Bell v. Schroder

W.D. Michigan

Bell v. Schroder

DecidedJune 20, 2025

Docket2:23-cv-00071

StatusUnknown

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Bell v. Schroder, (W.D. Mich. 2025).

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Opinion

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT WESTERN DISTRICT OF MICHIGAN NORTHERN DIVISION

DENZIL BELL, Case No. 2:23-cv-00071

Plaintiff, Hon. Hala Y. Jarbou Chief U.S. District Judge

v.

SARAH SCHRODER, et al.,

Defendants. /

REPORT AND RECOMMENDATION I. Introduction This Report and Recommendation (R. & R.) addresses Defendants’ motion for summary judgment. (ECF No. 61.) State Prisoner Denzil Bell, who is represented by counsel, filed a civil complaint asserting an Eighth Amendment claim pursuant to 42 U.S.C. § 1983, and a gross negligence claim pursuant to state law. (ECF No. 1.) The four remaining Defendants are Alger Correctional Facility (LMF) Warden Schroeder, Correction Officer (CO) Aaron, CO Dementer and Prison Counselor (PC) Salo.1 (ECF No. 32.) Bell says that while he was incarcerated at LMF, he shared a cell with Prisoner Jerry Edwards. Bell says that he requested a move to a different cell because he

1 The Court previously dismissed four Defendants due to Plaintiff’s failure to exhaust his administrative remedies with respect to his claims against them. (ECF No. 32.) It should also be noted that Plaintiff’s complaint (ECF No. 1, PageID.4) identified PC Salo as a CO. could not get along with Edwards. (Id., PageID.6.) Bell says that he broke his hand in a fight with Edwards on May 4, 2020. (Id.) Bell says that he sent numerous written requests (kites) and made oral statements regarding his risk of harm from

his cellmate Edwards. (Id., PageID.7.) Bell’s complaint does not specify dates of these communications, nor does it identify specific recipients of his communications. He simply alleges that he communicated with Defendants. (Id.) Bell further alleges that Defendants were “either verbally or by ‘kite’” informed that he faced a substantial risk of harm. (Id.) Despite Bell’s alleged requests to move to a new cell, he was not moved away from Edwards. Bell alleges that on May 31, 2020, he was awakened by Edwards after Edwards

began striking him with a sock with a padlock inside. (Id., PageID.7-8.) Bell says he awoke to find that he was tied to his bed frame, and that Edwards had cut, burned, and mutilated him with improvised weapons. (Id., PageID.8.) Bell says he was able to untie himself and fight back until members of the prison staff responded. Defendants argue that they are entitled to summary judgment on Bell’s Eighth Amendment claims because they were not deliberately indifferent to a serious risk of

harm and are further entitled to qualified immunity from liability. A review of the records before the Court demonstrates that Bell has not shown (1) that he was particularly vulnerable, (2) that Edwards was particularly threatening or violent, or (3) that Bell’s communications with the four remaining Defendants were sufficient to put them on notice that he faced a substantial risk of serious injury as a result of sharing a cell with Prisoner Edwards.

2 Thus, the undersigned respectfully recommends that the Court grant Defendants’ motion for summary judgment because no genuine issue of material fact exists on Bell’s Eighth Amendment failure to protect claim. It is further

recommended that the Court decline to exercise supplemental jurisdiction over Bell’s state law gross negligence claim. II. Rule 56(c) Materials Submitted by the Parties A. Bell’s Deposition The allegations in Bell’s complaint are set forth above. In his deposition, Bell testified that he initially asked to be moved from General Population (GP) to the Cedar Unit in LMF2 because the Cedar Unit “is a much better unit to be in, more

laid back, generally.” (ECF No. 62-3, PageID.309 (Bell deposition transcript).) Bell stated that after he arrived in Cedar Unit, he could ask to move back to the GP but that could “take several weeks.” (Id.) Bell says he thinks he asked someone if he could return to the GP between October 2019 and June 1, 2020, but he does not remember. (Id., PageID.309-310.) Bell met Edwards a couple of months before they became roommates in the Cedar Unit. (Id., PageID.309.) He did not have any

problems with Edwards. (Id.) Bell says that after the altercation on May 4, 2020, he asked CO Aaron and CO Dementer to move him to a different cell and “also kited administration to try to get moved out of that cell”. (Id., PageID.310.) Bell says that he and Edwards got along

2 Plaintiff’s complaint asserts that the events in this case took place in the Pine Unit. (ECF No. 1, PageID.2-3.) 3 until May 4, 2020, when “we got into an argument, and it escalated, and we fought.” (Id.) Bell asserts that he broke his hand during the fight. (Id.) Once they calmed down, Bell thought everything was fine or at least “hoped that we were.” (Id.)

Days later, Bell kited healthcare after realizing “there was a small break.” (Id., PageID.311.) Bell says that on the day he visited an orthopedic surgeon, he told an unidentified deputy warden that he and his cellmate had been in a fight. (Id.) Bell testified that this was the first time that he told an MDOC official that he had gotten into a fight.3 Bell explained his reasoning for not initially informing anyone about the fight: I really wasn’t sure what I was going to do about it. I wasn’t sure if I was just going to, you know, see it -- see if we would be able to continue to lock together or if I was going to try to move. I kind of felt like if my hand was broken, I might have to, you know, get moved. I was waiting to see if my hand was really broken or if it was just swollen for some reason. You know, it took me a -- a few days to, kind of, decide what I was going to do.

(Id., PageID.312.) Bell testified that he remained “cordial” with Edwards until May 31, 2020. (Id.) Bell says that he wrote a kite to Warden Schroeder explaining that he had gotten into a fight and requesting “to get moved from the situation, just trying to do the right thing to extricate myself from the situation.” (Id.) Bell says that he sent the kite sometime between the first fight on May 4, and the May 31 incident. (Id.)

3 Medical records provided by Defendants indicate that Bell was seen by the orthopedic surgeon on May 19, 2020. (ECF No. 62-4, PageID.324.) That report indicates that Bell said he broke his hand when he punched a wall. (Id.) 4 Bell says he never spoke with Warden Schroeder and has no way of knowing if she ever received the kite. (Id.) After Bell “went to medical and realized that [his] hand was broken”, he

decided to speak with CO Dementer because he knew “he had done friendly moves for people.” (Id., PageID.313.) Bell says that although he does not remember exactly what he told CO Dementer, he informed him about the fight and requested a move to another cell. (Id., PageID.314.) Bell says that he asked him again “a few times” about moving to different cell, but CO Dementer was noncommittal by responding only “We’ll see.” (Id.) Bell says that he next spoke with CO Aaron a couple of days after speaking

with Dementer. (Id.) Bell says that he told CO Aaron about the fight and that he wanted to do the right thing and move to another cell. (Id.) Bell says CO Aaron told him that there were no open bunks in the Unit and that “We’ll see, I – I’ll have to talk with the PC and we’ll see – we’ll see.” (Id., PageID.315.) Bell says he followed up with CO Aaron and was told “We’ll see” or “try to see” or “maybe.” (Id.) Bell believes that CO Aaron told him to write the Warden to try to expedite the

process. (Id.) Bell says that he “might have” sent a kite to CO Aaron or PC Salo. (Id.) Bell does not recall having a face-to-face conversation with PC Salo.

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