through these amendments, the legislature authorized the DOC “to make monetary deductions from inmate personal accounts for the purpose of collecting restitution or any other court-ordered obligation or costs.” 42 Pa. Cons.Stat. § 9728(b)(5). Act 84 also directed that the “Department of Corrections shall develop guidelines relating to its responsibilities under this paragraph.” Id.

The DOC exercised its obligation to develop guidelines relating to the collection of court-ordered monetary obligations of its inmates by promulgating policy DC–ADM005, effective October 16, 1998 (the DOC Policy).¹ The current version of the Policy provides, in relevant part, that the business office of each DOC facility makes “payments of 20% of the inmate's account balance and monthly income for restitution, reparation, fees, costs, fines, and/or penalties associated with the criminal proceedings pursuant to” Act 84, “provided that the inmate has a balance that exceeds $10.00.” The DOC's authority to make deductions is automatically triggered when it receives a sentencing order that includes a monetary portion. There is no requirement in the Policy that the relevant court order contain a provision for the automatic deduction of funds from an inmate account. The DOC does not provide inmates with any hearing or other opportunity to be heard before the deductions commence.

Montañez and Hale are two inmates in the DOC prison system who have had funds deducted from their inmate accounts pursuant to the DOC Policy. Each separately filed suit against DOC Secretary Jeffrey Beard, as well as other DOC officials responsible for processing the deductions (collectively, the Corrections Officials). The crux of both lawsuits is that the plaintiffs' procedural due process rights were violated when the Corrections Officials enforced the DOC Policy and made automatic deductions from the plaintiffs' inmate accounts.² Because these claims depend on the notice and process granted to each plaintiff, we will discuss the specific process given to each plaintiff in some detail.

A.

On January 6, 2004, Hale was sentenced in a Pennsylvania criminal proceeding to 82 to 160 months in prison. As part of this sentence, Hale was ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $1,191.11, and a fine of $1,000. The sentencing judge also ordered Hale to pay an unspecified amount for “the cost of the proceeding.” The final total of the costs, $1,462.53, was not determined until sometime after the sentencing hearing. The sentencing judge made no reference to Act 84 or the DOC's authority to make automatic deductions from funds held in an inmate account.

The parties dispute the exact parameters of the notice Hale received regarding the DOC Policy and Act 84 upon his intake to the DOC prison system. According to a sworn declaration submitted by the Corrections Officials, Hale underwent new prisoner orientation when he was first admitted, at which time he was informed that money could be deducted from his inmate account to satisfy court-ordered debts.

The Corrections Officials also contend that Hale was shown a video orientation and given an inmate handbook that set forth pertinent provisions of the DOC's grievance and debt collection policies. Further, Hale's institutional file contains a form notice dated February 19, 2004—prior to the initiation of any deductions—which sets forth the substance of the DOC Policy. The record does not confirm, however, whether Hale actually received this form notice. Hale contradicts each of these assertions in a sworn declaration of his own. In particular, Hale asserts that he was never informed that the DOC would deduct funds from his inmate account and was unaware of the DOC Policy until after the deductions commenced.

Hale admits that, during his initial orientation, he received an inmate handbook, which contains an explanation of the inmate accounts. While the handbook does not contain a copy of the DOC Policy, it does contain two references to the DOC's ability to deduct funds from inmate accounts. In particular, the handbook explains, “If you were ordered to pay restitution, reparation, fees, costs, fines, and/or penalties associated with court proceedings, the DOC will collect monies from your account to pay those amounts.” The handbook further provides:

1. In accordance with 42 Pa.C.S. § 9728, the DOC shall collect monies from your account if the court orders you to pay restitution, reparation, fees, costs, fines, and/or penalties associated with the criminal proceedings.

2. The DOC shall also collect court costs and filing fees as ordered by a court.

...

7. For more information on the collection of debts, refer to DOC policy DC–ADM 005.

Hale also notes that there are several discrepancies with respect to his total amount of court-ordered restitution, fees, and costs. The judgment entered in Hale's criminal case indicates that he owed a total of $2,783.86, while his 300B form³ lists a total of $4,373.64. In addition, Hale's 300B form erroneously inflated the amount Hale owed in restitution by over $700.

It is undisputed that the DOC provided no opportunity for Hale to be heard regarding his record of court-ordered monetary obligations or the automatic deductions. Hale filed this lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania on December 15, 2004.

B.

On January 7, 2000, Montañez participated in a Pennsylvania criminal sentencing hearing at which he received a sentence of 5.5 to 20 years in prison. Montañez was also ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $148.60, a fine in the amount of $100, and the costs of the prosecution. As with Hale, the costs portion of Montañez's sentence was not calculated until after the hearing. At no point did the sentencing judge explain that the DOC had the authority to automatically deduct 20% of Montañez's inmate account to pay these debts or otherwise refer to the DOC Policy.

Montañez asserts that he did not receive his 300B form or any other notice as to the total amount of his court-ordered obligations in time for him to move for reconsideration or file a direct appeal from the District Court's assessment of costs. Montañez did, however, file an appeal with respect to his conviction and sentence, and later filed petitions and other requests to modify his amounts owed.

As with Hale, the parties disagree as to the full extent of notice Montañez received regarding the DOC Policy upon his intake to the DOC prison system. Montañez asserts that he was never informed about the total amount of his court-ordered obligations, never received a copy of his 300B form, and was never informed about the DOC Policy. The Corrections Officials, on the other hand, dispute each of these claims. Both parties agree that the inmate handbook given to Montañez upon his admission to the DOC system contained no reference to the DOC policy. It is similarly undisputed that Montañez had no opportunity to be heard before the deductions commenced.

The DOC began deducting funds from Montañez's account pursuant to its policy on April 6, 2000. These deductions continued until 2010, when Montañez's debt was satisfied. Montañez admits that he received an inmate account statement every month, which included a debit...