Cole v. McNaughton

742 F. Supp. 587, 1990 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 10636, 1990 WL 118663
CourtDistrict Court, W.D. Oklahoma
DecidedApril 25, 1990
DocketNo. CIV-90-633-W
StatusPublished
Cited by2 cases

This text of 742 F. Supp. 587 (Cole v. McNaughton) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, W.D. Oklahoma primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Cole v. McNaughton, 742 F. Supp. 587, 1990 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 10636, 1990 WL 118663 (W.D. Okla. 1990).

Opinion

ORDER

LEE R. WEST, District Judge.

This matter came on for hearing on the Motion for Temporary Restraining Order filed by the plaintiff, George M. Cole, D.O. After consideration of the arguments of counsel and the exhibits admitted into evidence, the Court makes its determination.

Findings of Fact

1. In 1982, plaintiff Cole was a doctor in the United States Army stationed at Fort Sill, Oklahoma, and practicing at Reynolds Army Community Hospital.

2. A medical quality assurance review was initiated by Colonel Larry Grabhorn, hospital commander, regarding Dr. Cole’s performance and activities. Major Edmund C. Landry, Major Jonathon P. Bacon and [588]*588Colonel Edwin H.J. Cams participated in the review.

3. The review generated certain documents including but not limited to

(a) a letter dated December 29, 1982, from Major Landry to Colonel Cams;

(b) a letter dated December 30, 1982, from Major Bacon to Colonel Cams;

(c) a letter dated January 3, 1983, from Colonel Cams to Colonel Grabhorn;

(d) a disposition form dated January 4, 1983, from Colonel Grabhorn to Dr. Cole;

(e) a report of the hearing committee dated February 15, 1983, regarding Dr. Cole’s professional activities;

(f) two letters dated March 14, 1983, from Colonel Grabhorn to Dr. Cole;

(g) the minutes of the credentials committee dated March 21, 1983;

(h) a letter from Colonel Cams to Dr. Cole dated March 30, 1983; and

(i) a letter dated May 11, 1983, from Colonel Grabhorn to Dr. Cole.

4. A transcript of the medical quality assurance review hearing conducted on January 24, 1983, was also made.

5. On September 23, 1988, Leland Stanley, through counsel, defendant Alexander McNaughton, sued Dr. Cole and others in the District Court for Garfield County, Oklahoma, for surgery performed by Dr. Cole on August 18, 1987, at Pawnee Municipal Hospital. Cole v. Stanley, No. 88-915. Discovery has occurred and Drs. Grabhorn, Landry and Bacon have been deposed. Trial is scheduled before The Honorable Richard Pickens, District Judge for Garfield County, Oklahoma, on April 26, 1990.

6. On February 14, 1990, Jeffrey Axel-rad, Director, Torts Branch, Civil Division of the United States Department of Justice, wrote to counsel for Dr. Cole and to defendant McNaughton and advised them that they had in their possession documents generated by the medical quality assurance review and that pursuant to title 10, section 1102 of the United States Code such documents were confidential and could not be used for discovery purposes or at trial. Mr. Axelrad closed his letter by stating that

“[sjince you are precluded from using the QA documents, I request that all of you immediately forward all copies of the QA documents to Judge Pickens. I have asked Judge Pickens to place all copies of the Army QA documents under seal.”

7. By letter dated the same date, Mr. Axelrad wrote Judge Pickens and advised him that through section 1102, “the United States Congress has mandated a prohibition against the discovery and admissibility of Army QA documents in litigation.” Mr. Axelrad informed Judge Pickens that he had written the attorneys involved in Stanley and had requested that they submit all documents to Judge Pickens. Mr. Axelrad then requested Judge Pickens, upon receipt of such records, to place them under seal.

8. By letters dated February 6, 1990, Drs. Bacon, Cams and Landry were reminded by George C. Baxley, Lieutenant Colonel, United States Army, of the prohibitions in section 1102 and of the penalties for willful disclosure of medical quality assurance records.

9. On March 7, 1990, counsel for Dr. Cole moved Judge Pickens to order all counsel in Stanley to surrender to Judge Pickens all documents in their possession relating to the Fort Sill medical quality assurance review. Judge Pickens denied the request.

10. The Final Pretrial Order filed by counsel for Dr. Cole and by defendant McNaughton and signed by Judge Pickens on March 5, 1990, in Stanley lists as plaintiffs exhibits the documents described in paragraph 3, subsections (a), (b), (c) and (g) of this Order.

11. The Final Pretrial Order also lists as witnesses for the plaintiff, Drs. Cams, Landry, Bacon and Grabhorn.

12. Prior to the filing of such pleading, defendant McNaughton on February 13, 1990, wrote to Lt. Colonel Baxley and to William A. Woodruff, Lieutenant Colonel, United States Army, and requested permission for Drs. Landry, Cams and Bacon “to testify to their factual knowledge of [Dr. Cole] exclusive of any ‘Quality Assurance’ [589]*589investigation” and advised that these proposed witnesses would not be asked “to divulge ‘Quality Assurance’ type testimony given at the hearing on Dr. Cole_”

13. Lt. Colonel Woodruff replied to defendant McNaughton’s letter by informing him that “[t]he witnesses are authorized to testify concerning their knowledge of [Dr. Cole] ... [but that] [t]hey are not authorized to testify concerning information that is classified, privileged, or otherwise protected from public disclosure.” He cautioned that “[t]he witnesses are not authorized to divulge quality assurance information.”

14. Lt. Colonel Woodruff also stated that “[i]t appears that Drs. Bacon and Landry developed their expert testimony in their capacity as civilian physicians. As such, we have neither the right nor the desire to either approve or disapprove their expert testimony.”

15. As of 1986, the Oklahoma Board of Osteopathic Examiners (Board), a defendant herein, maintained two files regarding Dr. Cole, one of which contained records which were subject to public disclosure. Apparently certain documents which reflected the events at Fort Sill were placed in the public-records file. As of April 20, 1990, all documents pertaining to Dr. Cole which were generated by the medical quality assurance review at Fort Sill or which contain information about the same have been placed in the Board’s restricted-access file.

16. The relief requested by Dr. Cole at the hearing includes

(a) a stay of the trial in the District Court of Garfield County, Oklahoma, until such time as the privileged nature of the medical quality assurance records can be determined by this Court;

(b) an order prohibiting the testimony of Drs. Cams, Landry and Bacon at trial;

(c) an order directing the Board to remove all medical quality assurance records from Dr. Cole’s public-records file;

(d) an order enjoining defendant McNaughton from publishing and/or disseminating any medical quality assurance records pertaining to Dr. Cole; and

(e) an order directing defendant McNaughton and counsel for Dr. Cole to deliver to this Court all medical quality assurance records in their possession and/or control.

Conclusions of Law

1. Subject matter jurisdiction in this action is grounded in title 28, section 1331 of the United States Code.

2. The Anti-Injunction Act (the Act), 28 U.S.C. § 2283, on which defendant McNaughton and the Board have relied, is not a jurisdictional statute.

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
742 F. Supp. 587, 1990 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 10636, 1990 WL 118663, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/cole-v-mcnaughton-okwd-1990.