E.A.F.F. v. Gonzalez

600 F. App'x 205
Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit·Decided January 16, 2015·No. No. 13-50890·Published·Cited by 5 cases

Opinion

PER CURIAM: *

Eleven unaccompanied Central American' minors, who were detained by the United States at a facility in Nixon, Texas pending immigration proceedings, filed suit against certain federal officials in their individual capacities claiming deliberate indifference to a known risk of physical and sexual abuse. The district court granted the defendants’ motion for summary judgment on the basis of qualified immunity. On appeal, the plaintiffs argue the district court erred in finding there was no genuine dispute of material fact as to whether the defendants manifested deliberate indifference to the minors’ constitutional rights. We AFFIRM.

FACTUAL AND PROCEDURAL BACKGROUND

The eleven plaintiffs are from Central America. At different times, they entered the United States as unaccompanied teenage boys. Each was apprehended by Texas Border Patrol agents and placed in federal custody pending immigration court proceedings. Because they were minors at the time of detention, each plaintiff was placed in a facility in Nixon, Texas that was specially designated for the custody of unaccompanied alien children (“UAC”). The Nixon facility was operated by a private organization, Away From Home, Inc. (“AFH”), which had contracted with the federal government to house UAC while they awaited adjudication of their immigration status.

Responsibility for monitoring the placement and care of UAC was previously delegated to the Immigration and Naturalization Service. In 2003, this responsibility was transferred to the'Office of Refugee Resettlement (“ORR”), a division of the Department of Health and Human Services. ORR identifies facilities to house UAC and oversees and investigates those facilities. ORR created a special division, the Division of Unaccompanied Children’s Services (“DUCS”), to carry out these responsibilities. DUCS developed a network of care options for UAC, including shelter care facilities. Shelter care facilities are designed to house UAC in the least restrictive setting possible to comply with what is called the Flores Settlement Agreement. That agreement resulted from a lawsuit brought by detained unaccompanied minors and sets minimum standards of care for facilities housing UAC. AFH received a grant to operate the Nixon facility as a shelter care facility beginning in 2003. The Nixon facility continuously housed UAC until 2007, when ORR revoked the grant.

The plaintiffs allege that they were physically or sexually abused between September 2006 and March 2007 while they were residents at the Nixon facility. This [208] appeal relates to the following allegations of abuse.

Plaintiff O.E.F. alleges that staffers beat him twice in the fall of 2006. Once, a Nixon employee struck him across the torso, leaving bruises. On another occasion a staffer pulled him from his bunk to the floor and beat him.

Plaintiff W.O.G. asserts he was sexually assaulted in the shower by a Nixon supervisor, Lesvia Monreal, then was later beaten by an unidentified male staffer.

Plaintiff J.M.R. complains of an incident that occurred in November'2006, involving several UAC who fled the Nixon facility. Following the escape, Director of Operations Robert Garza, Director of Training Efraem Garcia, and two other staffers allegedly arrived at the facility while intoxicated. Garcia slammed J.M.R. against the walls and a door. J.M.R. was allegedly beaten again the next morning by another staffer.

The remaining eight plaintiffs allege that a female Nixon staffer, Belinda Leal, repeatedly sexually abused them between December and March. Leal later pleaded guilty to charges stemming from the abuse and was sentenced to prison.

The defendants are three current and former ORR administrators and supervisors. Defendant Jose Gonzalez was hired as an ORR Federal Field Specialist (“FFS”) in August 2006. Gonzalez was based in San Antonio and was assigned to Nixon and to two other facilities in Texas. An FFS oversees the services provided to UAC and assists with program compliance by visiting facilities and providing oversight and guidance to staff regarding ORR' policies and procedures. Gonzalez visited the Nixon facility frequently; had an office there; and held staff meetings there about once a week with the Nixon director, case managers, clinicians, and others. Gonzalez estimated that he spent about sixty percent of his time at Nixon.

Defendant James De La Cruz was an ORR FFS supervisor based in Houston. De La Cruz started as a supervisor in April 2005 and supervised Gonzalez’s work at Nixon. His primary responsibilities included monitoring program compliance; addressing problems with child transfers and staff training; and, along with Gonzalez, serving as a liaison to the Texas Department of Family Protective Services.

Defendant Tsegaye Wolde became an ORR Project Officer in March 2004 and was assigned to monitor and supervise the Nixon facility. Wolde was based in Washington, D.C. and was responsible for overseeing day-to-day operations related to Nixon’s grant of federal funds and the cooperative agreement with the government.

The plaintiffs have filed multiple claims against various individuals in Texas. They alleged that the United States was liable under the Federal Tort Claims Act (“FTCA”) for negligent supervision of the Nixon facility and negligent care of the minors housed there. The plaintiffs also filed a Bivens suit against Gonzalez, De La Cruz, and Wolde, alleging they were deliberately indifferent to the plaintiffs’ Fifth Amendment right to be free from physical, emotional, and sexual abuse.

The district court dismissed the FTCA claims against the United States. It concluded that the government was immune from liability based on the “independent contractor” and “discretionary function” exceptions. The district court also granted summary judgment for Gonzalez, De La Cruz, and Wolde on the basis of qualified immunity. The court held that the evidence was insufficient to demonstrate that the defendants were: (1) aware of a substantial risk of abuse or (2) deliberately indifferent to that risk.

[209] The plaintiffs appeal only from the judgment granting qualified immunity to the individual defendants.

DISCUSSION

This court reviews a grant of summary judgment de novo, applying the same standards as the district court. Mack v. City of Abilene, 461 F.3d 547, 555 (5th Cir.2006). Summary judgment is appropriate “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).

I. The FTCA’s Judgment Bar

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E.A.F.F. v. Gonzalez, 600 F. App'x 205 (5th Cir. 2015).

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