Robinson v. Byrne
Filing
73
ORDER AND OPINION RULING ON REPORT AND RECOMMENDATION adopting 64 Report and Recommendation and granting 58 MOTION for Summary Judgment. Signed by Honorable J Michelle Childs on 3/27/2015. (asni, )
IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
FOR THE DISTRICT OF SOUTH CAROLINA
ORANGEBURG DIVISION
Corey Jawan Robinson,
Plaintiff,
v.
Dr. Thomas E. Byrne,
Defendant.
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Civil Action No. 5:13-cv-2899-JMC
ORDER AND OPINION
Plaintiff Corey Jawan Robinson (“Plaintiff”) filed this pro se action pursuant to 42 U.S.C.
§ 1983. Plaintiff alleges that “Defendant Dr. Thomas E. Byrne [(‘Defendant’)] is reliable [sic]
for my Federal and State Constitutional rights violation of (1) Deliberate Indifference (2) 8th
Amendment (3) 14th Amendment (4) Conspiracy (5) Gross Negligence [and] (6) Medical
Malpractice.” (ECF No. 1 at 4.) This matter is before the court on Defendant’s Motion for
Summary Judgment. (ECF No. 58.)
In accordance with 28 U.S.C. § 636(b) and Local Rule 73.02, the matter was referred to
Magistrate Judge Kaymani D. West for pretrial handling.
On November 21, 2014, the
Magistrate Judge issued a Report and Recommendation (“Report”), recommending the court
grant Defendant’s Motion for Summary Judgment. (ECF No. 64 at 10.) This review considers
Plaintiff’s Objection to Report and Recommendation (“Objections”), filed December 8, 2014.
(ECF No. 66.) For the reasons set forth herein, the court ACCEPTS the Magistrate Judge’s
Report. The court thereby GRANTS Defendant’s Motion for Summary Judgment (ECF No. 58)
and DISMISSES Plaintiff’s Complaint (ECF No. 1).
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I. RELEVANT FACTUAL AND PROCEDURAL BACKGROUND
The court concludes upon its own careful review of the record that the factual and
procedural background found in the Magistrate Judge’s Report is accurate, and the court adopts
this summary as its own. (See ECF No. 64.) However, a recitation of the relevant facts and
procedural history is warranted.
Plaintiff is currently incarcerated at Lieber Correctional Institution, within the South
Carolina Department of Corrections (“SCDC”). (ECF No. 1 at 3). Plaintiff filed this action after
returning from a neurologist appointment on August 28, 2013, where he learned that he had been
taking Prednisone for too long, and that the neurologist had asked SCDC to refer Plaintiff to a
pulmonary specialist back in 2010. (Id. at 4.) Plaintiff states that he suffers from sarcoidosis,
glaucoma, and a stomach injury. (Id. at 6.)
Plaintiff filed his complaint on October 23, 2013, alleging that Defendant has not
properly assessed Plaintiff’s medical condition, and that the evidence shows Defendant has
conspired to deny and intentionally interfere with Plaintiff’s prescribed medication and treatment.
(Id. at 68.) Plaintiff further alleges his grievances have not been processed or responded to, and
that “Defendants [sic] has [sic] conspired to deny [Plaintiff] access to the court.” (Id. at 5, 10.)
Plaintiff seeks injunctive relief, including immediate outside treatment, as well as $100,000 in
compensatory damages, and $100,000 in punitive damages. (Id. at 10, 11, 13.) Furthermore,
Plaintiff seeks for this court to exercise its supplemental jurisdiction over his state law claims,
and a non-jury trial. (Id. at 13.)
On May 30, 2014, Defendant filed his Motion for Summary Judgment (ECF No. 58), and
on November 21, 2014, the Magistrate Judge issued the Report recommending the court grant
Defendant’s Motion for Summary Judgment and dismiss Plaintiff’s action (ECF No. 64). In the
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Report, the Magistrate Judge found that Plaintiff did not “offer[] any evidence that would
support a finding that Defendant intentionally or recklessly disregarded Plaintiff’s medical needs
or access to medical care.” (ECF No. 64 at 5.) Further, the Magistrate Judge found that
Defendant should be granted qualified immunity and that Defendant is entitled to summary
judgment under the Eleventh Amendment. (Id. at 9.) The Magistrate Judge also recommended
that, because Defendant is entitled to summary judgment on Plaintiff’s constitutional claims, the
court should “decline to exercise supplemental jurisdiction over any claim to relief asserted
pursuant to state law.” (Id. at 8 (citing 28 U.S.C. § 1367(c)(3)).)
Plaintiff timely filed an Objection to the Report (“Objection”) on December 8, 2014, and
objected to the Magistrate Judge’s findings regarding deliberate indifference to medical needs,
qualified immunity, and immunity based upon the Eleventh Amendment.
(ECF No. 66.)
Defendant timely filed a Response to Plaintiff’s Objection on December 29, 2014. (ECF No.
68.)
II. LEGAL STANDARD AND ANALYSIS
The Magistrate Judge’s Report is made in accordance with 28 U.S.C. § 636(b)(1) and
Local Civil Rule 73.02 for the District of South Carolina. The Magistrate Judge makes only a
recommendation to this court.
The recommendation has no presumptive weight.
The
responsibility to make a final determination remains with this court. See Matthews v. Weber, 423
U.S. 261, 270–71 (1976). This court is charged with making a de novo determination of those
portions of the Report to which specific objections are made, and the court may accept, reject, or
modify, in whole or in part, the Magistrate Judge’s recommendation, or recommit the matter
with instructions. See 28 U.S.C. § 636(b)(1).
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Objections to a Report and Recommendation must specifically identify portions of the
recommendation and the basis for those objections. Fed. R. Civ. P. 72(b). “[I]n the absence of a
timely filed objection, a district court need not conduct a de novo review, but instead must ‘only
satisfy itself that there is no clear error on the face of the record in order to accept the
recommendation.’” Diamond v. Colonial Life & Ins. Co., 416 F.3d 310, 316 (4th Cir. 2005)
(quoting Fed. R. Civ. P. 72 advisory committee’s note). “[W]hen objections to strictly legal
issues are raised and no factual issues are challenged, de novo review of the record may be
dispensed with.” Orpiano v. Johnson, 687 F.2d 44, 47 (4th Cir. 1982) (citing Braxton v. Estelle,
641 F.2d 392 (5th Cir. 1981)).
De novo review is unnecessary “when a party makes general and conclusory objections
that do not direct the court to a specific error in the [Magistrate Judge’s] proposed findings and
recommendations.” Orpino, 687 F.2d at 47 (citing United States v. Mertz, 376 U.S. 192, 84 S. Ct.
639, 11 L.Ed.2d 629 (1964); Pendleton v. Rumsfeld, 628 F.2d 102 (D.C. Cir. 1980)). Merely
restating arguments already heard and ruled upon by the Magistrate Judge is not a specific
objection. See Dreher v. South Carolina, No. CIVA 6:06-1298 PMDWM, 2007 WL 691387, at
*6 (D.S.C. Mar. 2, 2007). Furthermore, failure to timely file specific written objections to a
recommendation will result in a waiver of the right to appeal from an order from the court based
upon the recommendation. 28 U.S.C. § 636(b)(1); Thomas v. Arn, 474 U.S. 140, 155 (1985);
Wright v. Collins, 766 F.2d 841 (4th Cir. 1985); United States v. Schronce, 727 F.2d 91, 94 (4th
Cir. 1984).
As Plaintiff is a pro se litigant, the court is required to liberally construe his arguments.
Gordon v. Leeke, 574 F.2d 1147, 1151 (4th Cir. 1978). The court addresses those arguments that,
under the mandated liberal construction, it has reasonably found to state a claim. Barnett v.
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Hargett, 174 F.3d 1128, 1133 (10th Cir. 1999). However, the court will “not ‘assume the role of
advocate for the pro se litigant.’” Id. (quoting Hall v. Bellmon, 935 F.2d 1106, 1110 (10th Cir.
1991)).
A. Deliberate Indifference to Medical Needs
Plaintiff objects to the findings of the Magistrate Judge, contending that the Report “did
not fully address [the] issues contained in plaintiff[’s] 1983 civil action.” (ECF No. 66 at 2.) To
support this contention, Plaintiff merely reiterates and restates the arguments and evidence
already presented before the Magistrate Judge. As such, Plaintiff has not specifically objected to
the findings of the Magistrate Judge with respect to Deliberate Indifference to Medical Need.
See Dreher, 2007 WL 691387, at *6.
Even if Plaintiff had raised a specific objection to these findings in the Report, Plaintiff
has not presented sufficient evidence to prevent summary judgment on his cause of action for
deliberate indifference to medical needs. A charge of deliberate indifference to medical needs
requires a plaintiff to prove that a defendant knew of and disregarded the plaintiff’s objectively
serious medical need. See Farmer v. Brennan, 511 U.S. 825, 846 (1994).
“[A] ‘serious ... medical need’ is ‘one that has been diagnosed by a physician as
mandating treatment or one that is so obvious that even a lay person would easily recognize the
necessity for a doctor's attention.’” Iko v. Shreve, 535 F.3d 225, 241 (4th Cir. 2008) (quoting
Henderson v. Sheahan, 196 F.3d 839, 846 (7th Cir.1999)).
Negligence or malpractice in the provision of medical services
does not constitute a claim under § 1983. The standard for § 1983
liability is deliberate indifference to serious medical needs. Estelle
v. Gamble, 429 U.S. 97, 104–05 . . . (1976). Disagreements
between an inmate and a physician over the inmate’s proper
medical care do not state a § 1983 claim unless exceptional
circumstances are alleged. Gittlemacker v. Prasse, 428 F.2d 1, 6
(3rd Cir.1970).
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Wright v. Collins, 766 F.2d 841, 849 (4th Cir. 1985). A prison official is deliberately indifferent
to an inmate’s medical need (1) if the official has actual knowledge of a risk of harm to the
inmate due to the inmate’s medical condition; and (2) if the official recognizes that his actions
have been insufficient to mitigate the risk of harm to the inmate because of the inmate’s medical
needs. Iko, 535 F.3d at 241 (citing Young v. City of Mt. Ranier, 238 F.3d 567, 575–76 (4th Cir.
2001); Parrish ex rel. Lee v. Cleveland, 372 F.3d 294, 303 (4th Cir. 2004)).
Even if Plaintiff’s medical needs qualify as “serious,” Plaintiff has presented no evidence
that Defendant has been indifferent to Plaintiff’s medical needs. To the contrary, the record
clearly indicates that Defendant has continued to treat Plaintiff for all of Plaintiff’s ailments, and
that Plaintiff merely disagrees with the treatment prescribed by Defendant.
B. Qualified Immunity
Plaintiff does not raise a specific objection to the finding in the Report that Defendant has
qualified immunity other than to state “[q]ualified immunity is not appropriate.” (ECF No. 66 at
9.) Even if Plaintiff had raised a cognizable objection to this finding in the Report, Defendant is
entitled to qualified immunity.
Qualified immunity provides that “government officials performing discretionary
functions generally are shielded from liability for civil damages insofar as their conduct does not
violate clearly established statutory or constitutional rights of which a reasonable person would
have known.” Harlow v. Fitzgerald, 457 U.S. 800, 818 (1982) (citing Procunier v. Navarette,
434 U.S. 555, 565 (1978); Wood v. Strickland, 420 U.S. 308, 322 (1975)). To determine whether
qualified immunity is available to a defendant, the court must (1) determine whether the
defendant violated a constitutional right of the plaintiff, and (2) whether that right was clearly
established at the time of the alleged misconduct. Pearson v. Callahan, 555 U.S. 223, 232
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(2009) (citing Saucier v. Katz, 533 U.S. 194 (2001)). The district courts are “permitted to
exercise their sound discretion in deciding which of the two prongs of the qualified immunity
analysis should be addressed first in light of the circumstances in the particular case at hand.” Id.
at 236. “If the right was not ‘clearly established’ in the ‘specific context of the case’—that is, if
it was not ‘clear to a reasonable officer’ that the conduct in which he allegedly engaged ‘was
unlawful in the situation he confronted’—then the law affords immunity from suit.” Clem v.
Corbeau, 284 F.3d 543, 549 (4th Cir. 2002) (quoting Saucier, 533 U.S. at 201)).
The record reflects that, even if Plaintiff’s constitutional or statutory rights were violated,
Defendant performed his duties as a government employee in a reasonable manner and
Defendant was not aware of the supposed violation of Defendant’s rights. Therefore, Defendant
is entitled to qualified immunity.
C. Eleventh Amendment Immunity
Plaintiff’s sole objection to the Report regarding Eleventh Amendment immunity is that
“Defendant is being sued in his individual capacity . . . .” (ECF No. 66 at 9.) “The Judicial
Power of the United States shall not be construed to extend to any suit in law or equity,
commenced or prosecuted against one of the United States by Citizens of another State, or by
Citizens or Subjects of any Foreign State.” U.S. Const. amend. XI. “While the Amendment by
its terms does not bar suits against a State by its own citizens, [the Supreme] Court has
consistently held that an unconsenting State is immune from suits brought in federal courts by
her own citizens as well as by citizens of another State.” Edelman v. Jordan, 415 U.S. 651, 66263 (1974) (citations omitted). “It has long been settled that the reference to actions ‘against one
of the United States’ encompasses not only actions in which a State is actually named as the
defendant, but also certain actions against state agents and state instrumentalities.” Regents of
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the Univ. of California v. Doe, 519 U.S. 425, 429 (1997) (citations omitted). “[N]either a State
nor its officials acting in their official capacities are ‘persons’ under § 1983.” Will v. Michigan
Dep't of State Police, 491 U.S. 58, 71 (1989). Because Defendant was acting in his official
capacity as a physician for the South Carolina Department of Corrections at all times relevant to
this case, and because the State of South Carolina has not consented to be sued in this case,
Defendant is entitled to immunity under the Eleventh Amendment.
III. CONCLUSION
Based on the aforementioned reasons and a thorough review of the Report and the record
in this case, the court ACCEPTS the Report of the Magistrate Judge (ECF No. 64). It is
therefore ordered that Defendant’s Motion for Summary Judgment (ECF No. 58) is GRANTED
and this action is DISMISSED.
IT IS SO ORDERED.
United States District Judge
March 27, 2015
Columbia, South Carolina
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