Ortiz v. Jefferson Cnty.
| Decision Date | 12 November 2019 |
| Docket Number | Nos. 3:17-cv-00401,s. 3:17-cv-00401 |
| Parties | LUIS RAFAEL RODRIGUEZ ORTIZ, Plaintiff, v. JEFFERSON COUNTY, TENNESSEE; SGT. EDDIE MAFNAS, individually and officially; C.O. RYAN PAYNE, individually; C.O. BRIAN SHULTS, individually; and C.O. BRANDON WHITE, individually, Defendants. |
| Court | U.S. District Court — Eastern District of Tennessee |
REEVES/POPLIN
In September 2016, Luis Rafael Rodriguez Ortiz ("Rodriguez") was allegedly assaulted by several inmates and correctional officers at various points of his detention in the Jefferson County Detention Center. In September 2017, Rodriguez filed this civil-rights suit against Jefferson County, Tennessee ("Jefferson County"), 8 correctional officers (Eddie Mafnas, Karen Clevenger, Jonathan Bright, Ryan Payne, Chris Ray, Barbara Schuberg, Brian Shults, and Brandon White), and 5 fellow detainees (Jesus Fuentes, Henry Guthrie, Matthew Keith, Trustee John Doe No. 1, and Trustee John Doe No. 2). Defendants Jonathan Bright, Karen Clevenger, Eddie Mafnas ("Mafnas"), Ryan Payne ("Payne"), Barbara Schuberg, Brian Schults ("Shults"), Brandon White ("White"), and Jefferson County filed a joint motion for summary judgment on March 29, 2019 [D. 72]. Rodriguez responded on April 19, 2019 [D. 77], Defendants replied on April 26, 2019 [D. 79], and the motion became ripe for adjudication. The Court held a case-management conference with the parties on August 13, 2019 and several of the Defendants were dismissed, either voluntarily by Rodriguez or by the Court. For the reasons that follow, the joint motion for summary judgment will be granted in part and denied in part.
On the afternoon of September 8, 2019, Rodriguez was walking in the area of Chestnut Hill Road and Public Drive in Dandridge, Tennessee, distraught over the discovery that his wife had been unfaithful. Officer Robbie McMahan ("Officer McMahan") of the Dandridge Police Department responded to a call about an individual walking in the area and encountered Rodriguez on Public Road. Upon arrival, Officer McMahan asked Rodriguez what he was doing and asked if he needed help. Audio from the arrest reflects that, when asked whether he was intent on harming himself, Rodriguez replied, "I don't wanna hurt myself, whatever, but you know, but I need help . . . 'cause I don't wanna hurt myself." Later, Officer McMahan directly asked Rodriguez, "Do you want to hurt yourself?" Rodriguez exasperatedly chuckled and replied "I just wanna die, but I don't know what to do." After receiving Rodriguez's license and checking for warrants, Officer McMahan discovered an outstanding warrant for Rodriguez's arrest in Sevier County for driving on a suspended license. Officer McMahan informed Rodriguez that Rodriguez would need to resolve the issue before a judge, handcuffed Rodriguez, and transported him to the Jefferson County Sheriff's Department around 4:40PM so that he could be held until Sevier County officers could retrieve him.
Rodriguez was placed in Holding Cell 131 ("HC-131") of the Jefferson County Detention Center ("JCDC"). HC-131 is an observation cell equipped with cameras often used to observe suicidal detainees. Rodriguez was detained in the cell with three other detainees, including another Latino detainee, Jesus Fuentes.
A shift change occurred shortly before 5:00PM. At some point, the correctional officers in the new shift began to confuse Rodriguez, who had not been formally booked into the JCDC, with Jesus Fuentes. While in HC-131 after the shift change, Rodriguez claims that a "big and fat" correctional officer offered cigarettes to two inmate trustees if they would "come into [Rodriguez's] cell and beat [him] up." When the lights were turned off, Rodriguez claims that he placed his head inside the sink to protect himself and pleaded with the other inmates not to fight him. Rodriguez asserts that the unidentified inmates then proceeded to sexually assault him by ejaculating and urinating on his head and face while he called for help. A correctional officer walked by and asked if someone was calling for help, and White then entered HC-131 and brought Rodriguez out of the cell and into the booking area.
In the booking area, which is also equipped with cameras, Rodriguez proceeded to yell for the supervisor to inform him of the assault, but the supervisor, Mafnas, told him that he was busy. Rodriguez then pushed a computer monitor off of the booking desk. What happened next is somewhat in dispute. Rodriguez, at different times, states that he was told to either put his hands up or get on the ground and that he immediately complied. White then grabbed Rodriguez's neck and either "threw," "slammed," or "pushed" Rodriguez to the floor, face down, according to Rodriguez's varying accounts. White, Schults, Mafnas, and Correctional Officer Underwood ("Underwood") then restrained Rodriguez on the floor face down until they could secure him with handcuffs. Schults restrained Rodriguez's lower body, White and Underwood restrained his left and right arms respectively, and Mafnas restrained his head and upper-body area. During this incident while the other three officers were working to restrain Rodriguez, Mafnas struck Rodriguez in the ribs several times with his fists. After Rodriguez was handcuffed, he was lifted and placed into a restraint chair.
While in the restraint chair, Rodriguez continued to yell for Mafnas to come and speak with him. Rodriguez claims that Mafnas came into the room, told Rodriguez to "shut up," and proceeded to choke him. The length of time that Rodriguez remained in the chair is unclear. Rodriguez estimated that he was in the restraint chair for "about two hours." Mafnas stated that they tried to bring Rodriguez back into the cell, but he refused, so officers "put him back in the chair until the next shift showed up." This would place Rodriguez in the restraint chair for just under five hours, from 12:05AM until 4:45AM. JCDC restraint chair logs indicate that "Jesus Fuentes," who was actually Rodriguez, was in the restraint chair from 12:05AM until 3:06AM, which is three hours and one minute. During this time in the restraint chair, Rodriguez was not examined by medical personnel, permitted to change clothes, or permitted to shower. Rodriguez claims that he was not given water, but JCDC logs indicate that he requested water around 12:17AM but refused water when it was given.
Rodriguez was released from the restraint chair and brought back to HC-131 around 3:15AM on September 9, 2016. Due to Rodriguez's threats of "still wanting to harm himself," he was placed under watch in HC-131, according to JCDC logs. At 3:40AM, JCDC logs indicate that Mafnas contacted "Mobile Crisis Landon" and placed Rodriguez, misidentified as Jesus Fuentes, on fifteen-minute suicide watch.
Sometime thereafter, Rodriguez attempted to suffocate himself by tying his shirt around his neck. Correctional officers quickly intervened, placed Rodriguez in a green "turtle" suit, and continued to observe him. Another shift change occurred around 4:45AM.
After the shift change, Correctional Officer Darby discovered that Jesus Fuentes and Rodriguez had been mixed up. JCDC logs kept by Correctional Officers Hall and Darby reflect that at 5:45AM and 6:38AM, Rodriguez was seated on a bench in HC-131, rocking back and forth.At 7:42AM, Rodriguez refused his breakfast, with the exception of milk. By 8:10AM, Rodriguez had consumed his milk and at 9:15AM, Rodriguez was still seated on the bench. At 10:27, the Sevier County Sheriff's Office retrieved Rodriguez and was informed that Rodriguez had been making suicidal threats. Rodriguez stated that he "went back on suicide [watch]" at Sevier County Jail and nurses evaluated him.
While in the Sevier County Jail, Rodriguez reported that he was assaulted in the JCDC by other inmates at the prompting of a correctional officer and placed in a restraint chair after the computer incident. Sevier County officers relayed Rodriguez's report to Jefferson County officers. Sheriff G.W. Bud McCoig ("Sheriff McCoig") was notified of the booking room incident when it happened and reviewed the footage the next morning. Sometime thereafter, Sheriff McCoig demoted Mafnas from the supervisory role "for his handling of the incident" in booking. Sheriff McCoig stated that he demoted Mafnas because he "was not happy" with Defendant Mafnas striking Rodriguez "in the side two or three times . . . before placing him in the chair." After the demotion, Mafnas resigned.
Detective Perry A. Moyers ("Detective Moyers") of the Jefferson County Sheriff's Office was tasked with following up on Rodriguez's complaints in August 2017. Detective Moyers interviewed Rodriguez in the Sevier County Jail and collected a copy of the complaint Rodriguez made in Sevier County. Detective Moyers reported that Rodriguez's account during the interview conflicted with his complaint made in the Sevier County Jail. During the interview, Rodriguez indicated that a guard participated in the sexual assault, which was not part of Rodriguez's complaint from the Sevier County Jail, and that guards had "beaten and bitten" him. Detective Moyers also collected the JCDC incident report, statements from Officers Underwood, White, and Darby, and JCDC logs.
At some point, Rodriguez requested a copy of the video from HC-131 and the booking area, but Sheriff McCoig reported that the video footage had been lost. When a JCDC technician attempted to retrieve the video, he informed Sheriff McCoig that the hard drive "had been bad" because "lightening[sic] had run in our system."
On September 7, 2017, Rodriguez filed this lawsuit against several correctional officers, fellow detainees, and Jefferson County, Tennessee. [D. 1]. Jefferson County answered the complaint on October 9, 2017 [D. 7], which was later amended to include Jonathan Bright, Karen Clevenger (officially and individually), Eddie Mafnas ...
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