Sheets v. Indiana Dept. of Corrections

• Decision Date: 31 December 1986
• Docket Number: No. IP 85-1080-C.,IP 85-1080-C.
• Citation: 656 F. Supp. 733
• Parties: William J. SHEETS, Harold D. Delph, Billy A. Huston Jr., Charles Widener, Jack Melling, Michael W. Richardson, Plaintiffs, v. INDIANA DEPARTMENT OF CORRECTIONS, Board Members of the Department of Corrections, in their Individual and Official Capacity, Norman G. Owens, Superintendent of the Indiana State Reformatory, Pendleton, Indiana, Robert Shriner, Assistant Superintendent of the Indiana State Reformatory, Craig Hanks, Assistant Superintendent of the Indiana State Reformatory, Dan Juroff, Unit Team Manager of the Indiana State Reformatory, Lt. William Wicker, Correctional Officer of the Indiana State Reformatory, Defendants.
• Court: U.S. District Court — Southern District of Indiana

656 F. Supp. 733

William J. SHEETS, Harold D. Delph, Billy A. Huston Jr., Charles Widener, Jack Melling, Michael W. Richardson, Plaintiffs, v. INDIANA DEPARTMENT OF CORRECTIONS, Board Members of the Department of Corrections, in their Individual and Official Capacity, Norman G. Owens, Superintendent of the Indiana State Reformatory, Pendleton, Indiana, Robert Shriner, Assistant Superintendent of the Indiana State Reformatory, Craig Hanks, Assistant Superintendent of the Indiana State Reformatory, Dan Juroff, Unit Team Manager of the Indiana State Reformatory, Lt. William Wicker, Correctional Officer of the Indiana State Reformatory, Defendants.

No. IP 85-1080-C.

United States District Court, S.D. Indiana, Indianapolis Division.

December 31, 1986.

William E. Wendling, Jr., Indianapolis, Ind., for plaintiffs.

Linley E. Pearson, Atty. Gen. of Indiana, and David A. Arthur, Deputy Atty. Gen., Indianapolis, Ind., for defendants.

ENTRY

BARKER, District Judge.

This cause is presently before the Court on defendants' motion to dismiss pursuant to Rules 12(b)(1) and 12(b)(6), Federal Rules of Civil Procedure.

The plaintiffs in this case are correctional officers at the Indiana State Reformatory ("Reformatory"), located in Pendleton, Madison County, Indiana. The defendants are the Indiana Department of Corrections, the Board Members of the Department of Corrections, and four other individuals who act in a supervisory capacity at the Reformatory.

In addition, plaintiffs' complaint states that "relief is sought against each and all defendants as well as their agents, assistants, successors, employees and persons acting in concert or cooperation with them, or at their direction or under their supervision." As such persons have neither been named as parties to this lawsuit, nor even reasonably described, this provision of the complaint will be disregarded for the purpose of ruling on defendants' motions to dismiss.

On approximately February 1, 1985, a riot and hostage taking situation occurred at the Reformatory. Plaintiffs allege that "after attacking the guards, the prisoners took control of the outer guards hall, which controlls sic all the housing units and took control of `J' cell whereby three hostages were held while negotiating with the state authorities." Between the time of the beginning of the seige and its eventual termination approximately fifteen hours later, the plaintiffs allege that they were brutally attacked without provocation by the inmates. Plaintiffs claim that the cause of this riot was a severe beating perpetrated on an inmate, Lincoln Love, by correctional officers other than the plaintiffs a few hours earlier. Plaintiffs state that over twenty inmates in the area witnessed or became aware of this attack on Mr. Love, and became enraged at the excessive force used by the correctional officers. Plaintiffs state that approximately ten (10) inmates then armed themselves with homemade knives and shanks and attacked the plaintiffs in retaliation for the beating received by Mr. Love.

The plaintiffs allege that inmate beatings and use of excessive force are "common occurences sic and accepted policy and practice at the Indiana Reformatory," and attempt to attach liability to the defendants under theories of negligence and strict liability. Plaintiffs claim that:

The defendants knew that these incidents were occurring on a frequent basis and, despite such knowledge, refused to take corrective measures to prohibit such policy and practice.

The defendants knew, or but for reckless disregard of the facts should have known, that as a foreseeable result of allowing such policy and practice, defendants were exposing plaintiffs and other Correctional Officers to imminent and unreasonable danger of inmate retaliation.

The defendants knew, but for reckless disregard of the facts should have known, that the safety of the Correctional Officers at The Indiana Reformatory was in peril because the inmate population had been, for a long period of time, arming themselves with illicit weapons.

The defendants repeatedly were asked by certain Correctional Officers and employee representatives to initiate policies and procedures to curb the ability of the inmates to manufacture and obtain illicit weapons.

The defendants repeatedly were advised by certain Correctional Officers and employee representatives that various safety and security procedures at The Indiana Reformatory were being ignored, but that if such procedures were followed, the unreasonable danger to the Correctional Officers would be materially reduced. Defendants permitted, authorized, ratified, or knowingly acquiesced in the failure to adhere to such procedures.

Requests for meaningful self-defense training were rejected. Requests for protective weapons and effective access to defensive weapons were rejected.

The defendants were informed that particular inmates would, if given the opportunity, inflict great harm and physical injury to a certain plaintiff, William Sheets.

In spite of the knowledge alleged in the second paragraph ... the defendants took no action to avert such injury from occurring.

The acts, conduct, behavior and commissions of the defendants, and each of them, were performed knowingly, intentionally and maliciously, thereby subjecting the plaintiffs to deprivation of their substanative sic rights in violation of the Fourteenth Amendment to the Constitution of the United States and causing the plaintiffs to suffer substantial damages.

In addition, the plaintiffs claim that the beating of Mr. Love, which allegedly triggered the events leading to the plaintiff's injuries, "was at the express direction of defendant Lt. Wicker, the guard supervisor and agent of the other named defendants who was on the scene."

The plaintiffs request that the Court grant compensatory and punitive damages from each of the individual defendants. Plaintiffs additionally seek a permanent injunction from the Court, barring the defendants from further violations of the plaintiffs' constitutional rights and requiring the defendants to rectify "the unconstitutional conditions herein." Plaintiffs also seek costs, including reasonable attorney fees, and any other just and proper relief.

I. Immunity from Suit

As a preliminary matter, this Court must recognize that it lacks jurisdiction to adjudicate the claims made against the Indiana Department of Corrections, and against the other defendants in their official capacity by virtue of the Eleventh Amendment to the United States Constitution. The United States Supreme Court has held that the Eleventh Amendment bars suits prosecuted against a state by a citizen of that state. Hans v. Louisiana, 134 U.S. 1, 10 S.Ct. 504, 33 L.Ed. 842 (1890). Further, in Edelman v. Jordan, 415 U.S. 651, 94 S.Ct. 1347, 39 L.Ed.2d 662 (1974), the Supreme Court held that an unconsenting state is immune from suits brought in federal court by its own citizens, whether the State is named a party to the action or is merely the real party in interest because its individual officials are nominal defendants. This reasoning also applies when the State, one of its agencies or departments is named as a defendant; such a suit is barred, regardless of the relief sought. Pennhurst State School and Hospital v. Halderman, 465 U.S. 89, 104 S.Ct. 900, 79 L.Ed.2d 67 (1984).

There are exceptions to this outright bar. For example, Congress may legislate to enforce constitutional provisions, thereby abrogating the State's Eleventh Amendment immunity. To override this immunity, congressional intent must be either explicit in the statute, or plainly evidenced from the legislative history, Quern v. Jordan, 440 U.S. 332, 99 S.Ct. 1139, 59 L.Ed.2d 358 (1979). Without such a showing of explicit intent, the Supreme Court has refused to infer that Congress "desired silently to deprive the States" of immunity. Employees of Dept. of Public Health and Welfare, Missouri v. Dept. of Public Health and Welfare, Missouri, 411 U.S. 279, 93 S.Ct. 1614, 36 L.Ed.2d 251 (1973).

The State may waive its immunity, but as the Supreme Court held in Edelman, such a waiver must exist in the most express language, or by such overwhelming implications from the text as would leave no room for any other reasonable construction. Edelman, 415 U.S. at 673, 94 S.Ct. at 1360 (citing Murray v. Wilson Distilling Co., 213 U.S. 151, 29 S.Ct. 458, 53 L.Ed. 742 (1909)).

The State of Indiana, by statute, has chosen not to waive its immunity under the Eleventh Amendment. Ind.Code § 34-4-16.7-3 (1982). Thus, Indiana's immunity from suit extends to actions brought under Section 1983. Quern, 440 U.S. at 337, 99 S.Ct. at 1143. See also Hendrix v. Indiana State Public Defender System, 581 F.Supp. 31 (N.D.Ind.1984).

As the Indiana Department of Corrections is an agency of the state of Indiana, it receives the same Eleventh Amendment protection as the state itself. See Stanley v. Indiana Civil Rights Com'n, 557 F.Supp. 330 (N.D.Ind.1983) aff'd 740 F.2d 972 (7th Cir.1984). Thus, defendants' Section 12(b)(1) motion to dismiss must be granted as regarding defendant Indiana Department of Corrections.

The Board Members of the Department of Corrections, as well as the other individual defendants, are being sued both in their individual and official capacities. To the extent that the complaint for monetary damages is aimed at the individual defendants acting in their official capacity, such claims are also barred by the Eleventh Amendment. Stanley, 557 F.Supp. at 334 (citing Owen v. Lash, 682 F.2d 648, 654-55 (7th Cir.1982)). Thus, the only remaining claims are against the Board Members of the Department of Corrections and the other defendants in their individual capacity. Prison officials have been held to hold qualified immunity for their actions. Chavis v. Rowe, 643 F.2d 1281 (7th Cir.1981).

Qualified immunity generally extends only to actions performed in "good faith," a standard which has recently...