Sisneros v. Nix
| Decision Date | 06 March 1995 |
| Docket Number | No. C 4-91-CV-30574.,C 4-91-CV-30574. |
| Citation | 884 F. Supp. 1313 |
| Parties | Alfonso R. SISNEROS, Plaintiff, v. Crispus C. NIX and Paul Hedgepeth, Defendants. |
| Court | U.S. District Court — Southern District of Iowa |
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Barbara A. Schwartz, Clinical Law Professor at the Iowa College of Law, Iowa City, IA, and two student interns in the University of Iowa College of Law, Legal Services Clinic, Linda Kobliska and Michael Glackin, for plaintiff Sisneros.
Kristin W. Ensign, Asst. Atty. Gen., Des Moines, IA, and by a law student intern, Patrick Waldron, for defendants.
AMENDED AND SUBSTITUTED MEMORANDUM OPINION AND ORDER ON LIABILITY AND QUALIFIED IMMUNITY AND ORDER ON REMEDIES
Given the crescendo of public uproar over frivolous prisoner litigation clogging the federal courts, this case is an important reminder that however fortissimo the public clamor, the court must always listen for a solo voice with a legitimate complaint of a constitutional violation. This is such a case. Plaintiff Alfonso R. Sisneros is a former inmate at the Iowa State Penitentiary ("ISP"), at Fort Madison, Iowa, who is currently incarcerated in Arizona. Sisneros was transferred from Arizona to Iowa in January of 1991 pursuant to the Interstate Corrections Compact ("ICC"), Iowa Code § 913 (1993). Sisneros claims that while at ISP, his First and Fourteenth Amendment rights were violated by Defendants Crispus C. Nix, ISP's former warden, and Paul Hedgepeth, Deputy Warden of Programs, when Sisneros was prohibited from sending or receiving mail written in a language other than English (the "English-only" rule). Sisneros speaks English, Spanish, and Apache, but has relatives living in Arizona and Texas who cannot communicate in English. Sisneros also asserts that he was impermissibly transferred from ISP back to the Arizona correctional system in February 1992 in retaliation for exercising his constitutional right to pursue inmate grievances and file suit against ISP officials.
On April 7, 1994, this court entered a Memorandum Opinion And Order On Liability And Qualified Immunity, an amended version of which follows. Following the filing of that order, the court held a hearing on the issue of proper relief or remedies on July 8, 1994. Thus, in addition to amending the prior opinion on liability and qualified immunity, the present order determines what remedies shall be afforded Sisneros for the violation of his constitutional rights as the result of his retaliatory transfer back to Arizona. This part of the order requires the court to grapple with the question of its power to impose remedial actions upon a guilty defendant who nonetheless is no longer in control of the wronged person. Thus, the court must consider the extent to which its orders for remedial action can and should be honored by nonparties to the present action, but who, quite literally, hold the keys to vindication of the inmate's rights.
Sisneros filed this 42 U.S.C. § 1983 action on September 12, 1991. Sisneros has been represented throughout this action by the University of Iowa College of Law Legal Clinic. On June 25, 1993, the parties filed a consent pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 636(c) to proceed before me while I was a United States magistrate judge.1
Sisneros and the Defendant prison officials have both moved for summary judgment pursuant to Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 56. Sisneros seeks a declaratory judgment, declaring the prison's English-only policy violates the First and Fourteenth Amendments of the U.S. Constitution. Sisneros requests that the court order injunctive relief prohibiting the defendants from continuing to violate his constitutional rights and requiring the defendants to modify the English-only policy.
Regarding his transfer back to the Arizona Department of Corrections, Sisneros seeks a declaratory judgment that this action violated his First Amendment right to petition the courts. He also requests injunctive relief ordering the defendants to expedite his return to ISP and restraining the defendants from further violations of his First Amendment right to petition the court. Sisneros seeks actual damages, exemplary damages, and reasonable attorney fees on both claims. Defendants argue that Sisneros has failed to state a claim upon which relief can be granted, that none of the defendants' acts violated Sisneros' constitutional rights, and that the defendants are entitled to qualified immunity. Finally, the defendants argue that even if they violated Sisneros' rights by transferring him back to Arizona in retaliation for his engaging of protected activities, they did not cause any of the damages of which he complains.
Before addressing the merits of Sisneros' assertions that the English-only policy is unconstitutional and that he was impermissibly transferred to Arizona in retaliation for exercising his First Amendment rights, the court will address the appropriate standard for summary judgment under Rule 56.
The Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals recognizes "that summary judgment is a drastic remedy and must be exercised with extreme care to prevent taking genuine issues of fact away from juries." Wabun-Inini v. Sessions, 900 F.2d 1234, 1238 (8th Cir.1990). On the other hand, the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure have authorized for nearly 60 years "motions for summary judgment upon proper showings of the lack of a genuine, triable issue of material fact." Celotex Corp. v. Catrett, 477 U.S. 317, 327, 106 S.Ct. 2548, 2555, 91 L.Ed.2d 265 (1986). Thus, "summary judgment procedure is properly regarded not as a disfavored procedural shortcut, but rather as an integral part of the Federal Rules as a whole, which are designed `to secure the just, speedy and inexpensive determination of every action.'" Wabun-Inini, 900 F.2d at 1238 (quoting Celotex Corp. v. Catrett, 477 U.S. 317, 327, 106 S.Ct. 2548, 2554, 91 L.Ed.2d 265 (1986)); Hartnagel v. Norman, 953 F.2d 394, 396 (8th Cir. 1992).
The standard for granting summary judgment is well established. Rule 56 of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure states in pertinent part:
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