McCullock v. Scharr et al

Filing 52

ORDER Granting 35 Defendants' Motion for Summary Judgment. Signed by Chief District Judge Dana M. Sabraw on 7/14/2021. (All non-registered users served via U.S. Mail Service)(zda)

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UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA

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ROBERT McCULLOCK,
CDCR #V-32182,

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ORDER GRANTING DEFENDANTS’
MOTION FOR SUMMARY
JUDGMENT PURSUANT TO Fed. R.
Civ. P. 56(a)

Plaintiff,

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Case No.: 3:19-cv-2110-DMS-DEB

vs.
N. SCHARR, Correctional Sergeant;
H. FERREL, Correctional Lieutenant
T. MARTINEZ, Correctional Captain;
J. JUAREZ, Associate Warden;
SMITH, Correctional Officer;
DOE -10,

[ECF No. 35]

Defendants.

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ROBERT McCULLOCK (“Plaintiff”), a prisoner currently incarcerated at the

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California Mens Colony located in San Luis Obispo, California, is proceeding pro se and

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in forma pauperis (“IFP”) in this civil action pursuant to 42 U.S.C. § 1983. In his

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Complaint (“Compl.”), Plaintiff alleges Richard J. Donovan Correctional Facility

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(“RJD”) prison officials violated his Eighth Amendment rights when they failed to

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protect him from an attack by another inmate. See ECF No. 1 at 4-6.1

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I.

Procedural History

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On December 3, 2019, the Court granted Plaintiff leave to proceed IFP pursuant to

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28 U.S.C. § 1915(a) and screened his Complaint before service as required by 28 U.S.C.

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§ 1915(e)(2) and § 1915A(b). See ECF No. 6. The Court sua sponte dismissed Defendant

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Covello but found Plaintiff’s Eighth Amendment failure to protect claims against

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Defendants Scharr, Ferrel, Martinez, Juarez, and Smith (“Defendants”) sufficient to state

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plausible claims upon which relief may be granted. Id. at 5-7.

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Defendants filed an Answer to Plaintiff’s Complaint on February 18, 2020. See

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ECF No. 22. On February 12, 2021, Defendants filed a Motion for Summary Judgment.

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See ECF No. 35. On February 16, 2021, the Court notified Plaintiff of the requirements

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for opposing summary judgment pursuant to Klingele v. Eikenberry, 849 F.2d 409 (9th

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Cir. 1988) and Rand v. Rowland, 154 F.3d 952 (9th Cir. 1998) (en banc) and set a

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briefing schedule. See ECF No. 36. Plaintiff filed his Opposition to Defendants’ Motion

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on April 2, 2021. See ECF No. 40. Defendants filed their Reply to Plaintiff’s Opposition

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on April 2, 2021. See ECF No. 41.

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The Court determined that a report and recommendation from Magistrate Judge

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Butcher was not necessary, no oral argument was required, and took Defendants’ Motion

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for Summary Judgment under submission for resolution on the papers pursuant to S.D.

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CAL. CIVLR 7.1.d.

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Having carefully considered the record as submitted, the Court now GRANTS

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Defendants’ Motion for Summary Judgment.

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Page numbers for all documents filed in the Court’s Case Management/Electronic Case
File (“CM/ECF”) will refer to the pagination generated by CM/ECF as indicated on the
top right-hand corner of each chronologically-numbered docket entry.
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II.

Factual Background

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A.

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Plaintiff’s Claims

Plaintiff alleges that he was assaulted by Inmate Anthony Muci (“Muci”) on May 16,

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2019. (See Compl. at 12.) Plaintiff had returned to his cell after dinner and “sat at the

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table facing away from the door.” (See id.) Plaintiff claims that was the “last [he]

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remember[ed] until regaining consciousness approximately [six] hours later at Scripps

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Hospital [Emergency Room].” (Id.)

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Plaintiff contends Muci “has attacked elders before,” as well as having been a
“general population” inmate who is “always enemy to all “SNY” (special needs yard).”

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(Id.) Plaintiff is seventy years old and “part deaf.” (Id.) Plaintiff alleges that the

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“custody staff of [RJD] knew or should have known of Musi’s combative history but

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chose to turn a blind eye.” (Id. at 17.)

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B.

Defendants’ Claims

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On May 16, 2019, Defendant Scharr, an RJD correctional sergeant, was “directed to

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secure housing on Facility D for an inmate with a lower-tier/lower-bunk restriction who

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was a C-PAP user, but not a wheelchair user.” (Scharr Decl., ECF No. 35-4 at ¶ 2) At the

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time, “Housing Unit 20 on Facility D was the preferred housing unit for non-wheelchair-

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bound C-PAP-using inmates because most of the electrical outlet configuration in the

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cells provided power to C-PAP units better than those in other housing units.” (Id. at ¶

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3.)

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After Scharr directed staff to find the “first available cell placement that would

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accommodate a lower-tier/lower-bunk-restricted inmate, and to start with Housing Unit

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20.” (Id.) It was discovered that Muci was a “lower-tier cell assigned to a lower bunk”

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but he did not have a “lower-tier restriction.” (Id.) So moving Muci to an “upper-tier”

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cell that accommodated a “lower-bunk restriction” would allow an inmate requiring a C-

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PAP to be housed in Muci’s cell. (Id.)

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It was also discovered that Plaintiff had a cell on the upper tier, no cellmate, and he

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had no “housing restrictions dating back to 2017, including no lower-bunk or lower-tier

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restriction.” (Id. at ¶ 4.) Officer Herrera, who worked second watch, “requested that

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[Plaintiff] be reassigned to the upper bunk in his same cell.” (Id. at ¶ 5.) Officer Erece 2,

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who worked third watch, “requested that [Muci] be reassigned to [Plaintiff’s] cell to the

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lower bunk.” (Id. at ¶ 6.) Scharr “reviewed and approved this request.” (Id.)

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Plaintiff and Muci’s moves were finalized and the inmate requiring the C-PAP was

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“assigned to the lower bunk that [Muci] had occupied.” (Id. at ¶ 7.) “After reviewing

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housing information” for Plaintiff and Muci, Scharr “made the decision” to house Muci

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in Plaintiff’s cell. (Id. at ¶ 8.) Scharr maintains that Defendants Ferrel, Juarez, Martinez,

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and Smith “were not involved in this housing decision.” (Id.) Scharr reviewed Muci’s

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file and determined that on April 26, 2019 Muci had be “evaluated and cleared for

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double-cell housing by a committee (which included a captain) that would have

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thoroughly evaluated [Muci’s] background, Rules Violation Reports, and other case

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factors, in the process of determining his housing restrictions.” (Id.)

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Scharr maintains that before the “May 16, 2019 incident, [he] did not believe that

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[Muci] would assault [Plaintiff], or anyone else.” (Id. at ¶ 11.) His review of Muci’s file

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indicated that the “last incident before May 16, 2019, involving [Muci] and another

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inmate occurred on April 11, 2018, when [Muci] received a Rules Violation Report for

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fighting with his cellmate, but the cellmate admitted to hitting [Muci] first and that

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[Muci] was simply defending himself.” (Id. at ¶ 13.) Both inmates signed “paperwork

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confirming that the incident was just a misunderstanding, that no safety issues existed,

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and they could continue to cell together.” (Id.) Muci had another incident on April 20,

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1999 which resulted in a charge of “battery on an inmate without serious injury.” (Id.)

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Erece is not a named Defendant.
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III.

Motion for Summary Judgment

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Defendants have moved for summary judgment on the grounds that: (1)

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Defendants were not deliberately indifferent to Plaintiff’s safety; (2) Plaintiff’s

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Fourteenth Amendment claim should be dismissed; (3) Defendants are entitled to

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qualified immunity; and (4) Plaintiff failed to exhaust his administrative remedies

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pursuant to 42 U.S.C. § 1997e(a) prior to filing his 42 U.S.C. § 1983 complaint in this

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Court. (See Defs.’ P&As in Supp. of Summ. J. Mot. [“Defs.’ P&As”], ECF No. 20 at 19-

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30.)

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A.

Legal Standards for Summary Judgment pursuant to FRCP 56

Summary judgment is appropriate when the moving party “shows that there is no

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genuine dispute as to any material fact and the movant is entitled to judgment as a matter

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of law.” Fed. R. Civ. P. 56(a). The “purpose of summary judgment is to ‘pierce the

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pleadings and to assess the proof in order to see whether there is a genuine need for

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trial.’” Matsushita Elec. Indus. Co. v. Zenith Radio Corp., 475 U.S. 574, 587 (1986)

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(citations omitted).

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As the moving parties, the Defendants “initially bear[] the burden of proving the

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absence of a genuine issue of material fact.” Nursing Home Pension Fund, Local 144 v.

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Oracle Corp., 627 F.3d 376, 387 (9th Cir. 2010) (citing Celotex Corp. v. Catrett, 477

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U.S. 317, 323 (1986)). Defendants may accomplish this by “citing to particular parts of

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materials in the record, including depositions, documents, electronically stored

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information, affidavits or declarations, stipulations (including those made for purposes of

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the motion only), admission, interrogatory answers, or other materials” or by showing

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that such materials “do not establish the absence or presence of a genuine dispute, or that

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the adverse party cannot produce admissible evidence to support the fact.” Fed. R. Civ. P.

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56(c)(1)(A), (B).

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While Plaintiff bears the burden of proof at trial, Defendants “need only prove that

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there is an absence of evidence to support [Plaintiff’s] case.” Oracle Corp., 627 F.3d at

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387 (citing Celotex, 477 U.S. at 325); see also Fed. R. Civ. P. 56(c)(1)(B). Indeed,
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summary judgment should be entered, after adequate time for discovery and upon

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motion, against a party who fails to make a showing sufficient to establish the existence

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of an element essential to that party’s case, and on which that party will bear the burden

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of proof at trial. See Celotex, 477 U.S. at 322. “[A] complete failure of proof concerning

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an essential element of the nonmoving party’s case necessarily renders all other facts

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immaterial.” Id. In such a circumstance, summary judgment should be granted, “so long

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as whatever is before the district court demonstrates that the standard for entry of

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summary judgment . . . is satisfied.” Id. at 323.

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If Defendants, as the moving parties, meet their initial responsibility, the burden

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then shifts to Plaintiff to establish a genuine dispute as to any material facts that exist.

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Matsushita, 475 U.S. at 586. To establish the existence of this factual dispute, Plaintiff

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must then present evidence in the form of affidavits and/or admissible discovery material

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to support his contention that a genuine dispute exists. See Fed. R. Civ. P. 56(c)(1);

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Matsushita, 475 U.S. at 586 n.11. “A [p]laintiff’s verified complaint may be considered

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as an affidavit in opposition to summary judgment if it is based on personal knowledge

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and sets forth specific facts admissible in evidence.” Lopez v. Smith, 203 F.3d 1122, 1132

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n.14 (9th Cir. 2000) (en banc).

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Plaintiff must also demonstrate that the fact in contention is material, i.e., a fact

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that might affect the outcome of his suit under the governing law, see Anderson v. Liberty

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Lobby, Inc., 477 U.S. 242, 248 (1986); T.W. Elec. Serv., Inc. v. Pacific Elec. Contractors

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Assoc., 809 F.2d 626, 630 (9th Cir. 1987), and that the dispute is genuine, i.e., the

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evidence is such that a reasonable jury could return a verdict for him. See Wool v.

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Tandem Computers, Inc., 818 F.2d 1433, 1436 (9th Cir. 1987).

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Finally, district courts must “construe liberally motion papers and pleadings filed

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by pro se inmates and . . . avoid applying summary judgment rules strictly.” Thomas v.

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Ponder, 611 F.3d 1144, 1150 (9th Cir. 2010). However, if Plaintiff “fails to properly

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support an assertion of fact or fails to properly address [Defendant’s] assertion of fact, as

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required by Rule 56(c), the court may . . . consider the fact undisputed for purposes of the
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motion . . . .” Fed. R. Civ. P. 56(e)(2). Nor may the Court permit Plaintiff, as the

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opposing party, to rest solely on conclusory allegations of fact or law. Berg v. Kincheloe,

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794 F.2d 457, 459 (9th Cir. 1986). A “motion for summary judgment may not be

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defeated. . . by evidence that is ‘merely colorable’ or ‘is not significantly probative.’”

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Anderson, 477 U.S. at 249–50; Hardage v. CBS Broad. Inc., 427 F.3d 1177, 1183 (9th

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Cir. 2006); Loomis v. Cornish, 836 F.3d 991, 997 (9th Cir. 2016) (“‘[M]ere allegation

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and speculation do not create a factual dispute for purposes of summary judgment.’”)

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(quoting Nelson v. Pima Cmty. Coll., 83 F.3d 1075, 1081 (9th Cir. 1996)) (brackets in

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original)).

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B.

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Defendants argue that they are entitled to summary judgment on Plaintiff’s Eighth

Eighth Amendment Deliberate Indifference

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Amendment claim as they did not act with deliberate indifference when they housed

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Plaintiff with Muci. (See Defs. P&As at 19-21.)

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“‘[P]rison officials have a duty . . . to protect prisoners from violence at the hands

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of other prisoners.’” Farmer v. Brennan, 511 U.S. 825, 833 (1994) (quoting Cortes-

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Quinones v. Jimenez-Nettleship, 842 F.2d 556, 558 (1st Cir. 1988)). “The failure of

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prison officials to protect inmates from attacks by other inmates may rise to the level of

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an Eighth Amendment violation when: (1) the deprivation is ‘objectively, sufficiently

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serious’ and (2) the prison officials had a ‘sufficiently culpable state of mind,’ acting with

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deliberate indifference.” Hearns v. Terhune, 413 F.3d 1036, 1040 (9th Cir. 2005)

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(quoting Farmer, 511 U.S. at 834). The second prong of this test is subjective, and “the

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official must both be aware of facts from which the inference could be drawn that a

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substantial risk of serious harm exists, and he must also draw the inference.” See

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Farmer, 511 U.S. at 837. “‘Deliberate indifference entails something more than mere

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negligence but is satisfied by something less than acts or omissions for the very purpose

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of causing harm or with knowledge that harm will result.’” Hearns, 413 F.3d at 1040

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(quoting Farmer, 511 U.S. at 835) (internal alterations omitted)). “[A]n official’s failure

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to alleviate a significant risk that he should have perceived but did not, while no cause for
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commendation, cannot under [the Supreme Court’s] cases be condemned as the infliction

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of punishment.” Farmer, 511 U.S. at 838.

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In order to satisfy the first prong of a failure to protect claim that the deprivation is

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objectively serious, it must be shown that Plaintiff was “incarcerated under conditions

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posing a substantial risk of serious harm.” Lemire v. Cal. Dep’t of Corr. & Rehab., 726

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F.3d 1062, 1075 (9th Cir. 2013) (citing Farmer, 511 U.S. at 834). “The objective

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question of whether a prison officer’s actions have exposed an inmate to a substantial risk

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of serious harm is a question of fact, and as such must be decided by a jury if there is any

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room for doubt.” Id. at 1075-76.

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Defendants argue that Scharr was “directed to find appropriate housing” for a

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“non-wheelchair-bound C-PAP using inmate” who required a “lower-tier/lower-bunk.”

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(Defs.’ P&As at 19; Scharr Decl. at ¶ 2.) Because the building to which Plaintiff was

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assigned had “most of the electrical outlet configuration in the cells provided power to C-

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PAP units better than those in other housing units.” (Scharr Decl. at ¶ 2.) Plaintiff

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disputes this and claims, without citation to any supporting evidence, that “many other

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cells, in other buildings have multiple outlets.” (Pl.’s Opp’n at 2.) Scharr directed

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“Facility D staff” to look for a cell that would accommodate this inmate and they found

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that “inmate Muci was in a lower-tier cell” but he did not have a “lower-tier restriction,

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only a lower-bunk restriction.” (Scharr Decl. at ¶ 3.) Again, Plaintiff disputes this

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assertion and maintains that staff was “manipulated” by this inmate who uses a C-PAP

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because this inmate wanted to “move back to the same cell” where he was housed before

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he served a disciplinary sentence. (Pl.’s Opp’n at 2.) Plaintiff claims that this inmate

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“manipulated staff at Plaintiff’s expense.” However, Plaintiff does not dispute that Muci

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did not have a lower-tier restriction. (See id. at 3.) Scharr attests that they also

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determined that Plaintiff did not have a cellmate, was eligible for “double-cell housing,”

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and had “no housing restrictions.” (Scharr at ¶ 4.) Plaintiff does not dispute this

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statement. (See Pl.’s Opp’n at 3.) Scharr “reviewed and approved” staff’s request to

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move Muci to Plaintiff’s cell and allowed the inmate with the C-PAP to move into
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Muci’s cell. (Id. at ¶¶ 5-8.) Plaintiff claims that Scharr “reviewed housing information

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of Muci and knew of priors” but offers no evidence in the record that Plaintiff points to

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that clarifies what he understands or has direct knowledge of what these “priors” were or

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how Scharr purportedly knew of these “priors.” (Pl.’s Opp’n at 4.)

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Scharr does attest that his review of Muci’s file indicated that “on April 26, 2019,

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inmate Muci had been evaluated and cleared for double-cell housing by a committee”

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that would have “thoroughly reviewed inmate Muci’s background, Rules Violation

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Reports, and other case factors, in the process of determining his housing restrictions.”

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(Scharr Decl. at ¶ 9.) Scharr also acknowledges that Muci did have a fight with a

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cellmate in April of 2018 but Muci’s cellmate admitted to being the attacker and it was

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found that Muci was “simply defending himself.” (Id. at ¶ 13.) Plaintiff responds in is

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Opposition by stating this previous altercation Muci had “has no bearing to this case.”

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(Pl.’s Opp’n at 6.) Plaintiff does not dispute Scharr’s testimony that Muci’s altercation

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with a previous cellmate did not raise any concern to Defendants that Muci would be a

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danger to Plaintiff.

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Plaintiff argues that because he has not personally gone through evaluations by a

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committee , the fact that Muci was evaluated such a committee “would infer to a

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reasonable person that Muci need[ed] a thorough looking over.” (Pl.’s Opp’n at 5.)

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Plaintiff testified that he personally knew “nothing” about inmate Muci before the attack

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occurred. (Defs. Ex. 5, Pl.’s Depo., ECF No. 35-1, 20:9-11.) Plaintiff does not point to

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any evidence to support his claim that any of the named Defendants were aware that

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Muci would attack Plaintiff or that the risk was present that Muci would attack Plaintiff.

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Based on record before the Court, the Court finds that Defendants have satisfied

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their initial burden to show an absence of evidence to support Plaintiff’s claims that they

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failed to protect him from substantial harm. Now Plaintiff must establish a genuine

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dispute as to any material facts that exist. See Matsushita, 475 U.S. at 586.

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The evidence in the record before the Court demonstrates that Scharr was unaware
that inmate Muci would expose Plaintiff to a substantial risk of serious harm. Plaintiff
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offers no evidence to dispute this. The remaining Defendants, Officer Smith, Lieutenant

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Ferrel, Associate Warden Juarez, or Lieutenant Martinez, argue that Plaintiff “has no

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admissible evidence” that they “knew that inmate Muci had a combative history toward

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older inmates.” (Defs. P&As at 21.) When Plaintiff was asked what evidence he had that

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Scharr had prior knowledge inmate Muci’s “combative history towards older inmates,”

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Plaintiff testified that the “only information that [he] had after the incident was only by

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rumor.” (Defs. Ex. 5, ECF No. 35-1, Pl.’s Depo 27:22 – 28:1.) He further testified that

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he had “no hard physical proof” that Scharr had any prior knowledge of inmate Muci’s

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purported history of violence with other inmates.

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When Plaintiff was asked to identify what evidence he had that Defendant Ferrel

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“knew . . . that Muci had a combative history towards inmates.” (Id. at 29:25-30:2.)

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Plaintiff responded by testifying to claims of retaliation by Ferrel towards him after the

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incident with Muci but offers no testimony or other evidence that Defendant Ferrel was

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aware of a history of violence by inmate Muci.

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Plaintiff was questioned as to whether he had “any evidence that Associate Warden

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Juarez knew that inmate Muci had a combative history towards older inmates.” (Id. at

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32:1-3.) Plaintiff testified that he did not have any such evidence. (Id. at 32:4.) Plaintiff

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was presented with the same question as to Defendant Smith. (Id. at 32:5-7.) Plaintiff

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offered no specific testimony as to any knowledge on the part of Smith but instead

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testified as to general issues with “custody staff” whom he claimed went “out of their

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way to set up such situations where there’s a combative situation.” (Id. at 31:11-13.)

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Finally, Plaintiff was asked the same question as to whether he had any evidence that

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Defendant Martinez was aware of inmate Muci’s purported history and he testified

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“[n]o.” (Id. at 33:4-9.)

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Viewing the evidence and reasonable inferences in the light most favorable to

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Plaintiff, the Court finds there is no genuine dispute of material fact with regard to

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Plaintiff’s Eighth Amendment failure to protect claim. See Celotex, 477 U.S. at 323

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(“[A] complete failure of proof concerning an essential element of the nonmoving party’s
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case necessarily renders all other facts immaterial.”). Accordingly, Defendants’ Motion

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for Summary Judgment as to Plaintiff’s Eighth Amendment claim is GRANTED.

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C.

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Plaintiff seeks to hold all Defendants liable based on their purported failure to

Supervisory Liability

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“follow CDCR’s Department Operation Manual” and their “failure to train.” (Compl. at

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5.) Defendants seek summary judgment of these claims on the ground that there is no

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supervisory liability in § 1983 actions and there is no admissible evidence that any of the

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named Defendants had actual knowledge of inmate Muci’s alleged combative history

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with other inmates. (See Defs.’ P&As at 22-23.)

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“A plaintiff must allege facts, not simply conclusions, that show that an individual

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was personally involved in the deprivation of his civil rights.” Barren v. Harrington, 152

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F.3d 1193, 1194 (9th Cir. 1998). A person deprives another of a constitutional right

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under section 1983, where that person “‘does an affirmative act, participates in another’ s

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affirmative acts, or omits to perform an act which [that person] is legally required to do

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that causes the deprivation of which complaint is made.’” Johnson v. Duffy, 588 F.2d

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740, 743 (9th Cir. 1978). The “requisite causal connection can be established not only by

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some kind of direct personal participation in the deprivation, but also by setting in motion

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a series of acts by others which the actor knows or reasonably should know would cause

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others to inflict the constitutional injury.” Id. at 743-44. There is no respondeat superior

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liability under § 1983; therefore, supervisors, like the named Defendants, may be held

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liable for the constitutional violations of his or her subordinates only if they “participated

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in or directed the violations, or knew of the violations and failed to act to prevent them.”

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Taylor v. List, 880 F.2d 1040, 1045 (9th Cir. 1989). As set forth above in referring to

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Plaintiff’s testimony in his deposition, he could not point to any evidence that any of the

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named Defendants had actual knowledge that inmate Muci was a threat to his safety.

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To prevail on the failure to train claim, Plaintiff must be able to show that

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Defendants, in their individual capacities, were “deliberately indifferent to the need to

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train subordinates, and the lack of training actually caused the constitutional harm or
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deprivation of rights.” Flores v. Cnty. of L.A., 758 F.3d 1154, 1159 (9th Cir. 2014)

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(quoting Connick v. Thompson, 563 U.S. 51, 62 (2011)).

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Plaintiff fails to provide any specific factual allegations or evidence to support that

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any Defendant failed to properly train Defendant Scharr. He does not specify in his

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Complaint, Opposition to Defendants’ Motion or in his deposition testimony in the record

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how the alleged lack of training led to the events giving rise to this action. It appears that

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Plaintiff is merely speculating that a lack of training led to the assault by inmate Muci

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and speculation is insufficient to create a triable issue of material fact. Plaintiff has not

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pointed to any evidence in the record that any named Defendant was deliberately

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indifferent to the need for training. Plaintiff implies, without any evidentiary support, that

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Scharr made the decisions to move inmates to different cells but lacked the authority to

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do so. He does not set forth any evidence that Scharr made decisions that exceeded his

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authority or that his decisions were made due to a lack of training by Defendants.

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Accordingly, Defendants’ Motion for Summary Judgment as to Plaintiff’s failure
to train claims is GRANTED pursuant to FED.R.CIV.P. 56.

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D.

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Plaintiff seeks to bring Fourteenth Amendment substantive due process claims

Fourteenth Amendment claims

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based on the same set of facts that gave rise to his Eighth Amendment claims. “Where a

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particular Amendment ‘provides an explicit textual source of constitutional protection’

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against a particular sort of government behavior, ‘that Amendment, not the more

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generalized notion of “substantive due process,” must be the guide of analyzing these

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claims.” Albright v. Oliver, 510 U.S. 266, 273 (1994) (quoting Graham v. Connor, 490

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U.S. 386, 395 (1989)). “[I]f a constitutional claim is covered by a specific constitutional

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provision, such as the Fourth or Eighth Amendment, the claim must be analyzed under

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the standard appropriate to that specific provision, not under the rubric of substantive due

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process.” United States v. Lanier, 520 U.S. 259, 272 n. 7 (1997). Here, Plaintiff’s

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Fourteenth Amendment “state created danger” allegations are based on the same set of

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facts he has brought his claims of violation of the Eighth Amendment’s prohibition of
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cruel and unusual punishment and thus, his claims should be analyzed under the Eighth

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Amendment.

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Therefore, Defendants’ Motion for Summary Judgment as to Plaintiff’s Fourteenth
Amendment claims is GRANTED pursuant to FED.R.CIV.P. 56.

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E.

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Defendants also move for summary judgment on the ground that they are entitled

Qualified Immunity and Exhaustion of Administrative Remedies

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to qualified immunity. Because the Court has found that Defendants are entitled to

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summary judgment as to all of Plaintiff’s claims, it need not reach any issues regarding

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qualified immunity. See Saucier v. Katz, 533 U.S. 194, 201 (2001) (“If no constitutional

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right would have been violated were the allegations established, there is no necessity for

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further inquiries concerning qualified immunity.”); County of Sacramento v. Lewis, 523

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U.S. 833, 841 n.5 (1998) (“[The better approach to resolving cases in which the defense

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of qualified immunity is raised is to determine first whether the plaintiff has alleged the

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deprivation of a constitutional right at all.”).

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In addition, to the extent that Defendants seek summary judgment of Plaintiff’s

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claims based on the argument that Plaintiff did not exhaust his administrative remedies

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prior to filing this action pursuant to 42 U.S.C. § 1997e, the Court also finds that it need

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not reach this issue as the Court has found that Defendants are entitled to summary

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judgment as to all of Plaintiff’s claims.

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IV.

Conclusion and Order

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For all the reasons explained, the Court:

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GRANTS Defendants’ Motion for Summary Judgment pursuant to Fed.R.Civ.P.

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56. The Clerk of Court is directed to enter judgment for all Defendants and close the file.
IT IS SO ORDERED.
Dated: July 14, 2021

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