Armijo v. Board of County Commissioners of the County of Socorro

CourtDistrict Court, D. New Mexico
DecidedMarch 22, 2023
Docket2:20-cv-00355
StatusUnknown

This text of Armijo v. Board of County Commissioners of the County of Socorro (Armijo v. Board of County Commissioners of the County of Socorro) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, D. New Mexico primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

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Armijo v. Board of County Commissioners of the County of Socorro, (D.N.M. 2023).

Opinion

IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE DISTRICT OF NEW MEXICO

IVAN ARMIJO,

Plaintiff,

v. Civ. No. 20-355 GBW/GJF

BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS OF THE COUNTY OF SOCORRO, et al.,

Defendants.

ORDER GRANTING DEFENDANTS’ MOTION FOR SUMMARY JUDGMENT

THIS MATTER comes before the Court on Defendants’ Motion for Qualified Immunity and Summary Judgment (the “Motion”). Doc. 82. Having reviewed the Motion, doc. 82, the attendant briefing, docs. 92, 96, 102, 103, 113, 114, and the supplemental briefing, docs. 122, 123, 124, 125, having conducted a hearing on the Motion, see doc. 126, and being otherwise fully advised, the Court will GRANT Defendants’ Motion. I. BACKGROUND Plaintiff’s claims arise from events surrounding the suicide of Edwin Armijo (“Armijo”), after Armijo was arrested on March 28, 2017 and while he was incarcerated at the Socorro County Detention Center (“SCDC”) between March 29 and March 31, 2017. Plaintiff initially brought claims in state court under the Wrongful Death Act of New Mexico, see doc. 1-1, but he later amended his complaint to include federal claims, see doc. 1-2. On April 20, 2020, Defendants removed Plaintiff’s First Amended Complaint for Wrongful Death to this Court. See doc. 1. On April 6, 2021, Plaintiff filed

the operative Second Amended Complaint for Wrongful Death, bringing claims for: (1) negligence under the New Mexico Tort Claims Act against Defendant Board of County Commissioners of the County of Socorro (Count I); (2) violation of the Eighth and

Fourteenth Amendments through 42 U.S.C. § 1983 against Defendant Mickaela Pargas (“Pargas”) in her individual and supervisory capacities (Counts II and III); and (3) violation of the Eighth and Fourteenth Amendments through 42 U.S.C. § 1983 against Defendant Tommy Diaz (“Diaz”) in his individual capacity (Count IV). See doc. 40 at 6-

9. On March 3, 2022, Defendants filed the instant Motion for Summary Judgment Based on Qualified Immunity in which they argue that Plaintiff’s Section 1983 claims

against Defendants Pargas and Diaz should be dismissed on the basis of qualified immunity. See generally doc. 82. Plaintiff filed a response on April 21, 2022, doc. 92, as well as two addendums to his response on April 26, 2022, and July 5, 2022, docs. 96, 102.

Defendants filed a reply on July 8, 2022, doc. 103, and Plaintiff filed a surreply on August 2, 2022, doc. 113. The Court held a hearing on the Motion on January 9, 2023. See doc. 126. Also on January 9, 2023, Plaintiff filed a Notice of Supplemental Authorities, doc. 122, and Defendants responded to this Notice on January 23, 2023, doc. 124. After

Plaintiff filed an additional Notice of Supplemental Authorities on January 25, 2023, doc. 125, the Motion was fully briefed and ready for decision. II. LEGAL STANDARDS

A. Summary Judgment Under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 56(a), this Court must “grant summary judgment if the movant shows that there is no genuine dispute as to any material fact

and the movant is entitled to judgment as a matter of law.” Fed. R. Civ. P. 56(a). The movant bears the initial burden of “show[ing] ‘that there is an absence of evidence to support the nonmoving party’s case.’” Bacchus Indus., Inc. v. Arvin Indus., Inc., 939 F.2d 887, 891 (10th Cir. 1991) (quoting Celotex Corp. v. Catrett, 477 U.S. 317, 325 (1986)). Once

the movant meets this burden, the non-moving party is required to designate specific facts showing that “there are . . . genuine factual issues that properly can be resolved only by a finder of fact because they may reasonably be resolved in favor of either

party.” Anderson v. Liberty Lobby, Inc., 477 U.S. 242, 250 (1986); see also Celotex, 477 U.S. at 324. In determining whether the movant has met its initial burden, the Court

construes the facts in the light most favorable to the non-moving party. See Scott v. Harris, 550 U.S. 372, 377 (2007). In so doing, the Court must keep in mind three principles. First, the Court’s role is not to weigh the evidence, but to assess the threshold issue of whether a genuine issue exists as to material facts requiring a trial.

See Liberty Lobby, 477 U.S. at 249. “An issue is ‘genuine’ if there is sufficient evidence on each side so that a rational trier of fact could resolve the issue either way. An issue of fact is ‘material’ if under the substantive law it is essential to the proper disposition of

the claim.” Thom v. Bristol-Myers Squibb Co., 353 F.3d 848, 851 (10th Cir. 2003) (internal citation omitted). Second, the Court must resolve all reasonable inferences and doubts in favor of the non-moving party and construe all evidence in the light most favorable to

the non-moving party. See Hunt v. Cromartie, 526 U.S. 541, 550–55 (1999). Third, the court cannot decide any issues of credibility. See Liberty Lobby, 477 U.S. at 255. “[T]o survive the . . . motion, [the non-movant] need only present evidence from which a jury might return a verdict in his favor.” Id. at 257. Nonetheless, at the summary judgment

stage, “[the non-movant’s] version of the facts must find support in the record.” Thomson v. Salt Lake County, 584 F.3d 1304, 1312 (10th Cir. 2009). B. Qualified Immunity

Summary judgment motions based upon the defense of qualified immunity are reviewed differently from other summary judgment motions. Martinez v. Beggs, 563 F.3d 1082, 1088 (10th Cir. 2009). Unlike a typical summary judgment motion, when a

defendant asserts qualified immunity, the burden shifts first to the plaintiff to show that: “(1) the defendant violated a constitutional right and (2) the constitutional right was clearly established.” Id. (citing Pearson v. Callahan, 555 U.S. 223, 231–32 (2009)). If both parts of this “strict two-part test” are met, the burden shifts back to the defendant

who must “show[] that there are no genuine issues of material fact and that he or she is entitled to judgment as a matter of law.” Clark v. Edmunds, 513 F.3d 1219, 1222 (10th Cir. 2008) (quoting Nelson v. McMullen, 207 F.3d 1202, 1205 (10th Cir. 2000)). If either part of

the two-part test is not met, the defendant will prevail at summary judgment. The Court may address the two prongs of the test in any order. Pearson, 555 U.S. at 236. The clearly established prong of the qualified immunity test requires the plaintiff

to prove that the defendant violated a right which was clearly established by relevant legal precedent at the time the right was violated.

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Related

Anderson v. Liberty Lobby, Inc.
477 U.S. 242 (Supreme Court, 1986)
Anderson v. Creighton
483 U.S. 635 (Supreme Court, 1987)
Scott v. Harris
550 U.S. 372 (Supreme Court, 2007)
Pearson v. Callahan
555 U.S. 223 (Supreme Court, 2009)
Nelson v. McMullen
207 F.3d 1202 (Tenth Circuit, 2000)
Sealock v. State Of Colorado
218 F.3d 1205 (Tenth Circuit, 2000)
Thom v. Bristol-Myers Squibb Co.
353 F.3d 848 (Tenth Circuit, 2003)
Mata v. Saiz
427 F.3d 745 (Tenth Circuit, 2005)
Clark v. Edmunds
513 F.3d 1219 (Tenth Circuit, 2008)
Martinez v. Beggs
563 F.3d 1082 (Tenth Circuit, 2009)
Thomson v. Salt Lake County
584 F.3d 1304 (Tenth Circuit, 2009)
Clark v. Wilson
625 F.3d 686 (Tenth Circuit, 2010)
Bacchus Industries, Inc. v. Arvin Industries, Inc.
939 F.2d 887 (Tenth Circuit, 1991)
Hunt v. Cromartie
526 U.S. 541 (Supreme Court, 1999)
Farmer v. Brennan
511 U.S. 825 (Supreme Court, 1994)
Cox v. Glanz
800 F.3d 1231 (Tenth Circuit, 2015)
Estate of Jimma Pal Reat v. Rodriguez
824 F.3d 960 (Tenth Circuit, 2016)
White v. Pauly
580 U.S. 73 (Supreme Court, 2017)
T.D. v. Patton
868 F.3d 1209 (Tenth Circuit, 2017)

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Armijo v. Board of County Commissioners of the County of Socorro, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/armijo-v-board-of-county-commissioners-of-the-county-of-socorro-nmd-2023.