Deric Lavelle May v. Penny Emmons

630 F. App'x 994
CourtCourt of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit
DecidedNovember 4, 2015
Docket14-15062
StatusUnpublished

This text of 630 F. App'x 994 (Deric Lavelle May v. Penny Emmons) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Deric Lavelle May v. Penny Emmons, 630 F. App'x 994 (11th Cir. 2015).

Opinion

PER CURIAM:

Deric LaVelle May, an Alabama prisoner proceeding pro se, appeals the district court’s grant of summary judgment in favor of defendants Penny Emmons, James Smith, and Ashley Wall, in his 42 U.S.C. § 1983 action. May first argues that the district court erred by granting summary judgment on his Eighth Amendment claim in favor of Emmons, Smith, and Wall after finding that May failed to establish that each defendant acted with deliberate indifference toward his serious medical condi- *996 tiop. May next argues that the district court abused its discretion in denying his motion to compel discovery. He argues finally that the district court’s summary judgment award did not satisfy the requirements of Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 56(e) because the magistrate judge issued a report and recommendation (“R & R”) earlier than the deadline originally provided to May, without notifying him of the change.

I.

In ruling on whether the district court erred in granting summary judgment in favor of Emmons, Smith, and Wall on May’s Eighth Amendment claim, we undertake a de novo review and apply the same standard the district court used in deciding whether summary judgment is appropriate. Burton v. Tampa Hous. Auth., 271 F.3d 1274, 1276 (11th Cir.2001). Summary judgment is appropriate only if there is no genuine issue of material fact and the moving party is entitled to judgment as a matter of law. Fed.R.Civ.P. 56(a); Celotex Corp. v. Catrett, 477 U.S. 317, 322, 106 S.Ct. 2548, 2552, 91 L.Ed.2d 265 (1986). We view the record in the light most favorable to the nonmoving party. Burton, 271 F.3d at 1277.

Relief is appropriate under § 1983 if a claimant proves that a person acting under color of state law committed an act that deprived him of a federal right. 42 U.S.C. § 1983. Deliberate indifference to a prisoner’s serious medical needs constitutes an Eighth Amendment violation and supports a cause of action under § 1983. Estelle v. Gamble, 429 U.S. 97, 104, 97 S.Ct. 285, 291, 50 L.Ed.2d 251 (1976). To prove a claim of deliberate indifference, a claimant must show: (1) that a condition of his confinement inflicted unnecessary pain or suffering, (2) the defendant was deliberately indifferent to that condition, and (3) causation. LaMarca v. Turner, 995 F.2d 1526, 1535 (11th Cir.1993). A prison official acts with deliberate indifference when he consciously disregards an excessive risk to a prisoner’s health or safety; and mere negligence is insufficient to support a finding of deliberate indifference. Farmer v. Brennan, 511 U.S. 825, 835-37, 114 S.Ct. 1970, 1978-79, 128 L.Ed.2d 811 (1994). A claimant must prove that the prison official possessed both knowledge of the danger and the means to cure the "danger. LaMarca, 995 F.2d at 1535-37.

The district court did not err in granting summary judgment in favor of Emmons, Smith, and Wall. May alleges that Emmons violated his Eighth Amendment rights by recommending that May not be transferred to a different prison facility that could provide better care for May’s medical condition. Emmons testified in a sworn affidavit that she did not know the specifics of May’s medical condition and saw no need to transfer May to a different facility because internal medical review procedures found May “generally healthy [and] stable.” May offered no evidence that Emmons knew of a danger to him or that she had a means to cure any danger by transferring him to another institution.

May asserts that Smith also violated his Eighth Amendment rights by interfering with the prison’s sick call procedures by tearing off the back of May’s sick call slip and returning it to May, in a manner that neglected May’s health. Smith testified in a sworn affidavit that he did not take May to the infirmary on the occasion in dispute because sick call was not conducted on the night shift, when Smith worked. Smith instead placed May’s name on the sick call list and gave May a copy of the request. May failed to present evidence that Smith’s actions harmed him: May admitted that his name *997 remained on the sick call list and he was taken to the infirmary the next day.

As to Wall, May claims that his Eighth Amendment rights were violated because Wall played the role of gatekeeper in denying May medical care. However, Wall testified in a sworn affidavit that she is a nurse with no power over whether an inmate is seen by a medical provider. Wall further testified that on the occasion in dispute May refused to be seen at sick call because he already had an outstanding appointment with a medical doctor. May failed to present evidence showing that Wall refused to triage him on any particular occasion, or that she had the authority to decide who the doctor saw such that she had the power to cure any danger that he may have been in. The district court did not err in granting summary judgment in the defendants’ favor.

II.

May next argues that the district court abused its discretion in denying his motion to compel discovery. A nonmoving party may demonstrate by affidavit or declaration that he cannot present facts essential to justify opposing a motion for summary judgment. Fed.R.Civ.P. 56(d). In such cases, “the court may: (1) defer considering the motion or deny it; (2) allow time to obtain affidavits or declarations or to take discovery; or (3) issue any other appropriate order.” Id. On August 20, 2014, the district court converted Wall, Smith, and Emmons’s answers and special reports in response to May’s complaint to a motion for summary judgment. In response, May filed a request for the production of documents, and then moved to compel discovery. The defendants moved to stay discovery until the district court ruled on their summary judgment motion. The district court then granted the defendants’ motion and denied May’s motion to compel discovery.

We review for abuse of discretion the district court’s denial of a motion to compel discovery. Holloman v. Mail-Well Corp., 443 F.3d 832, 837 (11th Cir.2006). A district court has a range of choices in deciding whether to compel discovery in response to a Rule 56 summary judgment motion. Id. We will not second-guess the district court’s actions in that regard unless they reflect a clear error of judgment. Id.

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Related

Connie Burton v. Tampa Housing Authority
271 F.3d 1274 (Eleventh Circuit, 2001)
Otis J. Holloman v. Mail-Well Corporation
443 F.3d 832 (Eleventh Circuit, 2006)
Estelle v. Gamble
429 U.S. 97 (Supreme Court, 1976)
Farmer v. Brennan
511 U.S. 825 (Supreme Court, 1994)
IRAOLA & CIA, S.A. v. Kimberly-Clark Corp.
325 F.3d 1274 (Eleventh Circuit, 2003)
LaMarca v. Turner
995 F.2d 1526 (Eleventh Circuit, 1993)

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Bluebook (online)
630 F. App'x 994, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/deric-lavelle-may-v-penny-emmons-ca11-2015.