Alvarado v. Mr. Sharpe et al

Filing 71

ORDER ADOPTING 69 FINDINGS AND RECOMMENDATIONS in full; denying 41 Motion for Summary Judgment. Signed by Judge Brian Morris on 7/25/2017. Mailed to Alvarado (TAG)

IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
FOR THE DISTRICT OF MONTANA
GREAT FALLS DIVISION

THOMAS ALVARADO,

CV-15-00005-GF-BMM-JTJ

Plaintiff,
vs.
ORDER ADOPTING FINDINGS AND
RECOMMENDATIONS

WARDEN CROSSROADS
CORRECTIONAL CENTER, et al.,
Defendants.

Plaintiff Thomas Alvarado, a federal inmate, filed a Complaint pro se
alleging violations of 42 U.S.C. § 1983. (Doc. 2.) Alvarado alleges that Defendant
staff members of Crossroads Correctional Center in Shelby, Montana
(“Defendants”) deprived him of various constitutional rights by denying him pain
medications and other medical treatment for an injured knee and finger. Id.
Defendants filed a Motion for Summary Judgment claiming that Alvarado failed to
utilize the administrative grievance procedure at the correctional center. (Doc. 41.)
United States Magistrate Judge John Johnston entered Findings and
Recommendations in this matter on June 21, 2017. (Doc. 69.) Neither party filed
objections.

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When a party makes no objections, the Court need not review de novo the
proposed Findings and Recommendations. Thomas v. Arn, 474 U.S. 140, 149-52
(1986). This Court will review Judge Johnston’s Findings and Recommendations,
however, for clear error. McDonnell Douglas Corp. v. Commodore Bus. Mach.,
Inc., 656 F.2d 1309, 1313 (9th Cir. 1981).
Judge Johnston outlined the Defendants’ administrative grievance
procedure, applied that procedure to the facts at issue, and determined that the
procedure remained unavailable for Alvarado. (Doc. 69 at 6-14.) The Court
excuses an inmate-plaintiff from participating in a generally required
administrative grievance procedure if that procedure stands effectively unavailable
to the inmate-plaintiff during the relevant time period. Albino v. Baca, 747 F.3d
1162, 1172 (9th Cir. 2014). Judge Johnston determined that the applicable
grievance procedure remained unavailable to Alvarado during the period following
his knee and finger injury. (Doc. 69 at 13.) Judge Johnston noted that the Bureau of
Prisons transferred Alvarado before his grievance forms were due and that prison
officials failed to make the forms available to him after his transfer. Id.
The Court has reviewed Judge Johnston’s Findings and Recommendations
for clear error. The Court finds no error in Judge Johnston’s Findings and
Recommendations, and adopts them in full.

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IT IS ORDERED that Judge Johnston’s Findings and Recommendations
(Doc. 69) is ADOPTED IN FULL.
IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that Defendants’ Motion for Summary
Judgment (Doc. 41), is DENIED.
DATED this 25th day of July, 2017.

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