KENNETH M. KARAS, District Judge.
Plaintiff Nakia Rose ("Plaintiff"), currently incarcerated at Green Haven Correctional Facility, filed the instant Complaint, pursuant to 42 U.S.C. § 1983, against Superintendent William A. Lee ("Lee"), Deputy Superintendent of Security Edward R. Burnett ("Burnett"), Correction Officer Paul D. Miller ("C.O. Miller"), and Registered Nurse Warren Miller ("Nurse Miller") (collectively, "Defendants"), and several other Correction Officers and Sergeants at Green Haven. (Compl. (Dkt. No. 2).) Plaintiff alleges that Defendants violated Plaintiff's rights under the Eighth and Fourteenth Amendments of the U.S. Constitution because Lee and Burnett failed to protect him from an assault by correction officers, C.O. Miller wrote a false disciplinary report after the assault causing Plaintiff to be placed in solitary confinement, and Nurse Miller falsified his medical records to cover up the assault. (See generally Compl.)
Before the Court is Defendants' partial Motion To Dismiss the Complaint Pursuant to Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 12(b)(6). (See Notice of Mot. To Dismiss (Dkt. No. 36); Mem. of Law in Support of Defs.' Mot. to Dismiss ("Defs.' Mem.") (Dkt. No. 37).)
The following facts are drawn from Plaintiff's Complaint, (Dkt. No. 2), and are taken as true for the purpose of resolving the instant Motion.
On September 14, 2014 at approximately 6:20 pm, Plaintiff was locked in cell number 147, "the fifth cell from the front door," in the H-Block Housing Unit at Green Haven Correctional Facility. (Id. at II(C), (D) ¶ 1.) "[P]laintiff's cell opened, [and] he and 3 prisoners exited H-Block to proceed to the exercise yard." (Id. at II(D) ¶ 2.) "Plaintiff was [t]hen immediately surrounded by several security staff," and C.O. Miller gave him "loud boisterous orders to place his hands high on the wall." (Id.) "[P]laintiff immediately complied." (Id.) "The other prisoners were ordered to return back into the Housing Unit," and "the . . . door was slammed shut." (Id.)
"Plaintiff was th[e]n surrounded by" C.O. Miller, additional Correction Officers Warren Freeman ("Freeman") and Robert J. Cocuzza ("Cocuzza"), and Correctional Sergeants O. Garritt ("Garritt") and John Dole. (Id. ¶ 3.) C.O. Miller was on Plaintiff's right side, Freeman on his left side, and Cocuzza was behind him. (Id.) Correction Officers Daniel J. Lavelle and Za'Quawn Griset were "also in the immediate area." (Id.) "While [P]lainitff's hands remained high and flat on the wall, [C.O. Miller] punched [P]laintiff in the face" on his "right side," and Plaintiff was "told `You better not take your hands off that fucking wall.'" (Id. ¶ 4.) Freeman then "punched [P]laintiff in the face" on the "left side." (Id. ¶ 5.) Garritt gave an "order to take [P]laintiff to [the] floor," and C.O. Miller "then placed his arm around [P]laintiff's neck" in a "[h]eadlock" and "slammed [P]laintiff down to the floor," where he "was immediately handcuffed." (Id.) "Plaintiff was th[e]n beaten by several of [D]efendants." (Id. ¶ 6.) He "was kicked, knelt upon and punched several times all over his body." (Id.) "Freeman grabbed [P]laintiff's right ankle and began twisting it." (Id.)
Superintendent Lee, who worked in his position from 2009 through 2014, and Deputy Superintendent of Security Burnett, who worked at Green Haven "for at least 15 years," were "well aware of . . . various inmates['] complaints filed against [Freeman] (whom has [been] employed in [Green Haven] for over 10 years)." (Id. ¶ 13.) However, Lee and Burnett "failed to take appropriate measures to deal with this problematic employee." (Id.) Similarly, C.O. Miller had been "named in various complaints involving use of force, etc.," which "the [Green Haven] Administration [was] familiar with," but the complaints "fell on dead ears." (Id. ¶ 14.) "As a direct result of [Lee and Burnett's] inaction . . . [C.O. Miller's and Freeman's] actions [were] in essence condoned at the highest level inside [Green Haven] whereas [C.O. Miller and Freeman] feel[] comfortable in continuing to break the law because [Green Haven's] Chief Executive Officer and Executive Staff are going to protect [them]." (Id. ¶¶ 13-14.)
After the incident, "Plaintiff was taken and admitted into the Special Housing Unit ([`]SHU[']) and was medically examined by . . . Nurse Miller, RN." (Id. ¶ 7.) "During the medical examination, [P]laintiff gave a detailed description of what happened to him" and his "pains" and "injuries." (Id.) His "detailed description included telling [Nurse Miller] that he [wa]s having excruciating pain in his jaw, severe pain in [his] right shoulder, lower back[,] and his right ankle[,] and how these injuries came about ([p]rison guard abuse)." (Id. ¶ 8.) During the medical examination, "plaintiff's face was visibly bruised and swollen," and his body was "visibly bruised." (Id. ¶ 8.)
"On September 22, 2014, [P]laintiff was issued a Tier III Misbehavior Report, reported by [C.O. Miller] on September 14, 2014." (Id. ¶ 9.) The Report, which was "falsified," (Id. ¶ 16), charged Plaintiff with violating several Department of Corrections and Community Services ("DOCCS") rules, including violent conduct, creating a disturbance, refusing a direct order, and refusing a search or frisk, (id. ¶ 9). Plaintiff had a Tier III Hearing which lasted from September 26 through October 2, 2014. (Id. ¶ 10.) Captain R. Harris, who conducted the hearing, found Plaintiff "Not Guilty" of all the charges except refusing a direct order, "and imposed a disposition of 9 [d]ays of SHU confinement; 9 [d]ays of [l]oss of [p]ackages; 9 [d]ays [l]oss of [c]ommissary and 9 [d]ays [l]oss of [p]hones," to run from September 26 through October 5, 2014. (Id.) On December 18, 2014, this "Guilty Disposition" was reversed, and all references to the incident were ordered "expunged from [P]laintiff's records." (Id. ¶ 11.)
However, Plaintiff had already spent 21 days in SHU, from which he was released on October 3, 2014. (Id. ¶ 12.) Upon his release, Plaintiff was "returned back to the general population" in the J-Block. (Id.) On October 6, 2014, he "went to Sick-Call," and two days later, "was seen by a Medical Provider (Ms. Welsh)." (Id.) Plaintiff then "became aware that his [m]edical files did not accurately reflect what [he] had told to the nurse ([Nurse Miller]) on September 14, 2014." (Id.) Nurse Miller "purposely omitted his detailed description and by doing so . . . failed in his medical professional responsibilities to accurately record [P]laintiff['s] account o[f] how he suffered these injuries." (Id.)
Plaintiff filed the Complaint on May 13, 2016. (Compl. (Dkt. No. 2).) The Court initially granted Plaintiff's pro se request to proceed in forma pauperis on June 7, 2016, (Dkt. No. 5), and issued two Orders of Service directing service on Defendants, (see Dkt. Nos. 7, 24). After all Defendants were served, (see Dkt. Nos. 10-13, 18-19, 25-26), Defendants requested an extension of time to answer or move against the Complaint, (Letter from Paulina A. Stamatelos, Esq. to the Court (May 3, 2017) (Dkt. No. 28)), which the Court granted, (Dkt. No. 29). On June 19, 2017, Valeria A. Gheorghiu, Esq. filed a notice of appearance on behalf of Plaintiff. (Dkt. No. 30.) On June 22, 2017, the Court denied Defendants' request for another extension and ordered them to respond to a purported amended complaint within 20 days. (Dkt. No. 32.) However, on July 25, 2017, Defendants informed the Court that Plaintiff's counsel "would not be filing an amended complaint and will treat Plaintiff's pro se complaint as the operative complaint." (Letter from Paulina A. Stamatelos, Esq. to the Court (July 25, 2017) (Dkt. No. 33).) The Court approved the Parties' proposed briefing schedule in a memo endorsement. (Dkt. No. 34.)
On August 2, 2017, certain Defendants, including C.O. Miller, filed an Answer. (Answer (Dkt. No. 35.) The same day, Defendants filed a partial Motion To Dismiss and an accompanying memorandum. (Notice of Mot. To Dismiss; Defs.' Mem.) On October 4, 2017, Plaintiff filed a motion for an extension of time to file opposition papers, which the Court granted. (See Letter from Michael H. Sussman, Esq. to Court (Oct. 4, 2017) (Dkt. No. 45)); Dkt. No. 47.) Plaintiff subsequently filed a memorandum of law in opposition to the Motion To Dismiss, (Pl.'s Mem. of Law in Opp. to Defs.' Mot. for Partial Dismissal ("Pl.'s Mem.") (Dkt. No. 48)), and Defendants filed a reply memorandum in support of their Motion, (Reply Mem. of Law in Supp. of Mot. To Dismiss ("Defs.' Reply") (Dkt. No. 49)).
The Supreme Court has held that although a complaint "does not need detailed factual allegations" to survive a motion to dismiss, "a plaintiff's obligation to provide the grounds of his entitlement to relief requires more than labels and conclusions, and a formulaic recitation of the elements of a cause of action will not do." Bell Atl. Corp. v. Twombly, 550 U.S. 544, 555 (2007) (alteration and internal quotation marks omitted). Indeed, Rule 8 of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure "demands more than an unadorned, the-defendant-unlawfully-harmed-me accusation." Ashcroft v. Iqbal, 556 U.S. 662, 678 (2009) (internal quotation marks omitted). "Nor does a complaint suffice if it tenders naked assertions devoid of further factual enhancement." Id. (alteration and internal quotation marks omitted). Instead, a complaint's "[f]actual allegations must be enough to raise a right to relief above the speculative level." Twombly, 550 U.S. at 555. Although "once a claim has been stated adequately, it may be supported by showing any set of facts consistent with the allegations in the complaint," id. at 563, and a plaintiff must allege "only enough facts to state a claim to relief that is plausible on its face," id. at 570, if a plaintiff has not "nudged [his or her] claims across the line from conceivable to plausible, the[] complaint must be dismissed," id.; see also Iqbal, 556 U.S. at 679 ("Determining whether a complaint states a plausible claim for relief will . . . be a context-specific task that requires the reviewing court to draw on its judicial experience and common sense. But where the well-pleaded facts do not permit the court to infer more than the mere possibility of misconduct, the complaint has alleged—but it has not `show[n]'—`that the pleader is entitled to relief.'" (citation omitted) (second alteration in original) (quoting Fed. R. Civ. P. 8(a)(2))); id. at 678-79 ("Rule 8 marks a notable and generous departure from the hypertechnical, code-pleading regime of a prior era, but it does not unlock the doors of discovery for a plaintiff armed with nothing more than conclusions.").
In considering Defendants' Motion To Dismiss, the Court is required to "accept as true all of the factual allegations contained in the [C]omplaint." Erickson v. Pardus, 551 U.S. 89, 94 (2007) (per curiam); see also Nielsen v. Rabin, 746 F.3d 58, 62 (2d Cir. 2014) (same). And, the Court must "draw[] all reasonable inferences in favor of the plaintiff." Daniel v. T & M Prot. Res., Inc., 992 F.Supp.2d 302, 304 n.1 (S.D.N.Y. 2014) (citing Koch v. Christie's Int'l PLC, 699 F.3d 141, 145 (2d Cir. 2012)).
Defendants Lee and Burnett argue that the Complaint should be dismissed against them because they were not personally involved in the alleged violation of Plaintiff's Eighth Amendment rights. (Defs.' Mem. 6-10.) "It is well settled that, in order to establish a defendant's individual liability in a suit brought under § 1983, a plaintiff must show. . . the defendant's personal involvement in the alleged constitutional deprivation." Grullon v. City of New Haven, 720 F.3d 133, 138 (2d Cir. 2013). To establish personal involvement, a plaintiff must show that:
Id. at 139 (italics and internal quotation marks omitted). In other words, "because vicarious liability is inapplicable to . . . § 1983 suits, a plaintiff must plead that each Government-official defendant, through the official's own individual actions, has violated the Constitution." Iqbal, 556 U.S. at 676. Therefore, Plaintiff must plausibly allege that each of the Defendants' actions fall into one of the five categories identified above. See Lebron v. Mrzyglod, No. 14-CV-10290, 2017 WL 365493, at *4 (S.D.N.Y. Jan. 24, 2017) (holding that the five categories "still control[] with respect to claims that do not require a showing of discriminatory intent" post-Iqbal).
Plaintiff has failed to satisfy this standard as to Lee and Burnett. The Complaint does not allege their direct participation in the alleged use of excessive force. See Provost v. City of Newburgh, 262 F.3d 146, 155 (2d Cir. 2001) (explaining that direct participation involves "intentional participation in the conduct constituting a violation of the victim's rights by one who knew of the facts rendering it illegal"). Instead, the Complaint alleges that Lee and Burnett were "well aware of the various inmate[] complaints filed against" Freeman, who had worked at Green Haven for over 10 years, but "failed to take appropriate measures to deal with this problematic employee." (Compl. II(D) ¶ 13.) However, Plaintiff does not allege how many complaints there were, what conduct was described in the complaints, when the complaints were filed, and if any of them were filed by Plaintiff. Similarly, while the Complaint also alleges that Lee and Burnett were "familiar" with "various complaints involving use of force, etc." filed against C.O. Miller, it provides no additional details about these complaints. (Id. ¶ 14.) For example, Plaintiff says nothing about whether these complaints were ever substantiated. Nor does the Complaint allege how Lee and Burnett were made aware of these complaints, aside from listing their positions and how long they have worked at Green Haven. (Id. ¶ 13.) And, the Complaint does not allege when they became aware of these complaints—before, or after, the alleged assault on Plaintiff.
However, to the extent Plaintiff alleges that Lee and Burnett were aware of the violent proclivities of Freeman and C.O. Miller before the excessive force incident, the Complaint does not plausibly allege that Lee and Burnett were personally on notice of the likelihood that they would assault Plaintiff. See Wright v. Smith, 21 F.3d 496, 501 (2d Cir. 1994) (concluding that the defendant's receipt of a letter from plaintiff generally complaining about the conditions of confinement was insufficient to put defendant "on actual or constructive notice of the violation"); Parris v. New York State Dep't Corr. Servs., 947 F.Supp.2d 354, 364 (S.D.N.Y. 2013) ("Allegations as to [the] defendants' knowledge of alleged constitutional violations are insufficient to impose supervisory liability under § 1983 unless accompanied by allegations that the defendants had direct responsibility for monitoring the alleged violation or that there had been a history of previous episodes putting the defendants on notice of the problem." (internal quotation marks omitted)); Rahman v. Fischer, No. 08-CV-4368, 2010 WL 1063835, at *5 (S.D.N.Y. Mar. 22, 2010) (finding allegation that defendant "received `several' complaints of staff assaulting prisoners" as "an insufficient allegation of notice of any policy or custom of assaults by correction officers"); id. (explaining that allegation that defendant's "`office' received fifty reports of assaults on staff prior to" the incident was insufficient to allege that the defendant "was personally on notice of a condition that could reasonably lead to an assault of an inmate like [the plaintiff]"); cf. Chamberlain v. City of White Plains, 986 F. Supp. 2d. 363, 394-95 (S.D.N.Y. 2013) (explaining that the fact that the defendant "foresaw the possibility that lethal force could become necessary, depending how events unfolded, is not enough to make him responsible for [another defendant's] independent decision to" use excessive force). In other words, Plaintiff has not plausibly alleged that Lee and Burnett created or allowed the continuance of a policy or custom under which excessive force was used against inmates, that they were grossly negligent in supervising their subordinates, or that they were deliberately indifferent by failing to act on information indicating that excessive force was being used. Grullon, 720 F.3d at 139 (listing personal involvement categories).
Similarly, although the Complaint alleges that Lee and Burnett "failed to take appropriate measures," it does not allege what "measures" they should have undertaken to "deal with" Freeman, and what they were authorized to do "in their "[s]upervisory roles" that would have prevented the assault on Plaintiff. (Compl. II(D) ¶ 13.) The naked assertion that Defendants' alleged inaction "condoned" the use of excessive force by C.O. Miller and Freeman and made them feel "comfortable in continuing to break the law" is insufficient. (Compl. II(D) ¶¶ 13, 14.) Iqbal, 556 U.S. at 678 (explaining that a complaint does not "suffice if it tenders naked assertions devoid of further factual enhancement" (alteration and internal quotation marks omitted)). And, to the extent Plaintiff is attempting to hold Lee and Burnett liable merely because of their supervisory positions at Green Haven, (see, e.g., Comp. II(D) ¶ 13 ("Plaintiff is alleging that these 2 defendants in their [s]upervisory roles failed to take appropriate measures."); id. ("Freeman's actions [were] in essence condoned at the highest level inside [Green Haven] whereas Freeman feels comfortable in continuing to break the law because [Green Haven] Chief Executive Officer and Executive Staff are going to protect him."); id. ¶ 14 (same as to C.O. Miller)), this is insufficient to establish personal involvement under § 1983. See Wright, 21 F.3d at 501 ("Nor can [the defendant] be held personally responsible simply because he was in a high position of authority in the prison system."); Victory v. Pataki, 814 F.3d 47, 67 (2d Cir. 2016), as amended (Feb. 24, 2016) (same).
The Court therefore grants Lee's and Burnett's Motion to Dismiss for lack of personal involvement.
Defendant Nurse Miller argues that the Complaint fails to state an Eighth Amendment claim against him. (Defs.' Mem. 10.)
However, even assuming Nurse Miller had such a professional responsibility and violated it, this act alone does not violate the Eighth Amendment. The Complaint does not allege that Plaintiff received inadequate medical care at all, let alone as a result of Nurse Miller's purported omissions, and therefore does not satisfy the objective prong of the Eighth Amendment analysis. See Salahuddin v. Goord, 467 F.3d 263, 279 (2d Cir. 2006) ("The first inquiry is whether the prisoner was actually deprived of adequate medical care."). Nor does Plaintiff allege that Nurse Miller's failure to preserve an "accurate[] record" of Plaintiff's account of "how he suffered these . . . injuries" caused him physical harm, or that it is likely to do so. (Compl. II(D) ¶ 12.) See Salahuddin, 467 F.3d at 280 (asking "what harm, if any, the inadequacy [in treatment] has caused or will likely cause the prisoner"). And, although the Complaint alleges that Nurse Miller "purposely omitted" Plaintiff's description of the assault, it does not allege facts plausibly suggesting that doing so was "deliberatel[ly] indifferent," or, put differently," that he "fail[ed] to act while actually aware of a substantial risk that serious inmate harm will result." Canady v. Correct Care Sols., No. 15-CV-4893, 2017 WL 4280552, at *5 (S.D.N.Y. Sept. 25, 2017) (internal quotation marks omitted). Thus, the Complaint fails to state a claim for deliberate indifference to medical needs.
To the extent that Plaintiff believes the Complaint alleges an independent Eighth Amendment violation for the purposeful omission of information from Plaintiff's medical files without alleging any harm, physical or otherwise, the Court is aware of no caselaw supporting that position.
Plaintiff argues that Nurse Miller "purposely omitted" Plaintiff's descriptions of his injuries and the assault "to limit [Plaintiff]'s capacity to file and win an Eighth Amendment suit." (Pl.'s Mem. 12; see also id. at 9 (asserting that Nurse Miller's "[f]alse entries cover up the behavior of those who beat [P]laintiff"). This allegation is, once again, not in the Complaint. If adequately pled, these facts could potentially allege a § 1983 claim against Nurse Miller for conspiracy to violate his Eighth Amendment or First Amendment rights. However, because the Complaint does not allege an agreement between Nurse Miller and the assaulting Defendants— or any other actor, for that matter—to so violate his rights, or that the purposeful omissions caused him damage, it fails to state a § 1983 conspiracy claim. See Pangburn v. Culbertson, 200 F.3d 65, 72 (2d Cir. 1999) ("To prove a § 1983 conspiracy, a plaintiff must show: (1) an agreement between two or more state actors or between a state actor and a private entity; (2) to act in concert to inflict an unconstitutional injury; and (3) an overt act done in furtherance of that goal causing damages."); Thomas v. Demeo, No. 15-CV-9559, 2017 WL 3726759, at *12 (S.D.N.Y. Aug. 28, 2017) (dismissing § 1983 conspiracy claim because the complaint did not "provide even circumstantial allegations that the alleged conspiracy existed, much less any details as to the extent of the alleged agreement or how [the] [d]efendants collectively carried it out"); Tavares v. New York City Health & Hosps. Corp., No. 13-CV-3148, 2015 WL 158863, at *7-8 (S.D.N.Y. Jan. 13, 2015) (explaining that a plaintiff must allege that the defendants' destruction of documents "prevented him from litigating his underlying Eighth Amendment" claim in order to state a § 1983 claim for "a cover-up" that violated his "First Amendment right of access to courts").
Accordingly, Plaintiff fails to plausibly state an Eighth Amendment claim against Nurse Miller, and the claim dismissed.
C.O. Miller argues that the Complaint fails to state a due process claim against him for filing a false misbehavior report. (Defs.' Mem. 11-12.)
The Complaint alleges that on September 14, 2014, the day of the alleged assault, C.O. Miller filed "a Tier III Misbehavior Report" charging Plaintiff with violating several DOCCS rules, including violent conduct, creating a disturbance, refusing a direct order, and refusing a search or frisk. (Compl. II(D) ¶ 9.) The Misbehavior Report was issued to Plaintiff on September 22, 2014, and he received a Tier III Hearing four days later, on September 26, that lasted until October 2, 2014. (Id. ¶¶ 9-10.) The Hearing Officer found Plaintiff "Not Guilty" of all the charges except refusing a direct order, and "imposed a disposition of" 9 days of SHU confinement and loss of packages, commissary, and phones, to run from September 26 through October 5. (Id. ¶ 10.) Plaintiff spent 21 days in SHU and was released on October 3, 2014. (Id. ¶ 12.) On December 18, 2014, Plaintiff's "Guilty" disposition was reversed and his record ordered expunged. (Id. ¶ 11.)
As an initial matter, "a prison inmate has no general constitutional right to be free from being falsely accused in a misbehavior report." Boddie v. Schnieder, 105 F.3d 857, 862 (2d Cir. 1997); see also Bey v. Griffin, No. 16-CV-3807, 2017 WL 5991791, at *7 (S.D.N.Y. Dec. 1, 2017) ("It is well settled that a prison inmate has no constitutionally guaranteed immunity from being falsely or wrongly accused of conduct which may result in the deprivation of a protected liberty interest.") (alteration and internal quotation marks omitted)).
Plaintiff has "a due process right to a hearing before he may be deprived of a liberty interest on the basis of a misbehavior report." Boddie, 105 F.3d at 862; see also Freeman v. Rideout, 808 F.2d 949, 951 (2d Cir. 1986) (same). Although the Complaint alleges that Plaintiff was placed in SHU, that deprivation occurred only after he received a multi-day disciplinary hearing, at which he was found not guilty of several charges. (Compl. II(D) ¶ 10.)
Plaintiff argues that Boddie and its progeny do not apply here, where C.O. Miller's false report was filed to cover up an underlying Eighth Amendment violation. (Pl.'s Mem. 13-15.) However, Plaintiff cites no case for this proposition.
Therefore, the Court grants C.O. Miller's Motion to Dismiss the claim against him for filing a false misbehavior report, whether it falls under the Fourteenth Amendment Due Process Clause or the Eighth Amendment.
For the foregoing reasons, Defendants' partial Motion To Dismiss is granted. However, because this is the first adjudication of Plaintiffs claims on the merits, the dismissal is without prejudice. If Plaintiff wishes to file an amended complaint correcting the deficiencies identified above, Plaintiff must do so within 30 days of the date of this Opinion & Order. Failure to do so will likely result in the dismissal of these claims with prejudice.
The Clerk of the Court is respectfully requested to terminate the pending motion. (Dkt. No. 36.)
SO ORDERED.