Thomas v. City of Clanton, CIV.A.02-T-621-N.

• Decision Date: 23 September 2003
• Docket Number: No. CIV.A.02-T-621-N.,CIV.A.02-T-621-N.
• Citation: 285 F.Supp.2d 1275
• Parties: Philip Dale THOMAS, Jr., Plaintiff, v. CITY OF CLANTON, et al., Defendants.
• Court: U.S. District Court — Middle District of Alabama

285 F.Supp.2d 1275

Philip Dale THOMAS, Jr., Plaintiff, v. CITY OF CLANTON, et al., Defendants.

No. CIV.A.02-T-621-N.

United States District Court, M.D. Alabama, Northern Division.

September 23, 2003.

COPYRIGHT MATERIAL OMITTED

Andrew Clay Allen, Richard P. Rouco, Glen M. Connor, Whatley Drake, LLC, Birmingham, AL, for Phillip W. Thomas, as next friend of Phillip Dale Thomas, Jr., a minor, Phillip Dale Thomas, Jr., plaintiffs.

James W. Porter, II, Benjamin S. Goldman, Porter, Porter & Hassinger, Birmingham, AL, J. Haran Lowe, Jr., Alabama Department of Public Safety, Legal Unit, Montgomery, AL, William R. Hill, Jr., William R. Hill, Jr. PC, Clanton, AL, for City of Clanton, Scott Williams, Officer, James Henderson, Chief, defendants.

OPINION

MYRON L. THOMPSON, District Judge.

Plaintiff Philip Dale Thomas, Jr., brings this lawsuit against defendants City of Clanton, Alabama, Chief of Police James Henderson, and former Police Officer Scott Williams, alleging violations of his fourth-amendment right to be free from unreasonable searches and seizures, and his fourteenth-amendment right to bodily integrity. Thomas seeks enforcement of these rights pursuant to 42 U.S.C.A. § 1983.¹ Jurisdiction is proper under 28 U.S.C.A. § 1343(a)(4) (civil rights). This cause is now before the court on the city and Chief Henderson's motion for summary judgment.

I. STANDARD FOR MOTION FOR SUMMARY JUDGMENT

The City of Clanton and Chief Henderson move for summary judgment pursuant to Rule 56(c) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure. Rule 56(c) provides that summary judgment is appropriate where "there is no genuine issue as to any material fact and ... the moving party is entitled to a judgment as a matter of law." Once the party seeking summary judgment has informed the court of the basis for its motion, the burden shifts to the non-moving party to demonstrate why summary judgment would be inappropriate. Celotex Corp. v. Catrett, 477 U.S. 317, 323, 106 S.Ct. 2548, 2553, 91 L.Ed.2d 265 (1986); see also Fitzpatrick v. City of Atlanta, 2 F.3d 1112, 1115-17 (11th Cir.1993) (discussing how the responsibilities on the movant and the nonmovant vary depending on whether the legal issues, as to which the facts in question pertain, are ones on which the movant or nonmovant bears the burden of proof at trial). In making its determination, the court must view all evidence and any factual inferences in the light most favorable to the nonmoving party. Matsushita Elec. Indus. Co. v. Zenith Radio Corp., 475 U.S. 574, 587, 106 S.Ct. 1348, 1356, 89 L.Ed.2d 538 (1986).

II. FACTUAL BACKGROUND

The facts, taken in the light most favorable to Thomas, are as follows. On June 16, 2001, Thomas, who was 17 years old at the time, was a passenger in a car driven by J.D. Owens. The car was stopped by Clanton police officers and, upon being asked for identification, Owens fled. The police officers searched the car and found a bag of marijuana under the driver's seat. Owens's wife stated that the marijuana belonged to Owens, and not to Thomas.

Clanton Police Officer Williams arrived at the scene after the vehicle was stopped and volunteered to take Thomas to the police station, to which Thomas was then transported in handcuffs.

While at the station, without arresting, fingerprinting, or otherwise processing Thomas, Williams began questioning him about Owens. During the interview, Williams took Thomas to the men's bathroom and strip searched him. He ordered Thomas to take off all his clothes, bend over, and grab his ankles.

After the interview, under the pretense of looking for Owens, Williams took Thomas to Thomas's parents' home, where Thomas resides. Finding Thomas's parents asleep, Williams insisted Thomas return to his police car, and proceeded to drive around several subdivisions. Williams then took Thomas to Williams's home. There, Williams began to pour himself alcoholic drinks and offered drinks to Thomas, a minor at the time. Williams ignored Thomas's repeated requests to return to the police station so that he might call his parents.

After several drinks, Williams asked Thomas if he had ever performed oral sex on a man and proceeded to discuss such acts. At this point, Thomas became alarmed, and, when Williams left to go to another room, Thomas kicked open a back door and fled Williams's home. Williams chased Thomas and tackled and handcuffed him. He then took Thomas home, requested that Thomas not to tell anyone what had happened, and asked Thomas to call him later.

Thomas told his parents what happened, and his father confronted Williams and asked why his son was at Williams's house at 5:00 a.m. Williams apologized and admitted he had "a problem." Thomas's father also claims to have called Chief Henderson's office twice, within two weeks of the incident, leaving messages with an unidentified employee to the effect that he needed to speak with Henderson regarding Williams. Thomas's mother reported the incident to County Sheriff Fulmer, and Sheriff Fulmer told Lieutenant Foshee that Thomas had stated that Williams had sexually assaulted him. Despite Sheriff Fulmer's declaration that he reported the complaint on behalf of Thomas during October 2001,² defendants contend that Thomas did not report the incident until January 16, 2002.³

Thomas also alleges that the police department had record of a complaint against Williams by an individual named Nahum Romero Leal, for sexual misconduct while on duty. This complaint was lodged approximately eleven months prior to the incident at issue in this case.⁴ Sargent Elijah Bearden filed the report on Romero's complaint. The complaint stated that Williams transported Romero to an area behind some old buildings, ordered Romero out of his car, and told him to put his hands on top of the car and face the wall. Romero states that when he turned around, Williams was holding his penis in his hand.⁵ Romero also claims that Williams tried to reach inside his pants before taking him behind the building.⁶ Chief Henderson told one of his lieutenants to investigate Romero's complaint, but the lieutenant was unable to locate Romero. Henderson also reviewed Williams's file and talked with other officers to see if they had any additional information about complaints against Williams.⁷

Approximately seven months after the incident with Thomas, a third complaint was filed against Officer Williams by Benjamin Gomez, who accused Williams of sexually assaulting him. When Williams was questioned about the incident, he admitted to having sex with Gomez while on duty. Williams was fired on January 14, 2002, after the Alabama Bureau of Investigation substantiated Gomez's complaint.

III. 42 U.S.C.A. § 1983

Thomas claims that the defendants violated his federal constitutional rights. Specifically, Thomas claims that (1) he was deprived of liberty without due process of law in violation of the fourteenth amendment; and (2) he was subjected to unreasonable searches and seizure of his person in violation of the fourth amendment.⁸ Thomas argues that Chief Henderson and City of Clanton are liable for these underlying constitutional deprivations because they exhibited deliberate indifference to the risk posed by Officer Williams by failing to: (1) supervise him properly, (2) investigate complaints of his misconduct, (3) enforce or implement restrictions on strip searches, (4) train police officers properly regarding strip searches, and (5) protect detainees from exploitation or abuse once under custody.⁹

Chief Henderson and the city argue that Thomas did not suffer a constitutional deprivation, that a municipality cannot be held liable under 42 U.S.C.A. § 1983 under the theory of respondeat superior, and that Thomas failed to produce substantial evidence that they were deliberately indifferent to the risk posed to Thomas by Williams.¹⁰ Furthermore, Chief Henderson claims that he is entitled to qualified immunity.¹¹

A. Underlying Constitutional Violations

In order to determine whether the City of Clanton may be held liable, "proper analysis requires [the Court] to separate two different issues when a § 1983 claim is asserted against a municipality: (1) whether plaintiff's harm was caused by a constitutional violation; and (2) if so, whether the city is responsible for that violation." Collins v. City of Harker Heights, Texas, 503 U.S. 115, 120, 112 S.Ct. 1061, 1066, 117 L.Ed.2d 261 (1992). Similarly, the liability of Chief Henderson in his individual capacity, under a theory of supervisory liability, must be predicated upon a finding of an underlying constitutional violation. Cottone v. Jenne, 326 F.3d 1352, 1360 (11th Cir.2003). Therefore, it is initially necessary to define with some precision Thomas's underlying constitutional claims.

(1) Substantive-Due-Process Claim

Thomas alleges that his rights under the fourteenth amendment were violated because "an allegation of sexual assault by a police officer [is an] alleged ... violation of the Constitution's substantive due process clause."¹² Chief Henderson and the city counter that, while Williams's acts were illegal under Alabama law, the allegation does not constitute a constitutional violation.

There is a right to be free from sexually motivated assaults. As several courts in the Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals have recognized, substantive due process under the fourteenth amendment includes a right to bodily integrity. See, e.g., Romero v. City of Clanton, 220 F.Supp.2d 1313, 1316 (M.D.Ala.2002); Johnson v. Cannon, 947 F.Supp. 1567, 1572-73 (M.D.Fla.1996); Battista v. Cannon, 934 F.Supp. 400, 404 (M.D.Fla.1996). Furthermore, such a reading is consistent with the Supreme Court's holding in United States v. Lanier, 520 U.S. 259, 272 n. 7, 117 S.Ct. 1219, 1228 n. 7, 137 L.Ed.2d 432 (1997) (rejecting argument that there is no constitutional right to be free from assault by state officials outside of a custodial setting and that all constitutional claims relating to...