Wilson v. Gregory

• Decision Date: 30 September 2020
• Docket Number: Case No. 1:17-cv-554
• Citation: 491 F.Supp.3d 299
• Parties: Sarah WILSON, Admin., Estate of Jack Huelsman, et al., Plaintiffs, v. Eric GREGORY, et al., Defendants.
• Court: U.S. District Court — Southern District of Ohio

491 F.Supp.3d 299

Sarah WILSON, Admin., Estate of Jack Huelsman, et al., Plaintiffs,

v.Eric GREGORY, et al., Defendants.

Case No. 1:17-cv-554

United States District Court, S.D. Ohio, Western Division.

Signed September 30, 2020

Alphonse Adam Gerhardstein, Jennifer Lynn Branch, Gerhardstein & Branch Co. LPA, Cincinnati, OH, for Plaintiffs.

Kimberly A. Rutowski, Hardin, Lazarus & Lewis, LLC, Cincinnati, OH, Gabriel Ernie Ramos, Jr., Jason A. Fountain, Jeannette E. Nichols, Clermont County Prosecutor's Office, Batavia, OH, for Defendants Eric Gregory, Meredith Walsh.

Gabriel Ernie Ramos, Jr., Jason A. Fountain, Jeannette E. Nichols, Clermont County Prosecutor's Office, Batavia, OH, for Defendants Clermont County, Ohio/Clermont County Ohio Board Of Commissioners, Sheriff Robert Leahy.

ORDER GRANTING DEFENDANTS’ MOTION FOR SUMMARY JUDGMENT, GRANTING PLAINTIFFS’ MOTION FOR LEAVE TO FILE SUR-REPLY, AND TERMINATING THIS CASE IN THIS COURT

Timothy S. Black, United States District Judge

This civil action is before the Court on the motion for summary judgment of Defendants Eric Gregory, Meredith Walsh, and Clermont County Board of Commissioners and Sheriff Robert Leahy ("County Defendants") (Doc. 60) and the parties’ responsive memoranda (Docs. 66, 69, 70-1). Also before the Court is the motion of Plaintiffs for leave to file sur-reply or in the alternative, to strike arguments raised for the first time in Defendants’ reply to Plaintiffs’ memorandum in opposition, and a renewed request for oral argument (Doc. 70) and Defendants’ memorandum in opposition (Doc. 71).¹

I. BACKGROUND²

A. Undisputed Facts

This case centers around the tragic events that occurred on September 19, 2015. At 12:06 p.m. that day, Plaintiff Sarah Wilson called 911 to report that her father, Jack Huelsman, was having a "psychiatric emergency" and that he was mentally ill, bi-polar, and had been on a downward mental decline. (Docs. 60-1 at ¶ 1, 40-1, 50-12). Wilson also reported to the 911 dispatcher that Mr. Huelsman was possibly thinking of committing suicide. (Docs. 40-1, 50-12). Wilson also stated that there were guns in the house and she did not know whether Mr. Huelsman had access to them. (Id. ) Wilson was not at her parent's residence with her father when she called 911. Wilson called 911 after having a phone conversation with her mother, Cheryl Huelsman, who was with Mr. Huelsman. (Doc. 60-1 at ¶¶ 2–3). In her deposition, Mrs. Huelsman said she did not want to call 911 in front of Mr. Huelsman so as not to escalate the situation. (Doc. 39 at PAGEID# 224).

At 12:08 p.m., Deputy Eric Gregory of the Clermont County Sherriff's Office ("CCSO") and an emergency medical service unit ("EMS") were dispatched to the Huelsman residence. (Doc. 60-1 at ¶ 4). Dispatch informed Deputy Gregory that the call was for a "64-year old male hearing voices." (Id. )³ Dispatch also clarified that there had been no prior calls to 911 for emotional or mental health issues from the residence. (Id. at ¶¶ 5–6). CCSO Deputy Meredith Walsh was also dispatched to the residence. (Id. at ¶ 7). EMS was dispatched for a patient with abnormal behavior and was directed to stage near the residence. (Id. at ¶ 8).

Upon arrival at the Huelsman residence, Deputy Gregory knocked on the door and Mrs. Huelsman invited him in. (Id. at ¶ 12). When Deputy Gregory entered, Mrs. Huelsman was crying, and Mr. Huelsman was calm. (Id. at ¶ 13).⁴ Mrs. Huelsman advised Deputy Gregory of the situation and told him that Mr. Huelsman was hearing voices and was paranoid. (Id. at ¶ 14). Deputy Gregory then messaged dispatch to direct the EMS unit to stand down.⁵ (Id. at ¶ 15).

After Mrs. Huelsman told Deputy Gregory that Mr. Huelsman was hearing voices, Mr. Huelsman explained that he wasn't hearing voices. Mr. Huelsman said he heard someone talking about politics and didn't know where it was coming from, but realized that the radio was on. (Id. at ¶¶ 16-17). Mrs. Huelsman also said that Mr. Huelsman was paranoid because he believed she caused his phone to stop working. (Id. at ¶ 18). Mr. Huelsman informed Deputy Gregory that his electronics were not working properly. Mrs. Huelsman never checked to see if the electronics were actually working. (Id. at ¶ 19).

Mr. Huelsman told Deputy Gregory that his wife had taken all the guns in the house and that they were locked up and Mrs. Huelsman had taken the keys. (Id. at ¶ 20). Deputy Gregory separated the Huelsmans, directing Mrs. Huelsman outside. (Id. at ¶ 22). Mrs. Huelsman became increasingly emotional outside. (Id. at ¶ 23). Mrs. Huelsman told Deputy Gregory that she thought her husband needed to go to the hospital. (Id. at ¶ 24). Deputy Gregory told Mrs. Huelsman that he did not believe that he had enough probable cause to remove Mr. Huelsman from his residence and transport him to the hospital. (Id. at ¶ 25).

Mrs. Huelsman then said she was afraid of her husband and afraid that he may be suicidal. (Id. at ¶ 26). Deputy Gregory testified that Mr. Huelsman, having heard Mrs. Huelsman's statement to Deputy Gregory, responded that he was not suicidal and that the only statement he made regarding suicide was that if he ever killed himself, she wouldn't be able to afford their house. (Id. at ¶¶ 27, 31; Doc. 50 at PAGEID# 1397).⁶

Deputy Walsh arrived at the Huelsman residence while Deputy Gregory was outside talking with Mrs. Huelsman. (Doc. 60-1 at ¶ 29). Deputy Walsh then spoke with Mrs. Huelsman outside while Deputy Gregory went back in the house to speak to Mr. Huelsman. (Id. at ¶ 30). Although the parties dispute the emotional state of Mrs. Huelsman and why she was emotional, the parties agree that Mrs. Huelsman became increasingly emotional when she was outside the house. (Id. at ¶ 48). Although very emotional, Mrs. Huelsman never asked to go back inside the house to be with her husband at any time prior to his death. (Id. at ¶ 54). Deputies Walsh and Gregory discussed the conversations they had with each spouse and determined that neither of the spouses provided any information to give them probable cause to transport Mr. Huelsman to the hospital. (Id. at ¶ 35).

Subsequently, Deputy Walsh left the Huelsman residence to respond to a non-breather. (Id. at ¶ 36).⁷ Deputy Gregory went to his car to contact his supervisor, Corporal Buelterman, and moved his car up the driveway. (Id. at ¶ 37). Deputy Gregory then contacted Mobile Crisis and requested to have someone respond to the Huelsman residence. (Id. at ¶ 38). Will Cates, the mobile crisis team responder, called Deputy Gregory to tell him he was on his way to the Huelsman residence. (Id. at ¶ 39). Mrs. Huelsman then went into the barn on the property. (Id. at ¶ 40).

With Mrs. Huelsman in the barn and Deputy Gregory in his car, Mr. Huelsman shot himself. (Id. at ¶¶ 40–41). Deputy Gregory went into the house and found Mr. Huelsman deceased from a gunshot wound

. (Id. at ¶ 42). Deputy Gregory then contacted dispatch and his supervisor. (Id. at ¶ 43).

Corporal Brett Buelterman, Deputy Walsh, Deputy Sean Schubert, Sergeant Greg Moran, and Investigator Christopher Allen responded to the scene at the Huelsman residence. (Id. at ¶ 44). Scott Arthur and Joseph Martin, two EMS technicians, Deputy Schubert, and Corporal Buelterman entered the barn where Mrs. Huelsman was located. Corporal Buelterman and Deputy Schubert informed Mrs. Huelsman that her husband had shot himself, and she understandably became distraught. (Doc. 68-1 at ¶ 48).

Mr. Cates then signed an application for emergency admission for Mrs. Huelsman to be taken to the hospital for a 72-hour hold. (Doc. 60-1 at ¶ 49). Corporal Buelterman transported Mrs. Huelsman to the hospital in his patrol vehicle. (Id. at ¶ 50).

Sheriff Leahy asked Sergeant Sellars to conduct an administrative inquiry to determine if officer failure was an issue in this situation. (Id. at ¶ 62). Sergeant Sellers determined that no internal investigation needed to be done and that the deputies had followed all policies and that there was no misconduct. (Id. at ¶ 63, Sellars Dep. Doc. 46 at PAGEID# 732).

B. Plaintiffs’ Proposed Disputed Facts

Accompanying their response to Defendants’ Statement of Proposed Undisputed facts, Plaintiffs offer thirteen disputed issues of fact that the Plaintiffs contend are "material" and need to be resolved upon trial. (Doc. 68-1 at 10–18). Plaintiffs contend that the following facts are in dispute:

1. Whether Mrs. Huelsman's mental status did not allow her to call 911. Plaintiffs contend Mrs. Wilson called 911 because Mrs. Huelsman did not want to further anger Mr. Huelsman, not because of Mrs. Huelsman's mental state. (Id. at ¶ 1.)

2. Whether the EMS unit dispatched to the Huelsman residence was limited to only patient medical evaluations, or whether they could assess an individual's mental health. Plaintiffs contend that the EMS workers were trained to provide mental health assessments. (Id. at ¶ 2).

3. Whether Deputies Gregory and Walsh knew from dispatch that the call to the Huelsman residence involved potential suicide. Plaintiffs contend that Deputies Gregory and Walsh were aware that the 911 call pertained to a possible suicide. (Id. at ¶ 3).

4. Whether Mr. Huelsman was calm, composed, and rational during his encounter with the deputies. Plaintiffs contend that Mr. Huelsman became upset, visibly agitated, and tried not to yell once Deputy Gregory arrived. (Id. at ¶ 4).

5. Whether Mobile Crisis was called for Mr. Huelsman or Mrs. Huelsman. Plaintiffs contend that Deputy Gregory called in regard to Mr. Huelsman's suicidality and that Mrs. Huelsman was an ancillary request. (Id. at ¶ 5). Plaintiffs also contend that Mrs. Huelsman was not inconsolable until she learned Mr. Huelsman had killed himself. (Id. at ¶ 5(a)).

6. Whether Mrs. Huelsman would have been permitted to go back inside the house if she requested to. Plaintiffs contend Mrs. Huelsman was clearly not permitted to go back inside the house. (Id. at ¶ 6).

7. Whether Deputies Gregory and Walsh knew Mr.

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