Flemming v. Corrections Corp. of America

F I L E D
United States Court of Appeals
Tenth Circuit
UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS
July 22, 2005
FOR THE TENTH CIRCUIT
PATRICK FISHER
Clerk
VALLEE KENT FLEMMING,
Plaintiff-Appellant,
v. No. 04-6312
(D.C. No. 01-CV-1615-L)
CORRECTIONS CORPORATION OF (W.D. Okla.)
AMERICA; RENE WATKINS, Deputy
Warden for CCA; DR. STORY,
Defendants,
and
CURTIS BAKER, Medical
Administrator for CCA; HUSSEIN
TORBATI, Physician's Assistant for
CCA,
Defendants-Appellees.
ORDER AND JUDGMENT *
Before HARTZ , McKAY , and PORFILIO , Circuit Judges.
*
This order and judgment is not binding precedent, except under the
doctrines of law of the case, res judicata, and collateral estoppel. The court
generally disfavors the citation of orders and judgments; nevertheless, an order
and judgment may be cited under the terms and conditions of 10th Cir. R. 36.3.
After examining the briefs and appellate record, this panel has determined
unanimously that oral argument would not materially assist the determination of
this appeal. See Fed. R. App. P. 34(a)(2); 10th Cir. R. 34.1(G). The case is
therefore ordered submitted without oral argument.
Vallee Kent Flemming, proceeding pro se, appeals the district court’s grant
of summary judgment to defendants Curtis Baker and Hussein Torbati on two
claims in this 42 U.S.C. § 1983 action. We take jurisdiction under 28 U.S.C.
§ 1291, and we affirm.
Background
At the times relevant to this action, Mr. Flemming was imprisoned at the
Cimarron Correctional Facility in Cushing, Oklahoma. Both defendants-appellees
were employed at the Cimarron infirmary, Hussein Torbati as a physician’s
assistant and Curtis Baker as a registered nurse.
In June 2000, a urologist opined that Mr. Flemming had a kidney stone. In
the summer and fall of 2000, Mr. Flemming was tested and provided medication
for the kidney stone, and he was scheduled for a follow-up visit with the urologist
on February 28, 2001. During the fall and winter, however, Mr. Flemming
repeatedly complained of blood in his urine, and tests confirmed the presence of
blood. On February 17, 2001, Cimarron physician Dr. Storey directed that an
unannounced urine sample be obtained only by catheterization “in an attempt to
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rule out any possible urethral trauma (possibly self-inflicted) causing this gross
hermaturia.” R. Doc. 26, Ex. A, progress note dated 2/17/01.
On February 26, 2001, Mr. Flemming visited the prison infirmary,
complaining of pain in the right side of his lower back and abdomen and stating
that he was passing a kidney stone. According to Mr. Flemming, Mr. Torbati and
Mr. Baker refused to see him or treat him. Mr. Flemming had to seek assistance
from a prison chaplain and the assistant warden, who required that Mr. Flemming
be seen. When Mr. Torbati did examine Mr. Flemming, he opined that
Mr. Flemming did not show the symptoms of a person passing a kidney stone.
Mr. Torbati told Mr. Flemming that he would have to be catheterized for a urine
sample, but Mr. Flemming refused. Mr. Torbati then placed Mr. Flemming in a
medical observation cell, against Mr. Flemming’s will.
Approximately a half-hour later, Mr. Baker and a prison nurse visited
Mr. Flemming in the observation cell. According to Mr. Flemming, Mr. Baker
told him that, despite his overwhelming pain, he would not be treated or given
pain medication until he submitted to the catheterization. Mr. Baker promised
him that pain medication would be used for the catheterization and would be
provided after the procedure. Mr. Torbati, however, stopped the nurse from
injecting numbing medication and instructed him instead to place the numbing
medication on the catheter as a lubricant. When Mr. Flemming objected,
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Mr. Torbati told him that the medication would not be injected, and if that were
not acceptable, Mr. Flemming could return to the medical observation cell.
Because he did not want to remain in the observation cell without treatment,
Mr. Flemming allowed the catheterization to proceed. After the catheterization,
Mr. Flemming was allowed to leave, but he was not provided any pain
medication.
Mr. Flemming brought a § 1983 suit alleging Eighth and Fourteenth
Amendment violations arising from his medical treatment and events on and after
February 26, 2001. The district court granted summary judgment in favor of the
defendants in that suit, and Mr. Flemming appealed. This court affirmed in part
and reversed in part, holding that the district court appropriately granted judgment
to defendants on Mr. Flemming’s Eighth Amendment claims, but had neglected to
address two Fourteenth Amendment claims related to the events of February 26,
2001. Flemming v. Corrs. Corp. of Am. , 72 Fed. Appx. 776, 778 (10th Cir.
July 24, 2003). The court remanded for consideration of Mr. Flemming’s claims
of retaliation and deprivation of his right to consent to medical treatment. Id. On
remand, the district court denied Mr. Flemming’s motion for summary judgment
on the two claims, then granted defendants’ motion for summary judgment.
Mr. Flemming appeals.
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Analysis
“We review the district court’s grant of summary judgment de novo,
applying the same legal standard used by the district court.” Simms v. Okla. ex
rel. Dep’t of Mental Health & Substance Abuse Servs. , 165 F.3d 1321, 1326 (10th
Cir. 1999). “When applying this standard, we view the evidence and draw
reasonable inferences therefrom in the light most favorable to the nonmoving
party.” Id. Summary judgment is appropriate only “if the pleadings, depositions,
answers to interrogatories, and admissions on file, together with the affidavits, if
any, show that there is no genuine issue as to any material fact and . . . the
moving party is entitled to a judgment as a matter of law.” Fed. R. Civ. P. 56(c).
To defeat a motion for summary judgment, evidence, including testimony, must be
based on more than mere speculation, conjecture, or surmise. See Rice v. United
States , 166 F.3d 1088, 1092 (10th Cir. 1999). “Unsubstantiated allegations carry
no probative weight in summary judgment proceedings.” Phillips v. Calhoun ,
956 F.2d 949, 951 n.3 (10th Cir. 1992). Because Mr. Flemming appears pro se,
we construe his pleadings liberally. See Haines v. Kerner , 404 U.S. 519, 520-21
(1972) (per curiam).
I
Mr. Flemming first claims that the district court violated W.D. Okla. LCvR
56.1(A) by allowing the defendants to file a second summary judgment motion
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without leave of court. We review a district court’s application of its local rules
for abuse of discretion . See Hernandez v. George , 793 F.2d 264, 268 (10th Cir.
1986).
This court remanded Mr. Flemming’s claims for further proceedings
because the two remaining claims were not addressed by the district court in
granting judgment in favor of the defendants, and thus they had been left
completely unresolved. See Flemming , 72 Fed. Appx. at 778. Under these
circumstances, it was not an abuse of discretion for the district court to entertain
the parties’ motions for summary judgment on the two remaining claims, even
though the defendants had previously filed a dispositive motion.
II
Mr. Flemming raises several challenges to the district court’s decision to
grant summary judgment to defendants. He contends that the district court either
ignored his evidence controverting defendants’ factual statements or
impermissibly resolved genuine issues of fact. He also argues that it was
incompatible for the district court to hold that he was not entitled to summary
judgment because defendants showed that there were disputed facts, but then
grant summary judgment to defendants rather than scheduling a trial.
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A
With regard to Mr. Flemming’s argument that the magistrate judge adopted
the defendants’ version of the facts and ignored his materials controverting
defendants’ allegations, we have reviewed the materials that Mr. Flemming cites.
The controverted issues do not persuade us that the district court erred, however,
because they are not outcome-determinative, and thus are not genuine issues of
material fact as required by Fed. R. Civ. P. 56(c). “[T]he mere existence of some
alleged factual dispute between the parties will not defeat an otherwise properly
supported motion for summary judgment; the requirement is that there be no
genuine issue of material fact.” Anderson v. Liberty Lobby, Inc. , 477 U.S. 242,
247-48 (1986). “As to materiality, the substantive law will identify which facts
are material. Only disputes over facts that might affect the outcome of the suit
under the governing law will properly preclude the entry of summary judgment.
Factual disputes that are irrelevant or unnecessary will not be counted.” Id. at
248; see also Chasteen v. UNISIA JECS Corp. , 216 F.3d 1212, 1216 (10th Cir.
2000) (“A ‘material fact’ is one which could have an impact on the outcome of
the lawsuit, while a ‘genuine issue’ of such a material fact exists if a rational jury
could find in favor of the non-moving party based on the evidence presented.”).
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B
The district court did not err in granting summary judgment on
Mr. Flemming’s retaliation claim. This claim had two components. First,
Mr. Flemming alleged that Mr. Torbati, angry at Mr. Flemming for having the
chaplain and assistant warden intercede for him, required Mr. Flemming to
undergo catheterization, when Mr. Flemming was ready and willing to provide a
urine sample naturally. Second, Mr. Flemming alleged that Mr. Torbati placed
him in a medical holding cell in retaliation for Mr. Flemming’s exercise of his
right to refuse catheterization. To survive a motion for summary judgment on this
claim, Mr. Flemming must present evidence that would permit a reasonable jury
to find that Mr. Torbati retaliated against Mr. Flemming for his exercise of his
right to medical treatment and his right to refuse medical treatment. See Smith v.
Maschner , 899 F.2d 940, 949 (10th Cir. 1990) (establishing elements of
retaliation claim in case involving constitutional right of access to the courts).
Having reviewed the record, we do not believe that a reasonable jury could
find for Mr. Flemming on the evidence presented with regard to this claim. We
acknowledge, as urged by Mr. Flemming, that the actions were in close temporal
proximity to the assertion of Mr. Flemming’s rights. But even considering the
temporal proximity, as the district court concluded, no reasonable jury would find
that Mr. Torbati would not have taken either of the complained-of actions “but
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for” Mr. Flemming’s invocation of his rights. See Peterson v. Shanks , 149 F.3d
1140, 1144 (10th Cir. 1998); Smith , 899 F.2d at 949-50. The order for
catheterization, for example, was a directive from Dr. Storey that pre-dated
Mr. Flemming’s February 26, 2001, visit to the infirmary. Further, in light of
Mr. Flemming’s complaints about the pain he was suffering, there is insufficient
evidence that a retaliatory motive prompted Mr. Torbati’s decision to place
Mr. Flemming in the medical observation cell. We affirm the district court’s
decision to grant summary judgment to defendants on this claim.
C
The district court also did not err in granting summary judgment to
defendants on Mr. Flemming’s claim that his right to refuse medical treatment
was violated because he was coerced into consenting to the catheterization.
It is undisputed that Mr. Flemming actually consented to the procedure.
Further, he did so even after Mr. Torbati informed him that numbing medication
would not be injected prior to the catheterization. Unfortunately, Mr. Flemming
was faced with unattractive choices. We do not believe, however, that a rational
factfinder could conclude that Mr. Flemming’s right to refuse treatment was
violated. 1
1
Mr. Flemming complains that the district court did not consider the fact
that he named several witnesses, including the nurse who allegedly was present
(continued...)
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Further, to the extent that Mr. Flemming’s claim is based on the manner in
which the catheterization was performed or the results of the procedure (i.e., his
objection to Mr. Torbati’s decision not to inject numbing medication, his
contention that the procedure was more painful than it needed to be, and that he
suffered physical and psychological damages from the procedure), it crosses from
the realm of the Fourteenth Amendment into the realm of the Eighth Amendment
or medical malpractice. But his Eighth Amendment claims have already been
decided against him and will not be relitigated in this proceeding, and absent
deliberate indifference to a prisoner’s medical needs, medical malpractice
generally does not constitute a constitutional violation. See Estelle v. Gamble ,
429 U.S. 97, 106 (1976) (“Medical malpractice does not become a constitutional
violation merely because the victim is a prisoner.”). The district court dismissed
Mr. Flemming’s state law claims without prejudice, leaving him free to pursue
them in state court.
1
(...continued)
during the conversation with Mr. Baker in the medical observation cell. In the
district court, Mr. Baker submitted an unsigned affidavit that purported to reflect
the nurse’s testimony. (On appeal, he explains that the nurse refused to sign the
affidavit for fear of retaliation from his employer.) An unsigned affidavit,
however, does not constitute evidence under Fed. R. Civ. P. 56(e). See Mason v.
Clark , 920 F.2d 493, 495 (8th Cir. 1990). Moreover, the submitted affidavit does
not discuss the events that occurred after Mr. Flemming was placed in the medical
observation cell, and thus the affidavit would not assist Mr. Flemming with his
involuntary consent claim even if it were considered evidence.
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Conclusion
The judgment of the district court is AFFIRMED. The mandate shall issue
forthwith.
Entered for the Court
Monroe G. McKay
Circuit Judge
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