MARCIA S. KRIEGER, District Judge.
As discussed in more detail below, the Consolidated Complaint
First, on January 3, 2007, members of the Arvada, Denver, Lone Tree, and Mountain View Police Departments, along with members of the Colorado State Patrol, were jointly participating in an Auto Theft Task Force, conducting a sting operation intended to capture unspecified subjects. Mr. Havens states that, as he was driving through the location where the sting was being conducted, his vehicle was rammed by a vehicle driven by Defendant Sandy without apparent justification. The collision initially pinned Mr. Havens' car against a snowbank, but almost immediately, a second vehicle, driven by Defendant Hernandez, struck Mr. Havens' car, freeing it from the snowbank and causing it to "lurch[ ] forward" and collide with a third vehicle occupied by Defendants Bickmore and Mayfield. Mr. Havens contends that when his vehicle hit the third car, Defendant Johnson fired several shots that struck Mr. Havens and caused him severe injuries, including permanent paralysis.
Mr. Havens further contends that following the shooting various individual Defendants "made false statements and falsified evidence and conspired together" to "wrongfully accuse Mr. Havens" of certain crimes. However, the Consolidated Complaint provides no details of what false statements each Defendant made, how each Defendant falsified evidence, or how the Defendants "conspired together." As a result of these statements, Mr. Havens states that he unwillingly plead guilty to unspecified criminal charges and was sentenced to prison.
The third instance allegedly occurred in conjunction with a parole decision. On January 22, 2010 the Colorado Board of Parole allegedly granted Mr. Havens medical parole. Just days before his release, however, Arvada "required" — through unspecified means — that Defendant Michaud and the Board of Parole revoke the offer of parole. Defendants Johnson and Ramirez (and perhaps Defendant Wick) offered to drop opposition to Mr. Havens' parole if Mr. Havens would agree to dismiss this suit and forego any other lawsuits relating to the shooting, but Mr. Havens refused. As a result of Arvada's opposition to his parole, Mr. Havens' medical parole was withdrawn and he remains in custody.
Mr. Havens asserts eleven claims for relief
The various Defendants have each moved to dismiss the claims against them, in part or whole. The Court will address each Defendants' arguments in support of those motions as part of its analysis.
Most of the Defendants seek dismissal of the claims against them for failure to state a claim under Fed. R. Civ. P. 12(b)(6), among other grounds. In reviewing a motion to dismiss pursuant to Rule 12(b)(6), the Court must accept all well-plead allegations in the Complaint as true and view those allegations in the light most favorable to the nonmoving party. Stidham v. Peace Officer Standards and Training, 265 F.3d 1144, 1149 (10
With regard to what must be pled to avoid dismissal, the Supreme Court in Ashcroft v. Iqbal, 129 S.Ct. 1937, 1949 (2009), described the standard that must be met as "facial plausibility." In this context, "plausibility" refers to the scope and degree of specificity of the allegations in the complaint. Khalik v. United Air Lines, ___ F.3d ___, 2012 WL 364058 (10
Iqbal suggests that one way for the Court to proceed when considering a Rule 12(b)(6) motion is for the Court to "identify[ ] pleadings that, because they are no more than conclusions, are not entitled to the assumption of truth. 129 S.Ct. at 1950. The Court's factual recitation set forth above is an attempt to do so. Once the complaint has been winnowed down to only those sufficiently-specific, non-conclusory factual allegations, the Court treats those allegations as true and proceeds to examine whether, under the controlling law, those facts are sufficient to state a claim.
The Court's factual recitation excludes conclusory statements. For example, the Court has disregarded a standard phrasing employed by Mr. Havens that attempts to sweep every possible law enforcement officer defendant into otherwise specific factual averments, such as where Mr. Havens states that Defendant Johnson "and/or another Defendant named herein or other as of yet unidentified law enforcement officer(s), which include the Defendant law enforcement officers named herein" fired shots at Mr. Havens. Such pleading is sufficient to allege that Defendant Johnson fired shots, but the Court declines to read this averment to state a claim by Mr. Havens that any of the other law enforcement Defendants fired shots as well. At best, Mr. Havens' generic assertion that other law enforcement Defendants might also have fired shots offers nothing more than the speculation that these other Defendants "conceivably" or "possibly" fired additional shots; it does not "nudge such claims" into the realm of "plausible."
Similarly, the Court has disregarded the Plaintiff's conclusory assertions of a "conspiracy" among the Defendants to fabricate evidence or statements, as the Plaintiff has pled nothing more than a "formulaic recitation" of the elements of a conspiracy. See Iqbal, 556 U.S at 1951, citing Bell Atlantic Corp. v. Twombly, 550 U.S. 544, 557 (2007) ("[T]erms like `conspiracy,' or even `agreement,' are border-line: they might well be sufficient in conjunction with a more specific allegation—for example, identifying a written agreement or even a basis for inferring a tacit agreement, ... but a court is not required to accept such terms as a sufficient basis for a complaint") (quoting DM Research, Inc. v. College of Am. Pathologists, 170 F.3d 53, 56 (1
Given the paucity of sufficiently-specific factual assertions in the Consolidated Complaint, the Court will forego its regular practice of addressing each Defendant's motion separately. Instead, the Court finds it more efficient to address Mr. Havens' claims seriatim, identifying which, if any, Defendants the Consolidated Complaint sufficiently states that claim against.
A § 1983 excessive force claim lies where a state actor effecting an arrest or detention resorts to a level of force that is unreasonable under the circumstances. Henry v. Storey, 658 F.3d 1235, 1242 (10
Mr. Havens has alleged two types of force used against him: Defendants Sandy and Hernandez each allegedly rammed Mr. Havens' car with their vehicles for no apparent reason, and Defendant Johnson fired shots that struck Mr. Havens. Both of these types of force have been found to support § 1983 excessive force claims in appropriate circumstances. See generally Scott v. Harris, 550 U.S. 372 (2007) (analyzing excessive force claim where police rammed defendant's vehicle during chase); Tennessee v. Garner, 471 U.S. 1 (1985) (excessive force claim resulting from police shooting of suspect). Thus, the Court finds that Mr. Havens' allegations that these particular Defendants employed the specifically-identified forceful acts against him, coupled with his assertion that there was no ostensible justification for such use of force, to be sufficient at the pleading stage to state a § 1983 excessive force claim against Defendants Johnson, Sandy, and Hernandez.
The Court does not find that Mr. Havens has adequately alleged a colorable excessive force claim against any other Defendant, however. The Consolidated Complaint contains no specific allegations that any of the other law enforcement officer Defendants engaged in either a vehicular or weapon-based use of force against Mr. Havens. Although Mr. Haven contemplates the
The Court has some difficulty in understanding Mr. Havens' ostensible claim for cruel and unusual treatment brought under the Eighth Amendment. In general, the Eighth Amendment is understood to afford rights to prisoners only upon the imposition of sentence; cruel and inhuman treatment administered between the filing of charges and the time of trial is generally understood to implicate a defendant's Due Process rights stemming from the 5
Mr. Havens' various response briefs do little to clarify address this issue. He acknowledges the Defendants' arguments that the Eighth Amendment applies only to inmates who have been sentenced upon conviction, but he argues — without any supporting citation or further explanation — that "such limitations are not contained in the Eighth Amendment." As the citations above make clear, this argument is without merit. He further argues, again without citation, that he was "in custody" as soon as he ventured into the area where the Defendants were conducting the sting operation, but, as discussed above, the relevant constitutional inquiry is whether charges had been lodged against him and whether he had been convicted and sentenced on such charges. Accordingly, the Court can conceive of no Eighth Amendment claim — or any other constitutional claim — that would address the events leading up to and including the shooting of Mr. Havens that would not entirely duplicate his excessive force claim.
Mr. Havens also makes a perfunctory argument that his Eighth Amendment claim also applies "to the wrongful revocation of his medical parole." Mr. Havens offers no meaningful explanation of his theory as to how his continued incarceration on an undischarged sentence constitutes "cruel and unusual punishment." Accordingly, all Defendants are entitled to dismissal of the purported Eighth Amendment claim.
Is it not entirely clear to the Court whether Mr. Havens intends to bring the third claim, sounding in municipal liability under Monell, against Arvada based on its failure to train Defendant Johnson, or whether he also brings that claim against the entities that employed and supervised Defendants Sandy and Hernandez as well. For purposes of this discussion, the Court will assume the latter.
Monell ensures that municipalities are not held vicariously liable for the unlawful acts of their employees under simple respondeat superior principles. Monell v. Dept. of Social Services, 436 U.S. 658, 691 (1978). Rather, municipal liability only arises when some official act (or failure to act) by the municipality itself caused or motivated the employee's unlawful act, such that the municipality can be said to be independently liable for its own conduct that brought about the injury. City of Canton v. Harris, 489 U.S. 378, 385 (1989).
Mr. Havens has invoked Monell by name and primarily offers a formulaic recitation that each of the employing agencies "failed to train, supervise and discipline their police officers . . . regarding the use of deadly force." But beyond that formulaic recitation, Mr. Havens has not alleged any specific facts that would nudge this claim from the possible to the probable. He does not allege that the Defendant entities' training programs have any affirmative constitutional deficiencies — i.e. that they are drafted in such a way as to encourage the use of force where circumstances do not warrant it. Instead, he appears to allege solely that the individual Defendant officers were not properly trained to follow otherwise constitutionally-compliant use of force policies enacted by the employing entities. Where the allegedly unconstitutional municipal custom or policy is a failure by the municipality to train or supervise police officers, a plaintiff must allege facts sufficient to demonstrate that such failures amount to "deliberate indifference to the rights of persons with whom the police come into contact." Walker v. City of Orem, 451 F.3d 1139, 1153 (10
Even assuming that Mr. Havens has adequately alleged that the agencies employing Officers Johnson, Sandy, and Hernandez maintained policies regarding the use of deadly force but failed to adequately train or supervise the officers with regard to those policies — a finding this Court does not make — Mr. Havens has nevertheless failed to allege facts that would demonstrate that such failure occurred in circumstances that could lead the factfinder to conclude that such a failure to train or supervise reflected deliberate indifference on the part of those agencies. He has not alleged any facts that would support an inference that those entities were: (i) aware that their training or supervision programs were not being adequately administered; and (ii) were nevertheless deliberately indifferent to the risk of constitutional deprivation that would result from these inadequacies. Without sufficiently-specific factual allegations on these points, Mr. Havens' Monell claims are deficient and thus are dismissed against all entity Defendants.
The precise theory behind Mr. Havens' Equal Protection claim is unclear. The Consolidated Complaint begins its discussion of this claim by quoting 42 U.S.C. § 1981, a statute that prohibits racial discrimination in the making and enforcement of contracts. It goes on to allege that Arvada and Defendant Johnson "discriminated" against Mr. Havens — the basis upon that discrimination was based is entirely unclear — and that they "had no rational basis" for, presumably, opposing his request for medical parole.
The Court begins by noting that, to the extent this claim seeks to invoke 42 U.S.C. §1981, Mr. Havens' claim is defective. To plead such a claim, Mr. Havens must allege, among other things, that he was discriminated against on the basis of his race in the formation or execution of a contract. Thornton v. Kaplan, 937 F.Supp. 1441, 1446-47 (D.Colo. 1996). Mr. Havens alleges that he signed a written parole agreement with the Colorado Department of Corrections on February 1, 2010, and as Mr. Havens does, the Court will assume, without necessarily finding, that agreement constituted an enforceable contract entitling him to release on parole. The Court will also assume, again without making a finding to this effect, that Mr. Havens' allegations that Arvada and Defendants Johnson, Ramirez, and Wick induced the Parole Board to refuse to honor that contract. However, Mr. Havens has pled no facts to suggest that these Defendants were motivated by Mr. Havens' race in doing so; as best the Court can ascertain, the Consolidated Complaint does not even identify Mr. Havens' race. Even if it did, Mr. Havens' own allegations clearly imply that the Defendants' motivation for preventing his release on parole were the result of animus against Mr. Havens for having filed suit against them, not simply because Mr. Havens was a member of some particular race. Thus, to the extent Mr. Havens intends his Equal Protection claim to assert a violation of 42 U.S.C. § 1981, it plainly fails to state a colorable claim.
Similar reasoning reveals a defect in Mr. Havens' attempt to assert such a claim under the constitution's Equal Protection clause as well. To assert an Equal Protection violation claim, Mr. Havens must allege facts showing: (i) that a state actor has intentionally treated similarly-situated individuals differently because of a particular classification that one of them possessed; and (ii) that such differential treatment lacks appropriate connection to a legitimate governmental purpose. SECSYS, LLC v. Vigil, 666 F.3d 678, 685-87 (10
Mr. Havens' request for an award of attorney's fees under 42 U.S.C. § 1988 is an item of relief, not a stand-alone "claim." Fees under that statute are only awarded to a plaintiff who prevails on another substantive claim; there is no independent and freestanding "claim" for attorney's fees. If Mr. Havens does indeed prevail on one or more of his claims, he may file a motion for attorney's fees in accordance with Fed. R. Civ. P. 54(d)(2) and D.C. Colo. L. Civ. R. 54.3 at the appropriate time.
Mr. Havens purports to assert a variety of tort claims under state law against various Defendants, including claims sounding in negligence, malicious prosecution, obstruction of justice, and civil conspiracy. All of these claims sound in tort, and thus, are governed by the Colorado Governmental Immunity Act ("CGIA"), C.R.S. § 24-10-106(1) (deeming public entities immune "from liability in all claims for injury which lie in tort or could lie in tort"); § 24-10-118(1) (applying to "any action against a public employee . . . which lies in tort or could lie in tort"). Among other things, that statute provides that a plaintiff seeking to assert tort claims against a public agency or public employee must first file a Notice of Claim within 180 days of the events at issue.
It is undisputed that Mr. Havens did not file a Notice of Claim with regard to any Defendant within 180 days of the events of January 3, 2007. His Consolidated Complaint contends that his commencement of this action in March 2009 suffices to meet the requirements of a Notice of Claim, and that in any event he filed a formal Notice of Claim on March 1, 2011. Mr. Havens argues that his medical incapacity resulting from the shooting left him unable to function for an extended period of time, thus forgiving his untimely Notice of Claim. This Court has previously determined that accrual of Mr. Havens' claims, for statute of limitations purposes, was tolled as a result of his incapacity under C.R.S. § 13-81-103. But, as noted above, the Notice of Claim requirement is not akin to a statute of limitations; rather, it is a non-claim statute that operates outside the reach of doctrines of tolling. Mesa County Valley School Dist. v. Kelsey, 8 P.2d 1200, 1206 (Colo. 2000). Indeed, Colorado courts have squarely determined that the incapacity toll of C.R.S. § 13-81-103 does not excuse noncompliance with the Notice of Claim statute. McMahon v. Denver Water Bd., 780 P.2d 28, 29 (Colo.App. 1989). Because he failed to file a Notice of Claim within the 180 day period, regardless of the reasons why, this Court lacks jurisdiction over any of Mr. Havens' tort claims against any of the Defendants.
For the foregoing reasons, the Motions to Dismiss by the State
Since then, the Plaintiff has filed a Consolidated Complaint
Thus, as far as this Court can ascertain, the Plaintiff has used the Consolidated Complaint in 09-cv-1380 to swallow up 11-cv-490 in its entirety. Rather than attempt to forcibly extract the newer case from the jaws of its older sibling, this Court will accede to the Plaintiff's apparent wish to proceed in only a single case, conducting all further proceedings via 09-cv-1380 and directing the Clerk to close 11-cv-490. The Court has endeavored to ensure that this Order addresses all motions currently pending in 11-cv-490, such that no further proceedings under that case number will be necessary. To the extent that there remain extant issues raised solely in 11-cv-490 following this Order, any Defendant who has made a motion in 11-cv-490 that hereafter remains unresolved is granted leave to refile that motion in 09-cv-1380.
Mr. Havens argues that his tort claims are also cognizable under C.R.S. § 29-5-111 (requiring municipalities and entities to indemnify police officers), and thus, "are not limited by the notice provisions of the Immunity Act." Citing Antonopoulos v. Town of Telluride, 532 P.2d 346, 349 (Colo. 1975). However, since Antonopoulos, the CGIA has been amended to expressly provide that the Notice of Claim requirements apply "whether [claims are] brought pursuant to [the CGIA],