Rainey v. Patton
| Decision Date | 01 June 2012 |
| Docket Number | Case No. 1:11cv327. |
| Parties | Shanya RAINEY, et al., Plaintiffs, v. Jeff PATTON, et al., Defendants. |
| Court | U.S. District Court — Southern District of Ohio |
OPINION TEXT STARTS HERE
Cornelius Carl Lewis, James Edward Kolenich, Cincinnati, OH, for Plaintiff.
Rick L. Weil, Reminger & Reminger, Cincinnati, OH, for Defendants.
Plaintiffs Shanya Rainey and Antwan Roland filed the original complaint in this matter on June 7, 2011, asserting claims for illegal seizure/false arrest, excessive force, and malicious prosecution, pursuant 42 U.S.C. § 1983, against Defendants Jeff Patton and Brandon Goff. (Doc. 4). Plaintiffs' complaint arises out of a traffic stop involving Defendants, both of whom are Police Officers for the City of Cheviot, Ohio.
This civil action is now before the Court on Defendants' motion for summary judgment (Doc. 22) and the parties' responsive memoranda. (Docs. 26, 32). 1 Defendants have also submitted a Statement of Proposed Undisputed Facts (Doc. 23) and Plaintiff has filed a response thereto. (Doc. 31). The parties have consented to the exercise of jurisdiction by the Magistrate Judge pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 636(c). ( See Doc. 20). For the reasons set forth herein, Defendants' motion for summary judgment is granted.
On September 23, 2010, Jeff Patton and Brandon Goff, both of whom are Police Officers for the City of Cheviot, Ohio, responded to a call for assistance from Plaintiff Shanya Rainey. (Rainey dep. at 20). Rainey called the police because she and her boyfriend had been arguing and she wanted him removed from her apartment. Id. Once the Officers arrived, Plaintiff's boyfriend was eventually removed from the apartment. Thereafter, Rainey also decided to leave her apartment because she feared her boyfriend would return. Rainey got into her vehicle and pulled out of the gravel apartment parking lot onto the adjacent street, Camvic Terrace. Id. at 28–29.
Officer Patton was behind Rainey as she left the parking lot. (Patton dep. at 9). According to Officer Patton, Rainey “accelerated rapidly” in the parking lot, throwing rocks from the wheels of her car, and then pulled out in front of another car on Camvic. (Patton dep. at 9). Because Rainey failed to yield when pulling out onto Camvic, Patton pursued her on Camvic with his lights on, signaling for her to pull over. Id. Plaintiff testified, however, that she did not pull out in front of another vehicle. (Rainey dep. at 29).
Rainey did not pull over immediately upon noticing Officer Patton's overhead lights, and instead drove into a nearby parking lot of a Goodwill store located at the intersection of Camvic and North Bend Road. (Rainey dep. at 34). After Rainey pulled into the Goodwill parking lot, she asserts that she slowed momentarily and then drove diagonally all the way across the parking lot, stopping just short of a blocked exit. Id. Patton indicated that Rainey did momentarily stop on Camvic, but then she pulled away from him as he was exiting his cruiser in order to effectuate the traffic stop. (Patton dep. at 7). Once Rainey stopped, Patton asserts that he brought his cruiser to a stop behind her vehicle and ordered Rainey out of her vehicle and to the ground. He did so because she had failed to initially stop on Camvic and continued ignoring Patton's instruction to stop after turning into the Goodwill parking lot. (Patton dep. at 14). According to Rainey, once stopped, she remained in her car with the driver side door closed. Officer Patton, however, asserts that Plaintiff was in the process of exiting her car when he pulled up behind her. (Patton dep. at 14).
According to Rainey, Officer Patton's gun was drawn when he exited his vehicle. Officer Patton maintains that he drew his weapon because he could not see Rainey's hands as he was ordering her to ground. (Patton dep. at 14). After being ordered at least twice to do so by Patton, Rainey got down on the ground.
While on the ground, Plaintiff Rainey could hear Officer Patton's K9 police dog barking from his vehicle. Rainey maintains that Officer Patton retrieved the dog from his police vehicle and began yelling as he guided the dog to Plaintiff's location on the ground. (Rainey dep. at 43; Roland dep. at 13–14). Rainey testified that Officer Patton got the dog in position over Rainey's body and continued yelling at Rainey. According to Rainey, Officer Patton released the dog's choke chain that was restraining the dog and the dog proceeded to attack Plaintiff Rainey by biting her on the back. (Rainey dep. 44–45). Rainey did not hear Officer Patton give the K9 a command to bite her.
Additionally, when Rainey got down on the ground she had her cell phone in her hand. (Rainey dep. at 39). Patton testified that he asked Rainey several times to put down her cell phone. (Patton dep. at 16). Rainey maintains that she was told only once to do so. (Doc. 26, ¶ 10). Rainey further testified that she tried to use her cell phone to call someone while she was laying on the ground after she was bitten by the dog. (Rainey dep. at 40–42). She then threw the phone down to prevent the Officers from taking it away from her. Id. at 41.
According to Patton, the dog exited the cruiser on its own, through an open window of the cruiser. (Patton dep. at 19). Patton asserts that while Rainey was on the ground, she turned her head quickly away from the K9 unit and was immediately bitten by the dog on the back. Patton testified that the K9 unit is not trained to “attack” suspects, only to “apprehend and hold” fleeing suspects. (Patton dep. at 25). Patton further testified that the K9 unit is trained to bite suspects when they move defensibly during an arrest. (Patton dep. at 50).
At some point during this encounter, Officer Patton radioed Officer Goff to respond to the parking lot to assist with handcuffing Rainey. Officer Goff arrived at the scene immediately after Rainey was bitten by the K9 unit. Officer Goff placed Rainey in handcuffs and transported Rainey to the police/fire station to be seen by an EMT. (Rainey dep. at 50). The emergency personnel at the station indicated that Rainey needed to go to the hospital. Id. Officer Goff then transported Rainey to University Hospital for treatment. The wound was cleaned and Plaintiff was given some pain medication. (Rainey dep. at 66). She was charged and then released. Id. at 64.2
Antwan Roland was on a scooter near Camvic Terrace and witnessed the incident with Rainey and Officers Patton and Goff. (Roland dep. at 9). When Roland arrived at the Goodwill parking lot, he first noticed that both Rainey's and Patton's cars were stopped in the parking lot and that Patton was in the process of ordering Rainey to the ground. (Roland dep. at 23). According to Roland, once Rainey was on the ground, Patton retrieved the K9 unit from his cruiser and began yelling at Rainey. (Roland dep. at 23). Roland further testified that Patton allowed some slack in the K9's chain, and the K9 lunged forward and bit Rainey on the back. (Roland dep. at 26).
After Rainey is bitten by the K9 unit, Officer Patton noticed that Roland is present at the scene. (Patton dep. at 39). Thereafter, Patton secured the K9 unit in his cruiser and ordered Roland to leave the area. (Patton dep. at 39; Roland dep. at 32). Patton testified that he told Roland to leave the scene because Rainey was not yet handcuffed and it was distracting to have a bystander present while Rainey was unrestrained. (Patton dep. at 39). According to Officer Patton, Roland walked within 15 feet of Patton and Rainey. Roland maintains that Officer Patton ordered him to leave again and told Roland that if he was not gone by the time Officer Goff arrived he was “going to jail.” (Roland dep. at 33).
According to Roland, after Rainey was bitten, Officer Patton told Roland to leave and Roland stated “I'm not even close to you guys, I'm far away, I ain't got nothing to do with anything.” (Roland dep. at 14–15). Roland testified he and Patton continued to shout at one another and Patton told Roland that if he was still on the scene with Officer Goff arrived he was going to jail. (Roland dep. at 33). Roland further testified that while he and Patton were shouting at each other, Plaintiff Rainey was uncuffed and still face down on the ground. Id. Officer Goff arrived at the scene, handcuffed Rainey and escorted her to the cruiser. Id. at 34–35. As Rainey was being escorted to the police cruiser, Roland testified that he and Rainey continued yelling back and forth to one another about the incident. Id. According to Officer Goff, Roland was texting on his cell phone and Goff feared a crowd was being summoned, which could escalate the situation. (Goff dep. at 23). As a result, Goff asked Roland to leave the scene at least three times. (Goff dep. at 21). Roland refused to leave and Goff ultimately detained him for disorderly conduct.
Roland, however, asserts that he remained about 100 feet away from Officer Patton throughout the entire incident. (Roland Aff., ¶ 10). Roland also disputes that he was sending text messages and asserts that he did not have his cell phone in his hand during the relevant period. (Roland Aff., ¶ 15).
Roland's case proceeded to trial and he was ultimately acquitted on the charge of disorderly conduct. (Doc. 22, Ex. F)
In light of the foregoing, Plaintiffs Rainey and Patton filed the instant action on June 7, 2011, asserting claims for illegal seizure/false arrest, excessive force, and malicious prosecution, pursuant 42 U.S.C. § 1983, against Defendants Jeff Patton and Brandon Goff. (Doc. 4). On July 15, 2011, Defendants filed the instant motion to dismiss Plaintiffs' complaint. (Doc. 10).
In an effort to cure the alleged deficiencies in the original complaint, the amended complaint abandoned Plaintiff Rainey's claims for false arrest and malicious prose...
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