Simmons v. Cook
| Decision Date | 01 September 1998 |
| Docket Number | No. 97-2324,CO-1,D,97-2324 |
| Citation | 154 F.3d 805 |
| Parties | Bobby Franklin SIMMONS; Ricky Lynn Marshall, Plaintiffs--Appellees, v. Eddie COOK, Assistant Warden, Diagnostic Unit, Arkansas Department of Correction; Steven R. O'Neal, Lt., Diagnostic Unit, Arkansas Department of Correction, Defendants--Appellants, David Foote,iagnostic Unit, Arkansas Department of Correction; Floyd Harper,iagnostic Unit, Arkansas Department of Correction; Steven Burgess, RN, Diagnostic Unit, Arkansas Department of Correction, originally sued as Steven Burges; Theresa Simonson, LPN, Diagnostic Unit, Arkansas Department of Correction, originally sued as Tracy Simonson, Defendants. |
| Court | U.S. Court of Appeals — Eighth Circuit |
David B. Eberhard, Little Rock, Arkansas, argued, for Defendants-Appellants.
J. Fred Hart, Jr., Little Rock, Arkansas, argued, for Plaintiffs-Appellees.
Before WOLLMAN, FLOYD R. GIBSON, and LOKEN, Circuit Judges.
Bobby Franklin Simmons and Ricky Lee Marshall, two paraplegic inmates, bring this action pursuant to 42 U.S.C. § 1983, alleging violations of the Eighth Amendment. Simmons and Marshall sued Eddie Cook, Assistant Warden of the Arkansas Department of Correction's Diagnostic Unit (the "DOC"), and Steven R. O'Neal, Lieutenant of the DOC, 1 after Simmons and Marshall (1) were placed in solitary confinement for thirty-two hours; (2) were denied their "egg crate" mattresses; 2 (3) missed four consecutive meals because their wheelchairs could not maneuver around the cell bunk to reach the barred door where the food tray was placed; and (4) were unable to eliminate their bodily wastes. After a bench trial, the district court 3 entered judgment against Cook and O'Neal and awarded Simmons and Marshall two thousand dollars ($2,000) each. Cook and O'Neal appeal, and we affirm.
The facts, viewed most favorably to Simmons and Marshall as they must be, see Williams v. Norris, 148 F.3d 983, 984-85 (8th Cir.1998), are as follows. Simmons and Marshall were inmates in the DOC's general population. On the evening of October 18, 1994, Lieutenant Randy O'Neal was the shift supervisor. At approximately 12:30 a.m. on October 19, 1994, O'Neal smelled alcohol on Simmons and Marshall, and a Blood Alcohol Content ("BAC") Datamaster Test measured Simmons's blood alcohol content at .082 and Marshall's at .077. Because the inmates had consumed alcohol, O'Neal intended to follow prison policy by segregating Simmons and Marshall in the Diagnostic Unit's maximum security area.
Before placing the inmates into maximum security, O'Neal consulted with medical personnel to ensure that no medical reason prohibited the inmates' confinement because both inmates were disabled in the lower half of their bodies and wheelchair-bound. Two nurses, Theresa Simonson and Steve Burgess, inspected the confines of the maximum security area 4 and determined that both inmates could be adequately housed therein. However, Simonson specifically qualified her approval of the cells by advising O'Neal that the cells were only suitable provided that Simmons and Marshall could gain access to the hospital for treatments, had their egg crate mattresses, and had all their other medical requirements met. See Tr. at 440-444.
O'Neal consulted with Assistant Warden Eddie Cook by telephone, and Cook directed O'Neal to segregate Simmons and Marshall in the maximum security cells. Simmons and Marshall were placed in the cells at approximately 2:00 a.m. on October 19, 1994. Simmons's and Marshall's wheelchairs would not fit through the cell doors; therefore, they were lifted into the beds, and their wheelchairs were folded to fit through the cell doors, then reopened when placed in the cell.
During their stay in the maximum security cells, prison officials denied Simmons and Marshall their egg crate mattresses. In addition, Simmons and Marshall were unable to eat and missed four consecutive meals because their wheelchairs could not pass the cell bunk to reach the barred door where the food trays were set. Both Simmons and Marshall informed a correction officer that they could not reach the food trays. However, the officer replied that "[i]f you get hungry enough you'll find a way." Tr. at 279; see also Tr. at 187. Simmons and Marshall also were unable to have a bowel movement because they were denied the necessary medical supplies, appropriate access to a handicapped-assistive toilet, and all other necessary assistance in using the toilet. Cook returned to work the next day but never checked on either Simmons's or Marshall's welfare.
On November 18, 1994, Simmons and Marshall filed a Complaint, pursuant to 42 U.S.C. § 1983, against certain members of the security and medical staff at the DOC, alleging that these actions violated their Eighth Amendment right to be free from cruel and unusual punishment. On March 26, 1997, the district court issued an Order, finding in favor of Simmons and Marshall with respect to defendants Cook and O'Neal. However, Simmons's and Marshall's claims against the remaining defendants were dismissed. The district court then awarded Simmons and Marshall $2000 each in compensatory damages. Cook and O'Neal appeal.
We review the district court's factual findings for clear error and its legal conclusions de novo. See Long v. Nix, 86 F.3d 761, 764 (8th Cir.1996). The Eighth Amendment requires prison officials to provide humane conditions of confinement. See Farmer v. Brennan, 511 U.S. 825, 832, 114 S.Ct. 1970, 128 L.Ed.2d 811 (1994). "[P]rison officials must ensure that inmates receive adequate food, clothing, shelter, and medical care." Id.
To prevail on an Eighth Amendment claim, an inmate must prove both an objective and a subjective element. First, the alleged deprivation, objectively, must be "sufficiently serious"; the prison official's act or omission must result in the denial of "the minimal civilized measure of life's necessities"; or the prison official must incarcerate the inmate under conditions "posing a substantial risk of serious harm." Id. at 834, 114 S.Ct. 1970 (internal quotation and citation omitted). Second, the prison official, subjectively, must act with "deliberate indifference" to inmate health or safety. Id. (internal quotation and citation omitted).
While it is true that constructive knowledge, or the "should-have-known" standard, is not sufficient to support a finding of deliberate indifference, it does not follow that the required element of subjective knowledge cannot be proved by evidence of surrounding circumstances. The question whether the official knew of the risk is subject to demonstration, like any other question of fact, by inference from circumstantial evidence. Therefore, if a[n inmate] presents evidence of "very obvious and blatant circumstances" indicating that the [prison official] knew the risk existed, [then, it is proper to infer] that the official must have known.
Spruce v. Sargent, 149 F.3d 783, 785-86 (8th Cir.1998) (internal citations omitted). "A medical need is serious if it is obvious to the layperson or supported by medical evidence." Moore v. Jackson, 123 F.3d 1082, 1086 (8th Cir.1997) (per curiam) (internal quotation and citation omitted).
For reversal, Cook and O'Neal first argue that the district court erred in finding that they violated Simmons's and Marshall's Eighth Amendment rights. O'Neal and Cook contend that Simmons and Marshall failed to prove the necessary objective and subjective components of an Eighth Amendment violation. We disagree.
O'Neal and Cook made the decision to confine Simmons and Marshall in the maximum security cells but failed to "ensure that [Simmons and Marshall] receive[d] adequate food ... and medical care." Farmer, 511 U.S. at 832, 114 S.Ct. 1970 (emphasis added). For example, in the entire thirty-two hour confinement in the maximum security cells, Simmons and Marshall missed four consecutive meals because their wheelchairs could not reach the food tray slots. Simmons and Marshall also were unable to have a bowel movement because they failed to receive the necessary supplies or assistance. Such conditions denied Simmons and Marshall "the minimal civilized measure of life's necessities." Id. at 834, 114 S.Ct. 1970. Therefore, we conclude that Simmons and Marshall satisfied the objective component of an Eighth Amendment violation.
We also find Simmons and Marshall established the necessary subjective element of an Eighth Amendment violation. As noted, "a factfinder may conclude that a prison official knew of a substantial risk from the very fact that the risk was obvious." Id. at 842, 114 S.Ct. 1970. Here, Simmons's and Marshall's condition, as paraplegic and wheelchair-bound, was obvious and apparent to any layperson. The maximum security cells' condition was also undisputed. That is, a wheelchair could not pass through the cell doors and maneuver around the cell bunk to reach the food tray slot and the toilet had no handrails. In fact, O'Neal was physically present when Simmons and Marshall were placed in the maximum security cells and witnessed that their wheelchairs would not fit through the door and could not reach the food tray slot. Although Cook approved Simmons's and Marshall's confinement in the maximum security cells from his home, Cook worked the entire next day but never ensured...
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