(PC) Bryant v. Duncan et al

Filing 5

ORDER signed by Magistrate Judge Dennis M. Cota on 2/17/2021 DISMISSING 1 Prisoner Civil Rights Complaint, with leave to amend. Plaintiff shall file a first amended complaint within 30 days of the date of service of this order. (Tupolo, A)

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IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

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FOR THE EASTERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA

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PAUL JOSEPH BRYANT, SR.,

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No. 2:19-CV-2425-DMC-P

Plaintiff,

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v.

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DUNCAN, et al.,

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ORDER

Defendants.

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Plaintiff, a prisoner proceeding pro se, brings this civil rights action under 42
U.S.C. § 1983. Pending before the Court is Plaintiff’s original complaint (ECF No. 1).

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The Court is required to screen complaints brought by prisoners seeking relief

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against a governmental entity or officer or employee of a governmental entity. See 28 U.S.C.

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§ 1915A(a). The Court must dismiss a complaint or portion thereof if it: (1) is frivolous or

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malicious; (2) fails to state a claim upon which relief can be granted; or (3) seeks monetary relief

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from a defendant who is immune from such relief. See 28 U.S.C. § 1915A(b)(1), (2). Moreover,

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the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure require that complaints contain a “. . . short and plain

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statement of the claim showing that the pleader is entitled to relief.” Fed. R. Civ. P. 8(a)(2). This

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means that claims must be stated simply, concisely, and directly. See McHenry v. Renne, 84 F.3d

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1172, 1177 (9th Cir. 1996) (referring to Fed. R. Civ. P. 8(e)(1)). These rules are satisfied if the

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complaint gives the defendant fair notice of the plaintiff’s claim and the grounds upon which it
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rests. See Kimes v. Stone, 84 F.3d 1121, 1129 (9th Cir. 1996). Because Plaintiff must allege

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with at least some degree of particularity overt acts by specific defendants which support the

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claims, vague and conclusory allegations fail to satisfy this standard. Additionally, it is

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impossible for the Court to conduct the screening required by law when the allegations are vague

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and conclusory.

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I. PLAINTIFF’S ALLEGATIONS
Plaintiff, a prisoner at South Placer County Jail (SPCJ), alleges four causes of
action under the Eighth Amendment: (1) deliberate indifference to his safety, (2) denial of

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medical treatment, (3) delay of medical treatment, and (4) deliberate indifference to his need for

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healthy food. ECF No. 1, pgs 3-5. Plaintiff names four defendants: Officer Pool, Dr. Duncan,

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Dr. Goldsmith, and Placer County. Id. at 2.

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II. DISCUSSION
A. Deliberate Indifference to Safety
Plaintiff fails to plead sufficient facts to state a claim against Officer Pool for

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deliberate indifference of Plaintiff’s safety in violation of the Eighth Amendment. The treatment

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a prisoner receives in prison and the conditions under which the prisoner is confined are subject

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to scrutiny under the Eighth Amendment, which prohibits cruel and unusual punishment. See

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Helling v. McKinney, 509 U.S. 25, 31 (1993); Farmer v. Brennan, 511 U.S. 825, 832 (1994). The

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Eighth Amendment “. . . embodies broad and idealistic concepts of dignity, civilized standards,

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humanity, and decency.” Estelle v. Gamble, 429 U.S. 97, 102 (1976). Conditions of confinement

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may, however, be harsh and restrictive. See Rhodes v. Chapman, 452 U.S. 337, 347 (1981).

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Nonetheless, prison officials must provide prisoners with “food, clothing, shelter, sanitation,

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medical care, and personal safety.” Toussaint v. McCarthy, 801 F.2d 1080, 1107 (9th Cir. 1986).

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A prison official violates the Eighth Amendment only when two requirements are met: (1)

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objectively, the official’s act or omission must be so serious such that it results in the denial of the

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minimal civilized measure of life’s necessities; and (2) subjectively, the prison official must have
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acted unnecessarily and wantonly for the purpose of inflicting harm. See Farmer, 511 U.S. at

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834. Thus, to violate the Eighth Amendment, a prison official must have a “sufficiently culpable

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mind.” See id.

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Under these principles, prison officials have a duty to take reasonable steps to

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protect inmates from physical abuse. See Hoptowit v. Ray, 682 F.2d 1237, 1250-51 (9th Cir.

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1982); Farmer, 511 U.S. at 833. Liability exists only when two requirements are met: (1)

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objectively, the prisoner was incarcerated under conditions presenting a substantial risk of serious

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harm; and (2) subjectively, prison officials knew of and disregarded the risk. See Farmer, 511

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U.S. at 837. The very obviousness of the risk may suffice to establish the knowledge element.

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See Wallis v. Baldwin, 70 F.3d 1074, 1077 (9th Cir. 1995). Prison officials are not liable,

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however, if evidence is presented that they lacked knowledge of a safety risk. See Farmer, 511

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U.S. at 844. The knowledge element does not require that the plaintiff prove that prison officials

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know for a certainty that the inmate’s safety is in danger, but it requires proof of more than a

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mere suspicion of danger. See Berg v. Kincheloe, 794 F.2d 457, 459 (9th Cir. 1986). Finally, the

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plaintiff must show that prison officials disregarded a risk. Thus, where prison officials actually

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knew of a substantial risk, they are not liable if they took reasonable steps to respond to the risk,

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even if harm ultimately was not averted. See Farmer, 511 U.S. at 844.

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Plaintiff alleges that Officer Pool did not properly inspect the work of other

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inmates under his care. Id. at 4. He further alleges that this lack of supervision led to Plaintiff

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slipping and injuring himself. Id. However, Officer Pool’s poor supervision of inmate cleaning

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duties does not meet the culpability standard required for deliberate indifference. Because

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identification of acts committed by Officer Pool might give rise to cognizable claims, amendment

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is appropriate.

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B. Deficiencies in All Further Claims
Plaintiff fails to allege specific acts taken by any of the defendants that link them

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to the claims alleged. To state a claim under 42 U.S.C. § 1983, the plaintiff must allege an actual

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connection or link between the actions of the named defendants and the alleged deprivations. See

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Monell v. Dep’t of Social Servs., 436 U.S. 658 (1978); Rizzo v. Goode, 423 U.S. 362 (1976). “A
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person ‘subjects’ another to the deprivation of a constitutional right, within the meaning of

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§ 1983, if he does an affirmative act, participates in another’s affirmative acts, or omits to

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perform an act which he is legally required to do that causes the deprivation of which complaint is

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made.” Johnson v. Duffy, 588 F.2d 740, 743 (9th Cir. 1978). Vague and conclusory allegations

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concerning the involvement of official personnel in civil rights violations are not sufficient. See

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Ivey v. Board of Regents, 673 F.2d 266, 268 (9th Cir. 1982). Rather, the plaintiff must set forth

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specific facts as to each individual defendant’s causal role in the alleged constitutional

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deprivation. See Leer v. Murphy, 844 F.2d 628, 634 (9th Cir. 1988). Plaintiff has not alleged any

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facts linking the conduct of any defendant to a constitutional violation. Because identification of

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acts committed by specific defendants might give rise to cognizable claims, amendment is

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appropriate.

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C. Denial of Medical Treatment
Plaintiff’s claims for denial of medical treatment of an MRI, surgery, and use of a

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cheaper prescription fail because Plaintiff’s differing opinion concerning the appropriate

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treatment does not amount to deliberate indifference to a serious medical need. A difference of

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opinion between medical professionals concerning the appropriate course of treatment generally

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does not amount to deliberate indifference to serious medical needs. See Toguchi v. Chung, 391

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F.3d 1051, 130 1059-60 (9th Cir. 2004); Sanchez v. Vild, 891 F.2d 240, 242 (9th Cir. 1989). To

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establish that a difference of opinion amounted to deliberate indifference, the prisoner “must

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show that the course of treatment the doctors chose was medically unacceptable under the

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circumstances” and “that they chose this course in conscious disregard of an excessive risk to [the

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prisoner’s] health.” See Jackson v. McIntosh, 90 F.3d 330, 332 (9th Cir.1996). A difference of

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opinion between the physician and the prisoner concerning the appropriate course of treatment

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does not amount to deliberate indifference to serious medical needs. See Toguchi, 391 F.3d at

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1058. Plaintiff admits that he was seen by medical staff, his injury was x-rayed, and he did

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receive H.I.V. medication. Id. at 4. Plaintiff fails to state a claim for medical indifference.

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D. Deliberate Indifference to Plaintiff’s Need for Healthy Food

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Plaintiff’s claim of deliberate indifference to Plaintiff’s need for healthy food fails

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under Federal Rule of Evidence 8(a)(2) because it is conclusory. “The Eighth Amendment

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requires only that prisoners receive food that is adequate to maintain health; it need not be tasty or

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aesthetically pleasing.” LeMaire v. Maass, 12 F.3d 1444, 1456 (9th Cir. 1993). Plaintiff admits

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that he receives a “diabetic tray” but claims that it has “too much sugar, carbs and sodium” and

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that the only way to avoid these is to “starve” because even the venders have unhealthy food. Id.

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at 6. Because more specific information about the healthfulness of both the non-diabetic and

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diabetic meals at the prison might give rise to cognizable claims, amendment is appropriate.

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E. Placer County as a Defendant
Plaintiff’s claims against Placer County fail because they do not link a policy or

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custom of the municipality to an alleged deprivation. Municipalities and other local government

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units are among those “persons” to whom § 1983 liability applies. See Monell v. Dep’t of Soc.

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Servs., 436 U.S. 658, 690 (1978). Counties and municipal government officials are also “persons”

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for purposes of § 1983. See id. at 691; see also Thompson v. City of Los Angeles, 885 F.2d 1439,

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1443 (9th Cir. 1989). A local government unit, however, may not be held responsible for the acts

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of its employees or officials under a respondeat superior theory of liability. See Bd. of County

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Comm’rs v. Brown, 520 U.S. 397, 403 (1997). Thus, municipal liability must rest on the actions

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of the municipality, and not of the actions of its employees or officers. See id. To assert municipal

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liability, therefore, the plaintiff must allege that the constitutional deprivation complained of

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resulted from a policy or custom of the municipality. See id. A claim of municipal liability under

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§ 1983 is sufficient to withstand dismissal even if it is based on nothing more than bare

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allegations that an individual defendant’s conduct conformed to official policy, custom, or

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practice. See Karim-Panahi v. Los Angeles Police Dep’t, 839 F.2d 621, 624 (9th Cir.

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1988). Because identification of harmful policies or customs adopted by Placer County might

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give rise to cognizable claims, amendment is appropriate.

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III. CONCLUSION

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Because it is possible that some of the deficiencies identified in this order may be

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cured by amending the complaint, Plaintiff is entitled to leave to amend prior to dismissal of the

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entire action. See Lopez v. Smith, 203 F.3d 1122, 1126, 1131 (9th Cir. 2000) (en banc). Plaintiff

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is informed that, as a general rule, an amended complaint supersedes the original complaint. See

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Ferdik v. Bonzelet, 963 F.2d 1258, 1262 (9th Cir. 1992). Thus, following dismissal with leave to

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amend, all claims alleged in the original complaint which are not alleged in the amended

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complaint are waived. See King v. Atiyeh, 814 F.2d 565, 567 (9th Cir. 1987). Therefore, if

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Plaintiff amends the complaint, the Court cannot refer to the prior pleading in order to make

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Plaintiff's amended complaint complete. See Local Rule 220. An amended complaint must be

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complete in itself without reference to any prior pleading. See id.

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If Plaintiff chooses to amend the complaint, Plaintiff must demonstrate how the

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conditions complained of have resulted in a deprivation of Plaintiff’s constitutional rights. See

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Ellis v. Cassidy, 625 F.2d 227 (9th Cir. 1980). The complaint must allege in specific terms how

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each named defendant is involved, and must set forth some affirmative link or connection

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between each defendant’s actions and the claimed deprivation. See May v. Enomoto, 633 F.2d

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164, 167 (9th Cir. 1980); Johnson v. Duffy, 588 F.2d 740, 743 (9th Cir. 1978).

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Because some of the defects identified in this order cannot be cured by

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amendment, Plaintiff is not entitled to leave to amend as to such claims. Plaintiff, therefore, now

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has the following choices: (1) Plaintiff may file an amended complaint which does not allege the

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claims identified herein as incurable, in which case such claims will be deemed abandoned and

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the Court will address the remaining claims; or (2) Plaintiff may file an amended complaint which

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continues to allege claims identified as incurable, in which case the Court will issue findings and

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recommendations that such claims be dismissed from this action, as well as such other orders

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and/or findings and recommendations as may be necessary to address the remaining claims.

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Finally, Plaintiff is warned that failure to file an amended complaint within the

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time provided in this order may be grounds for dismissal of this action. See Ferdik, 963 F.2d at

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1260-61; see also Local Rule 110. Plaintiff is also warned that a complaint which fails to comply

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with Rule 8 may, in the Court’s discretion, be dismissed with prejudice pursuant to Rule 41(b).

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See Nevijel v. North Coast Life Ins. Co., 651 F.2d 671, 673 (9th Cir. 1981).

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Accordingly, IT IS HEREBY ORDERED that:

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Plaintiff’s original complaint is dismissed with leave to amend; and

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2.

Plaintiff shall file a first amended complaint within 30 days of the date of

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service of this order.

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Dated: February 17, 2021
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DENNIS M. COTA
UNITED STATES MAGISTRATE JUDGE

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