Randolph v. Rodgers

• Decision Date: 19 March 1999
• Docket Number: No. 97-4259,97-4259
• Citation: 170 F.3d 850
• Parties: 9 A.D. Cases 336, 15 NDLR P 26 Ronnie RANDOLPH, Appellee, v. Bill RODGERS, Don Roper, Paul Delo, Michael Bowersox, Dora Schriro, individually and in their official capacities, and the Missouri Department of Corrections, Appellants.
• Court: U.S. Court of Appeals — Eighth Circuit

Page 850

170 F.3d 850

9 A.D. Cases 336, 15 NDLR P 26

Ronnie RANDOLPH, Appellee, v. Bill RODGERS, Don Roper, Paul Delo, Michael Bowersox, Dora Schriro, individually and in their official capacities, and the Missouri Department of Corrections, Appellants.

No. 97-4259.

United States Court of Appeals Eighth Circuit.

Submitted Jan. 12, 1999.

Decided March 19, 1999.

Denise Garrison McElvein, St. Louis, MO, argued (Jeremiah W. (Jay) Nixon, John R. Munich, on the brief), for Appellant.

Peter Gus Yelkovac, St. Louis, MO, argued, for Appellee.

Before: BOWMAN, Chief Circuit Judge, MURPHY, Circuit Judge, and ALSOP, ¹ District Judge.

ALSOP, District Judge.

Plaintiff Ronnie Randolph, a deaf-mute prisoner in the custody of the Missouri Department of Corrections, filed this lawsuit after the Department of Corrections failed to provide him with a sign language interpreter during disciplinary proceedings. The defendants appeal under 28 U.S.C. § 1292(a) the trial court's issuance of a permanent injunction. We vacate the injunction, reverse the district court's grant of summary judgment in part, and remand.

I

In 1983, plaintiff Ronnie Randolph was convicted of capital murder and sentenced to life in prison. Randolph was initially incarcerated at Jefferson City Correctional Center ("JCCC"). In 1989, Randolph was transferred to Potosi Correctional Center ("PCC"). In October of 1996, Randolph was transferred back to JCCC.

Randolph suffers from profound hearing loss and cannot understand most speech spoken at an average conversational level. Randolph's primary means of communication is American Sign Language. When conversing with a person who does not understand sign language, Randolph can communicate to some extent via gestures, lip reading, and speaking. The degree to which these methods work depends on the patience of the person trying to communicate with Randolph and how long they have interacted with him. When these methods are inadequate, Randolph reads and writes messages in standard English. Randolph wears hearing aids provided by the Department of Corrections, but both parties' experts agree that they are insufficient for his level of hearing loss. Even with improved hearing aids, Randolph would have difficulty understanding most speech. ²

In 1989, after he was transferred to PCC, Randolph filed a grievance requesting a sign language interpreter for all stages of prison disciplinary proceedings, medical procedures, educational programs and counseling, and all programs and activities relating to prison confinement. PCC has been unable to locate their response to the grievance. The parties agree, however, that no interpreter was provided for Randolph following his 1989 request.

In 1993, Randolph received two conduct violations. After Randolph submitted written statements on his own behalf, the violations were dismissed and no discipline was imposed. Randolph did not request a sign language interpreter in either proceeding.

In 1994, Randolph received three additional conduct violations. In February, Randolph was written up for insulting behavior and disobeying an order. Randolph was found guilty of the violations in a disciplinary proceeding. Randolph did not request a sign language interpreter prior to the hearing on his conduct violations. However, on March 3, 1994, Randolph filed an informal resolution request ("IRR") asking that the violations be expunged from his records. He also requested that "effective immediately the Dept. of Corr. employ a capable staff person whom can assist me with my needs to communicate with the staff personnel." The IRR was denied. Randolph then filed a formal grievance appealing his conduct violations. In his grievance, Randolph wrote "I ask that the Potosi Corr. Center hire/employ an interppreter [sic] for persons like myself, to insure meaningful communications." The Superintendent of PCC denied Randolph's grievance and stated that his "request for an interperator [sic] is a separate subject and will not be addressed."

In early July of 1994, Randolph received a conduct violation for assault after he threw two boxes of cookies at a food service worker. At the disciplinary hearing on July 6, Randolph submitted a written statement in his defense and did not request a sign language interpreter. Because of the seriousness of the assault violation, a classification hearing was held on July 7. As a result of the classification hearing, Randolph was placed in administrative segregation.

On September 2, Randolph submitted a grievance complaining that he had been denied due process during the assault disciplinary hearing because he was not provided with a qualified interpreter as required by Missouri state law. On October 5, 1994, Randolph's grievance was denied with the comment that Randolph had not asked for an interpreter at the time of the hearing and that he had fully understood the proceedings, as evidenced by the statement he submitted on his own behalf. Randolph then filed a first and second grievance appeal. Both appeals were denied by the Department of Corrections. ³

II

On May 18, 1994, Randolph filed a motion to proceed in forma pauperis with the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Missouri. Randolph's motion was forwarded to the Court's pro se unit. On August 25, 1994, the Court granted Randolph's motion to proceed in forma pauperis. On the same day, Randolph's original complaint was filed. Randolph eventually filed a first and second amended complaint. The second amended complaint named the Missouri Department of Corrections, Bill Rodgers, Don Roper, Paul Delo, Michael Bowersox, and Dora Schriro as defendants. Rodgers was Randolph's Correctional Classification Assistant at PCC and served as a hearing officer during one of Randolph's disciplinary proceedings. Roper was the Associate Superintendent at PCC from 1989 to 1995 and reviewed Randolph's requests for a sign language interpreter. Delo was PCC's Superintendent from 1989 to 1995 and reviewed and denied Randolph's grievances requesting an interpreter. Bowersox replaced Delo as PCC's superintendent in August of 1995. Schriro is director of the Missouri Department of Corrections and reviewed and denied a request for an interpreter. Randolph's second amended complaint asserts five claims--due process and equal protection violations under 42 U.S.C. § 1983 (Counts I and II), violations of the Americans with Disabilities Act ("ADA") (Count III), violations of § 504 of the Rehabilitation Act ("RA") (Count IV), and violations of Missouri Statute § 476.750 (Count V).

The parties filed cross-motions for summary judgment. On October 10, 1997, the district court granted the defendants' motion for summary judgment on the due process and equal protection claims. The district court also granted the individual defendants' motion for summary judgment on the ADA and RA claims, finding the individuals were not "employers" subject to suit under the ADA or the RA. ⁴ The court granted Randolph's motion for summary judgment as to liability on the ADA, RA, and Missouri Statute § 476.750 claims against the Department of Corrections, and reserved for trial the issue of damages against the Department of Corrections. Finally, the trial court reserved for trial the issue of money damages on the state law claim against the individual defendants. ⁵

After finding in favor of Randolph on his ADA, RA, and Missouri state law claim against the Department of Corrections, the District court issued a permanent injunction, based on its summary judgment rulings, which ordered:

that the Missouri Department of Corrections, and its agents, including any prison facility within which plaintiff is now or hereafter shall be confined, and all officers or persons having control of such prison facilities and its programs, shall hereafter provide plaintiff with sign language interpreter services whenever he is the subject of a non-emergency disciplinary or classification hearing, during all non-emergency medical care, and during any educational programs in which plaintiff participates.

Finally, the district court certified the summary judgment order, including the injunction, for immediate appeal as involving a "controlling question of law as to which there is substantial ground for difference of opinion" under 28 U.S.C. § 1292(b).

On November 19, 1997, the defendants filed a petition with this Court for permission to file an interlocutory appeal pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1292(b). The Court denied the defendants' petition. The defendants then filed a timely notice of appeal pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1292(a), which provides that the courts of appeals have jurisdiction of appeals from interlocutory orders of the district courts granting, continuing, modifying, refusing or dissolving injunctions, or refusing to dissolve or modify injunctions.

On appeal, the defendants raise six primary issues:

1. Whether the district court lacked subject matter jurisdiction to issue declaratory and injunctive relief because plaintiff's claims were moot due to plaintiff's transfer to another prison.

2. Whether the district court erred in granting summary judgment because there was no showing of discrimination based on plaintiff's disability.

3. Whether the district court erred in granting summary judgment because there are genuine issues of material fact as to whether a sign language interpreter is a reasonable accommodation and whether this accommodation imposes an undue burden due to the safety and security concerns and financial burden.

4. Whether the district court erred in finding that plaintiff is entitled to trial on damages under the ADA, RA and state law claims when plaintiff has not shown intentional discrimination.

5. Whether the district court abused its discretion in issuing broadly worded injunctive relief ordering a sign language interpreter at any prison where plaintiff is incarcerated for all remaining years of plaintiff's life sentence.

6. Wheth...