Teagan v. City of McDonough

• Decision Date: 11 February 2020
• Docket Number: No. 18-11060,18-11060
• Parties: Ziahonna TEAGAN, Plaintiff-appellant, v. The CITY OF MCDONOUGH, Georgia, Defendant-appellee.
• Court: U.S. Court of Appeals — Eleventh Circuit

949 F.3d 670

Ziahonna TEAGAN, Plaintiff-appellant,

v.The CITY OF MCDONOUGH, Georgia, Defendant-appellee.

No. 18-11060

United States Court of Appeals, Eleventh Circuit.

February 11, 2020

Robert B. Remar, Rachel M. Bishop, Austin J. Hemmer, Rogers & Hardin, LLP, ATLANTA, GA, Sean J. Young, ATLANTA, GA, for Plaintiff - Appellant.

Harvey S. Gray, Matthew A. Ericksen, Gray Rust St. Amand Moffett & Brieske, LLP, Dianna J. Lee, Stewart Trial Attorneys, ATLANTA, GA, for Defendant - Appellee.

James Richard Westbury, Jr., Matthew Herbert Bennett, Bennett Law Office, LLC, GRIFFIN, GA, for Amicus Curiae GEORGIA MUNICIPAL ASSOCIATION, INC.

Before JORDAN, TJOFLAT and ANDERSON, Circuit Judges.

PER CURIAM:

Ziahonna Teagan sued the City of McDonough, Georgia, for claims related to her misdemeanor proceedings in municipal court for failure to maintain automobile liability insurance as required by Georgia law. She asserted federal claims under 42 U.S.C. § 1983 for violations of her Fourth, Sixth, and Fourteenth Amendment rights, and a state-law claim under Georgia law for false imprisonment. The district court granted summary judgment in favor of the City, ruling that the actions of the municipal court could not be attributed to the City so as to impose § 1983 municipal liability under Monell v. Department of Social Services , 436 U.S. 658, 98 S.Ct. 2018, 56 L.Ed.2d 611 (1978), and its progeny.

We affirm the district court’s grant of summary judgment on Ms. Teagan’s § 1983 claims. The McDonough municipal court was exercising its judicial power under Georgia law to adjudicate a state-law offense—and not a violation of a city or county ordinance—and therefore was not acting on behalf of the City when it took the actions that Ms. Teagan complains of.

But we do not affirm the final judgment in favor of the City. The district court did not address Ms. Teagan’s separate state-law claim for false imprisonment, so we remand for further proceedings on that claim.

I

This case is primarily about federal law, specifically the principles for imposing municipal liability under § 1983 pursuant to Monell . Yet, as we have explained a number of times, whether an individual or entity acts on behalf of a municipality or the state generally turns on an analysis of state law. See, e.g., Owens v. Fulton Cty. , 877 F.2d 947, 950 (11th Cir. 1989). So before we get to the facts, we set out a bit of background on municipal courts in Georgia to provide context for Ms. Teagan’s claims.

Municipal courts in Georgia are generally creatures of local government. See Ga. Code Ann. § 36-32-1(a). But municipal courts also have jurisdiction to adjudicate state-law misdemeanor traffic offenses pursuant to Georgia Code § 40-13-21(a) - (b) if the defendant waives his or her right to a jury trial. See Kolker v. State , 260 Ga. 240, 391 S.E.2d 391, 393–94 (1990) (holding that Article VI, § 1, ¶ 1 of the Georgia Constitution "authorizes the General Assembly to vest municipal courts with jurisdiction over state misdemeanor offenses"). As the Georgia Supreme Court has explained: "The [Georgia] General Assembly’s exercise of its constitutional authority to enact legislation vesting municipal courts with jurisdiction over various state misdemeanor offenses ... imbues the municipal court with limited state judicial power when it tries a defendant for violation of the state misdemeanors the General Assembly has placed within its jurisdiction." Nguyen v. State , 282 Ga. 483, 651 S.E.2d 681, 684 (2007), overruled on other grounds by Brown v. Crawford , 289 Ga. 722, 715 S.E.2d 132 (2011).

In Georgia, the failure to maintain automobile liability insurance constitutes a state-law misdemeanor. That offense is punishable by a fine of between $200 and $1,000 and/or a term of imprisonment of up to 12 months. See Ga. Code Ann. § 40-6-10(a)(4).

A

On November 7, 2013, an officer cited Ms. Teagan for failure to maintain automobile liability insurance, which as noted is a misdemeanor under Georgia law. Approximately six weeks later, she appeared before a judge in the McDonough municipal court for arraignment.

Ms. Teagan was one of several defendants present in the courtroom for arraignment that day. The judge collectively read to the entire group a statement advising them of their constitutional rights, including the right to a jury trial, the right to counsel, and the right to request court-appointed counsel. The judge further advised that anyone who did not understand could request clarification. He did not, however, conduct an individual colloquy with Ms. Teagan regarding her rights. Nor did she waive those rights, orally or in writing, at the arraignment.

When her case was called, Ms. Teagan pleaded not guilty and orally advised the judge that she wanted a bench trial. She also requested a continuance of her trial, informing the court clerk that the continuance would allow her sufficient time to obtain an attorney.

On March 19, 2014, Ms. Teagan appeared at her bench trial before Donald Patten, the Chief Judge of the McDonough municipal court. She was not represented by counsel. Just before the trial commenced, the bailiff instructed her to initial and sign a form titled "Jury Trial Waiver." This form purported to waive her right to a jury trial as well as her right to counsel. Chief Judge Patten also signed the form, attesting that Ms. Teagan had knowingly and willingly waived her right to a jury trial. But he conducted no additional inquiry of Ms. Teagan regarding her understanding of the form or the voluntariness of her waivers.

Proceeding pro se , Ms. Teagan cross-examined the officer who issued the citation and who had testified for the state. She also testified on her own behalf, conceding that she had been driving without insurance. Chief Judge Patten found her guilty of driving without insurance and imposed a fine of $745, as well as a $50 penalty for being late to court.

Ms. Teagan informed Chief Judge Patten that she was unable to pay the fine that day, but that she would be able to do so by the following Friday—March 28, 2014. Chief Judge Patten then sentenced her to 60 days in jail, suspended on the condition that she pay the $795 fine by March 28.

B

On March 24, Ms. Teagan—again proceeding pro se —filed a "Motion for Stay Pending Appeal" with the municipal court, requesting the court to "grant a Stay of [the] Court’s Order dated March 14, 2014 pending appellate review[.]" Chief Judge Patten reviewed the filing and determined that it was not in the proper form to serve as a valid motion for appeal, but took no action beyond instructing the deputy clerk to place it in Ms. Teagan’s court file. No one at the municipal court notified Ms. Teagan that her motion had effectively been denied.

When Ms. Teagan was unable to pay the $795 fine by March 28, the municipal court clerk prepared an application for an arrest warrant. Chief Judge Patten then executed and issued the warrant at the same time, imposing an additional $100 "contempt charge."

Pursuant to the warrant, a deputy from the Henry County Sheriff’s Office arrested Ms. Teagan at her home on May 18, 2014, in front of her family and neighbors. She was taken directly to the Henry County Jail, where she was photographed, fingerprinted, and issued a jail uniform.

Under Georgia law, Ms. Teagan should have been taken before a municipal court judge "within 72 hours" of her arrest. See Ga. Code Ann. § 17-4-26 ; Ga. Unif. Mun. Ct. R. 20.1 (Dec. 2011); Tidwell v. Paxton , 282 Ga. 641, 651 S.E.2d 714, 715 (2007). Yet she stayed in jail for 10 days—housed in a two-person cell with other inmates, including some awaiting trial on felony charges—until she was again brought before Chief Judge Patten on May 28, 2014.¹

At her appearance on May 28, Chief Judge Patten explained to Ms. Teagan—who was again without counsel—that she had been incarcerated for her failure to pay her fine by the agreed-upon March 28 deadline, and that she was therefore subject to the previously suspended 60-day jail sentence. Chief Judge Patten did not inquire into why Ms. Teagan had failed to pay the fine or whether she had the ability to pay it. At the conclusion of the appearance, Chief Judge Patten ordered Ms. Teagan to be returned to the Henry County Jail to serve the remainder of her 60-day sentence.²

The following day, Ms. Teagan’s brother wrote a check to the Henry County Sheriff for $895 to pay for Ms. Teagan’s initial fine and the $100 "contempt charge." To be able to satisfy the fine, her brother drew from the government benefits of Ms. Teagan’s daughter, his own government benefits, and their rent money. The Sheriff transferred the money to the City, and Ms. Teagan was released on May 30, 2014.

C

In early 2015, Ms. Teagan sued the City of McDonough in federal court. In her operative complaint, she asserted federal claims under § 1983 for violations of her Fourth, Sixth, and Fourteenth Amendment rights, and a state-law claim for false imprisonment. Specifically, she alleged that the McDonough municipal court (1) violated her Due Process and Equal Protection rights by imprisoning her without determining the willfulness of her failure to pay or her ability to pay; (2) ran afoul of the Sixth Amendment by failing to secure a proper, individual waiver of counsel from her and by failing to appoint counsel; (3) violated the Fourth Amendment by executing and issuing an invalid arrest warrant unsupported by probable cause; (4) failed to conduct a preliminary revocation hearing to determine whether she had failed to comply with a condition of her suspended sentence; (5) failed to bring her before a judicial officer within 72 hours of her arrest and incarceration, as required by Georgia law; and (6) falsely imprisoned her in violation of Georgia Code § 51-7-20.

Both parties moved for summary judgment, which the district court granted in favor of the City. The district court ruled that all of the actions alleged in Ms. Teagan’s complaint were taken by the McDonough municipal court...