Thornhill v. Breazeale, No. Civ.A. 2:99-CV-35PG.

• Decision Date: 10 February 2000
• Docket Number: No. Civ.A. 2:99-CV-35PG.
• Citation: 88 F.Supp.2d 647
• Parties: Michael Bruce THORNHILL, et. al., Plaintiffs, v. Marvin E. BREAZEALE, et. al., Defendants.
• Court: U.S. District Court — Southern District of Mississippi

Page 647

88 F.Supp.2d 647

Michael Bruce THORNHILL, et. al., Plaintiffs, v. Marvin E. BREAZEALE, et. al., Defendants.

No. Civ.A. 2:99-CV-35PG.

United States District Court, S.D. Mississippi, Hattiesburg Division.

February 10, 2000.

J. Andrew Phelps, J. Andrew Phelps, Attorney, Hattiesburg, MS, Mark Randall Holmes, Robison & Harbour, McComb, MS, John D. Smallwood, Glenn L. White, Holmes & White, PLLC, Petal, MS, Searcy L. Simpson, Jr., Searcy L. Simpson, Jr., Attorney, Dallas, TX, Gerald F. Meek, the Law Offices of Skip Simpson, P.C., Dallas, TX, for Michael Bruce Thornhill, Individually and on Behalf of All Wrongful Death Beneficiaries of William Bruce Thornhill, plaintiff.

John (Jack) W. Land, Sandra Schuffert Mohler, Bryan, Nelson, Randolph and Weathers, Hattiesburg, MS, W.J. Gamble, III, W.J. Gamble III, Attorney, Purvis, MS, for Marvin E. Breazeale, Individually and in His Official Capacity as Sheriff of Lamar County, MS, defendant.

W.J. Gamble, III, W.J. Gamble II, Purvis, MS, for Lamar County, Mississippi, U.S. Fidelity & Guar. Ins. Co., defendants.

MEMORANDUM OPINION AND ORDER

PICKERING, District Judge.

Before the Court is Defendants' Motions for Summary Judgment. Having considered this motion, the responses, the briefs of counsel, the cited authorities and applicable law, this Court finds as follows:

FACTUAL BACKGROUND

This cause of action arises from the events surrounding the suicide of William Thornhill, a pre-trial detainee in the custody of the Sheriff's Department of Lamar County, Mississippi. As this cause of action presents constitutional questions, this Court has jurisdiction over this matter. 28 U.S.C. § 1331. Plaintiffs have brought this action, alleging constitutional violations and negligence, against Sheriff Marvin Breazeale, Deputy Theresa Perry, and an unnamed Deputy in their individual and official capacities, as well as Lamar County, Mississippi and its insurer. Defendants have filed the instant motion addressing the sufficiency of Plaintiffs' constitutional claims and qualified immunity. The parties have conducted discovery limited to the qualified immunity issue. Since this is a motion for summary judgment, this Court views the disputed facts in a light most favorable to Plaintiffs.

On November 20, 1997, Mr. Thornhill was detained in the Lamar County jail to await trial on charges of raping his estranged wife. Sheriff Breazeale knew Mr. Thornhill and was aware of his troubled mental history. Sheriff Breazeale was also aware that Mr. Thornhill threatened suicide on two prior occasions. Sheriff Breazeale told Deputy Perry of Mr. Thornhill's suicidal tendencies. Accordingly, the Sheriff placed Mr. Thornhill in the Lamar County Jail's mental holding cell where he was isolated from other inmates. Mr. Thornhill was also placed on suicide watch. According to an unwritten policy, a detainee under suicide watch is to be checked approximately every fifteen minutes. Items with which Mr. Thornhill could injure himself, such as his shoes and belt, were taken from him. His shoes were placed near a television out of reach from the mental holding cell. Mr. Thornhill received visitors and talked with the jail staff without incident for the next three days. Mr. Thornhill was never referred to a mental health professional.

On or before November 24, 1997, Mr. Thornhill was moved from the mental holding cell to a juvenile cell in the same section of the jail. The juvenile cell was equipped with a toilet and a shower including a non-break away shower rod. Sheriff Breazeale moved Mr. Thornhill to the juvenile cell so that Mr. Thornhill could take a shower and be more comfortable. He continued to be on suicide watch. Deposition testimony indicates that both Sheriff Breazeale and Deputy Perry knew that a person under suicide watch was not to be provided with any item with which the detainee could injure himself. On the morning of November 24, 1997, Deputy Perry gave Mr. Thornhill his shoes and allowed him to leave his cell to exercise and watch television. Deputy Perry returned Mr. Thornhill to his cell but forgot to remove his shoes. Later that day, Mr. Thornhill hung himself with his shoelaces from the non-break away shower rod in the juvenile cell. According to deposition testimony, Mr. Thornhill was observed alive approximately ten minutes before he was discovered hanging in his cell.

After Mr. Thornhill was found hanging, it took a period of time for the jailers to open the cell. This period of time is in dispute but is presumably several minutes. Mr. Thornhill was cut down and checked for vital signs. Since no vital signs were found, no one present attempted to resuscitate him. The paramedics were called and arrived a short time later. They also found no vital signs. Through discovery limited to the qualified immunity issue, Plaintiffs note that the Lamar County Jail had no written policies in place for the detection and prevention of suicide nor any policies relating to the administration of CPR to detainees who attempted suicide.

SUMMARY JUDGMENT

Rule 56(c) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure provides for summary judgment if "the pleadings, depositions, answers to interrogatories and admissions on file, together with affidavits, if any, show that there is no genuine dispute as to any material fact and that the moving party is entitled to judgment as a matter of law." Celotex Corporation v. Catrett, 477 U.S. 317, 322, 106 S.Ct. 2548, 91 L.Ed.2d 265 (1986). The existence of a material question of fact is itself a question of law that the district court must consider before granting summary judgment. John v. State of La. (Bd. of T. for State Colleges & U.), 757 F.2d 698, 712 (5th Cir.1985).

At the summary judgment stage, this Court is not to weigh evidence and resolve issues of fact, but instead must determine whether there is a genuine issue for trial. A genuine issue for trial exists if there is sufficient evidence to justify a jury verdict for the non-moving party. If the evidence is merely colorable, or is not significantly probative, summary judgment may be proper. Anderson v. Liberty Lobby, Inc., 477 U.S. 242, 106 S.Ct. 2505, 91 L.Ed.2d 202 (1986).

Although Rule 56 is peculiarly adapted to the disposition of legal questions, it is not limited to that role. Professional Managers, Inc. v. Fawer, Brian, Hardy & Zatzkis, 799 F.2d 218, 222 (5th Cir.1986). "The mere existence of a disputed factual issue, therefore, does not foreclose summary judgment. The dispute must be genuine, and the facts must be material." Id. "With regard to `materiality', only those disputes over facts that might affect the outcome of the lawsuit under the governing substantive law will preclude summary judgment." Phillips Oil Company v. OKC Corporation, 812 F.2d 265, 272 (5th Cir.1987). Where "the summary judgment evidence establishes that one of the essential elements of the plaintiff's cause of action does not exist as a matter of law, ... all other contested issues of fact are rendered immaterial." Topalian v. Ehrman, 954 F.2d 1125, 1138 (5th Cir. 1992) (citing Celotex, 477 U.S. at 323, 106 S.Ct at 2552, 106 S.Ct. 2548). In making its determinations of fact on a motion for summary judgment, the Court must view the evidence submitted by the parties in a light most favorable to the non-moving party. McPherson v. Rankin, 736 F.2d 175, 178 (5th Cir.1984).

In order to prevail, the moving party must demonstrate the lack of a genuine issue of material fact. Union Planters Nat. Leasing v. Woods, 687 F.2d 117 (5th Cir.1982). "Rule 56 contemplates a shifting burden: the nonmovant is under no obligation to respond unless the movant discharges [its] initial burden of demonstrating [entitlement to summary judgment]." John, 757 F.2d at 708. "Summary judgment cannot be supported solely on the ground that [plaintiff] failed to respond to defendants' motion for summary judgment," even in light of a Local Rule of the court mandating such for failure to respond to an opposed motion. Id. at 709.

Once a properly supported motion for summary judgment is presented, however, the nonmoving party must rebut with "significant probative" evidence. Ferguson v. National Broadcasting Co., Inc., 584 F.2d 111, 114 (5th Cir.1978). In other words, "the nonmoving litigant is required to bring forward `significant probative evidence' demonstrating the existence of a triable issue of fact." In Re Municipal Bond Reporting Antitrust Lit., 672 F.2d 436, 440 (5th Cir.1982). To defend against a proper summary judgment motion, one may not rely on mere denial of material facts nor on unsworn allegations in the pleadings or arguments and assertions in briefs or legal memoranda. The nonmoving party's response, by affidavit or otherwise, must set forth specific facts showing that there is a genuine issue for trial. Rule 56(e), Fed.R.Civ.P. See also, Union Planters Nat. Leasing v. Woods, 687 F.2d at 119.

While generally "[t]he burden to discover a genuine issue of fact is not on [the] court," (Topalian 954 F.2d at 1137), "Rule 56 does not distinguish between documents merely filed and those singled out by counsel for special attention-the court must consider both before granting summary judgment." John, 757 F.2d at 712, quoting Keiser v. Coliseum Properties, Inc., 614 F.2d 406, 410 (5th Cir.1980).

QUALIFIED IMMUNITY AND THE SUFFICIENCY OF PLAINTIFFS' COMPLAINT

Before exploring the contours of the qualified immunity doctrine, this Court must examine the substance of Plaintiffs' Section 1983 complaint. What the complaint asserts determines how this Court must proceed in its analysis. While Defendants' motions are couched in terms of qualified immunity, Defendants also assert that Plaintiffs' Section 1983 claim itself is insufficient as a matter of law. In other words, this Court has two issues before it — the sufficiency of Plaintiffs' Section 1983 claim and the issue of qualified immunity. While it is necessary to examine the law surrounding ...