Sweatman v. Giles

• Decision Date: 19 April 2013
• Docket Number: 2120203.
• Parties: Jason Ray SWEATMAN v. J.C. GILES and Daniel B. Rieben.
• Court: Alabama Court of Civil Appeals

161 So.3d 212

Jason Ray SWEATMAN

v.J.C. GILES and Daniel B. Rieben.

2120203.

Court of Civil Appeals of Alabama.

April 19, 2013.

Jason Ray Sweatman, pro se.

Luther Strange, atty. gen., and Benjamin H. Albritton, asst. atty. gen., for appellees.

Opinion

PER CURIAM.

Jason Ray Sweatman, an inmate at Ventress Correctional Facility (“the prison”), appeals from a judgment dismissing his civil action against the warden of the prison, J.C. Giles, and the chaplain of the prison, Daniel B. Rieben.

Sweatman filed a complaint against Giles and Rieben, both individually and in their official capacities, pursuant to 42 U.S.C. § 1983. In the complaint, Sweatman alleged that Giles had violated his Eighth Amendment rights by failing to enforce the prison's no-smoking policy. Specifically, Sweatman asserted that Giles “acted with deliberate indifference” by failing to enforce the prison's no-smoking policy inside the prison facility. Giles's conduct, Sweatman alleged, resulted in his near-constant exposure to secondhand tobacco smoke, also known as environmental tobacco smoke (“ETS”), “causing him nausea and his eyes to burn and also causing [him] to have difficulty breathing.” In the complaint, Sweatman also alleged that exposure to secondhand smoke “has been proven by medical science to cause adverse health effects including but not limited to cancer

, heart disease, and etc.”

Sweatman asserted that Rieben had violated his First Amendment rights. Sweatman alleged that Rieben “governed” the prison's “honor dorm,” where, he said, the prison's no-smoking policy was “halfway” enforced.¹ Sweatman further alleged that any inmate residing in the honor dorm was required to attend at least one religious service a month. Such a requirement, Sweatman alleged, violated his rights under the Free Exercise Clause of the First Amendment.

As relief, Sweatman sought an injunction ordering Giles and Rieben, among other things, to provide a nonsmoking dorm without imposing “religious requirements”; to provide designated smoking areas for both inmates and correctional officers; to prohibit smoking near the health-care unit, the “chow line,” and the “pill line”; and to strictly enforce the prison's no-smoking policy. He also sought monetary damages.

Giles and Rieben filed a motion to dismiss Sweatman's complaint or, alternatively, for a summary judgment. In their motion, they asserted that Sweatman had failed to state a claim upon which relief could be granted, and they claimed that they were entitled to various forms of immunity. No evidentiary submission was filed in support of their motion.

On November 25, 2012, the Barbour Circuit Court (“the trial court”) dismissed the action “pursuant to Rule 12(b) [, Ala. R. Civ. P.].” Sweatman appealed the judgment to the Alabama Supreme Court, which transferred the appeal to this court, pursuant to § 12–2–7(6), Ala.Code 1976.

In his brief to this court, Sweatman contends that the trial court improperly dismissed the action on the ground of immunity. As mentioned, in his complaint Sweatman asserted claims against Giles and Rieben in both their official and their individual capacities, pursuant to 42 U.S.C. § 1983. That statute provides, in pertinent part:

“Every person who, under color of any statute, ordinance, regulation, custom, or usage, of any State or Territory or the District of Columbia, subjects, or causes to be subjected, any citizen of the United States or other person within the jurisdiction thereof to the deprivation of any rights, privileges, or immunities secured by the Constitution and laws, shall be liable to the party injured in any action at law, suit in equity, or other proper proceeding for redress....”

Giles and Rieben asserted in their motion to dismiss, and assert in their brief on appeal, that, as state employees, they are entitled to sovereign immunity. Although they did not explicitly assert qualified immunity, we discuss its application in this case out of an abundance of caution. In Watkins v. Mitchem, 50 So.3d 485 (Ala.Civ.App.2010), this court addressed the application of sovereign immunity and qualified immunity to state employees in the context of § 1983 actions, stating:

“In the defendants' answer, they stated: ‘The defendants named in their official capacity plead the affirmative defense of sovereign immunity.’ Sovereign immunity, arising pursuant to the Alabama Constitution of 1901, § 14, provides no protection to the defendants because ‘[s]ection 14 immunity has no applicability to federal-law claims.’ Bedsole v. Clark, 33 So.3d 9, 13 (Ala.Civ.App.2009) (rejecting defendants' argument that they were entitled to a summary judgment on plaintiff's 42 U.S.C. § 1983 claim on the basis of sovereign immunity). See also Ex parte Russell, 31 So.3d 694, 696 (Ala.Civ.App.2009) (actions seeking a declaratory judgment or actions seeking to enjoin state officials from enforcing an unconstitutional law are not subject to sovereign immunity). But see Will [v. Michigan Department of State Police, 491 U.S. 58 (1989) ] (recognizing that governmental officials and governmental employees are subject to suit in § 1983 actions for prospective injunctive relief); and Griswold [v. Alabama Dep't of Indus. Relations, 903 F.Supp. 1492, 1500 n. 7 (M.D.Ala.1995) ] (same). Because Watkins's complaint asserted only federal-law claims, the trial court could not have properly granted the individual defendants, named in their official capacities, a judgment on the pleadings on the basis of sovereign immunity. To the extent Watkins sought monetary damages against the individual defendants in their official capacities, however, the trial court's judgment in favor of the individual defendants is affirmed because claims for such relief are barred under § 1983. See Will, supra; and Griswold, supra.

“The individual defendants also asserted in their answer: ‘The defendants named in their individual capacity plead the affirmative defense of qualified immunity.’ Qualified immunity applies only to governmental officials and governmental employees sued in their individual capacities. See Flood v. State of Alabama Dep't of Indus. Relations, 948 F.Supp. 1535, 1547 (M.D.Ala.1996) (discussing application of qualified immunity). In Ex parte Madison County Board of Education, 1 So.3d 980 (Ala.2008), our supreme court stated:

“ ‘ “ ‘Qualified immunity is designed to allow government officials to avoid the expense and disruption of going to trial, and is not merely a defense to liability.’ Hardy v. Town of Hayneville, 50 F.Supp.2d 1176, 1189 (M.D.Ala.1999). ‘An official is entitled to qualified immunity if he is performing discretionary functions and his actions do “ ‘not violate clearly established statutory or constitutional rights of which a reasonable person would have known.’ ” ' Hardy, 50 F.Supp.2d at 1189 (quoting Lancaster v. Monroe County, 116 F.3d 1419, 1424 (11th Cir.1997) ).” '“Ex parte Madison County Bd. of Educ., 1 So.3d at 990 (quoting Ex parte Alabama Dep't of Youth Servs., 880 So.2d 393, 402 (Ala.2003) ).

“In Hardy v. Town of Hayneville, 50 F.Supp.2d 1176 (M.D.Ala.1999), an inmate brought claims, pursuant to 42 U.S.C. § 1983, against an arresting police officer, the chief of police, the mayor, and the Town of Hayneville. Upon consideration of the defendants' motion to dismiss the inmate's claims, the United States District Court for the Middle District of Alabama discussed at length the law applicable to the affirmative defense of qualified immunity. The court stated:

“ ‘[The] Defendants ... have asserted the defense of qualified immunity in a Rule 12(b)(6) motion to dismiss, and they are entitled to qualified immunity at this stage in the proceedings if the Plaintiffs[’] complaint fails to allege a violation of a clearly established constitutional right. Santamorena v. Georgia Military College, 147 F.3d 1337, 1340 (11th Cir.1998). To overcome this immunity, a plaintiff has the burden of “pointing to case law which predates the official's alleged improper conduct, involves materially similar facts, and truly compels the conclusion that the plaintiff had a right under federal law.” Id. When considering whether the law applicable to certain facts is clearly established, the facts of the case need not be the same, but must be materially similar. Id. at 1339. Only in exceptional cases are the words of a federal statute or constitutional provision specific enough, or the general constitutional rule already identified in decisional law so clearly applicable, so that specific case law is not required. See id. at 1339 n. 6. “If case law, in factual terms, has not staked out a bright line, qualified immunity almost always protects the defendant.” Lassiter v. Alabama A & M Univ., Bd. of Trustees, 28 F.3d 1146, 1150 (11th Cir.1994) (internal quotations and citations omitted).'

“50 F.Supp.2d at 1189–90. Because in response to the individual defendants' motions to dismiss the inmate in Hardy failed to provide the necessary caselaw, the district court granted the motions to dismiss as to the defendants sued in their individual capacities. Id. at 1190.

“Upon consideration of the claims asserted in Watkins's complaint and the defenses asserted in the defendants' answer, the trial court entered a judgment in favor of the defendants. Because the trial court considered only those two pleadings, the trial court could not have possibly considered any response filed by Watkins to the defendants' claim of qualified immunity. Thus, the trial court has not afforded Watkins the opportunity to rebut the defendants' claim that they were entitled to qualified immunity. To the extent the trial court entered a judgment in favor of the individual defendants on the basis of that affirmative defense, that judgment was prematurely entered.”

Watkins, 50 So.3d at 490–91.

As was the case in Watkins, Sweatman's complaint asserted only federal-law claims; therefore, the trial court could not have properly dismissed the claims against Giles and Rieben, named in their...