Gregory Robinson v. Carl Danberg

673 F. App'x 205
CourtCourt of Appeals for the Third Circuit
DecidedDecember 19, 2016
Docket15-3040
StatusUnpublished
Cited by47 cases

This text of 673 F. App'x 205 (Gregory Robinson v. Carl Danberg) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Gregory Robinson v. Carl Danberg, 673 F. App'x 205 (3d Cir. 2016).

Opinion

OPINION

KRAUSE, Circuit Judge

Gregory Robinson appeals a District Court order granting summary judgment in favor of Appellees, various prison officials, on Robinson’s Eighth and Fourteenth Amendment claims alleging excessive use of force and unlawful conditions of confinement. For the reasons set forth below, we will affirm in part, reverse in part, and vacate in part. This matter will be remanded for proceedings consistent with this opinion.

I. Background

Gregory Robinson was convicted in 2008 of felony possession of a dangerous weapon and sentenced to eight years incarceration at the James T. Vaughn Correctional Center in Delaware. He raises a number of pretrial and post-conviction excessive-force and condition-of-confinement claims spanning from 2008, when he was in pretrial detention, to 2010, when he was serving his sentence.

II. Jurisdiction and Standard of Review

The District Court had jurisdiction pursuant to 28 U.S.C. §§ 1331 and 1367. We have jurisdiction pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1291.

We exercise plenary review over an order granting summary judgment, applying the same standard as the District Court. Tri-M Grp., LLC v. Sharp, 638 F.3d 406, 415 (3d Cir. 2011). “Summary judgment is proper ‘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.’ ” Thomas v. Cumberland Cty., 749 F.3d 217, 222 (3d Cir. 2014) (quoting Fed. R. Civ. P. 56(a)). A dispute is genuine “if the evidence is such that a reasonable jury could return a verdict for the nonmoving party.” Anderson v. Liberty Lobby, Inc., 477 U.S. 242, 248, 106 S.Ct. 2505, 91 L.Ed.2d 202 (1986). At summary judgment, courts must refrain from weighing the evidence or making credibility determinations, id. at 255, 106 S.Ct. 2505, and are required to “view the facts in the light most favorable to the nonmoving party and draw all inferences in that party’s favor,” Gonzalez v. Sec’y of Dep’t of Homeland Sec., 678 F.3d 254, 257 (3d Cir. 2012). Nonetheless, the nonmoving party must offer more than a “mere ‘scintilla of evidence’ ” to create a genuine issue of material fact, Ramara, Inc. v. Westfield Ins. Co., 814 F.3d 660, 666 (3d Cir. 2016) (quoting Anderson, 477 U.S. at 252, 106 S.Ct. 2505), and conclusory affidavits are insufficient to survive summary judgment. See MD Mall Assocs., LLC v. CSX Transp., Inc., 715 F.3d 479, 485 n.6 (3d Cir. 2013) (“Summary judgment is proper only where the pleadings, discovery, and non-eoncluso- *209 ry affidavits show that there is no genuine issue as to any material fact and the mov-ant is entitled to judgment as a matter of law.”).

III. Discussion

Robinson appeals nine claims from the District Court’s entry of summary judgment: one pretrial excessive-force claim, two post-conviction excessive-force claims, three pretrial condition-of-confinement claims, and three post-conviction condition-of-confinement claims. We analyze his pretrial claims under the Fourteenth Amendment and his post-conviction claims under the Eighth Amendment.

A. Pretrial Excessive Force

Robinson first raises a pretrial excessive force claim against Correctional Officer Beckles for allegedly injuring his hand while uncuffing him in his cell. According to Robinson, when Beckles returned Robinson to his cell following a disagreement between them, Beckles “tried to hit [Robinson] in the back with the [cell] door, but ... caught [his] foot” instead. J.A. 130. Once Robinson was secured in his cell, Beckles allegedly uncuffed him by “put[ting] his foot on the door and ... yank[ing] the left cuff off[,] ... splitting] the top of [Robinson’s] hand.” J.A. 130. Beckles’ incident report and deposition testimony gave a different narrative. He asserted that Robinson ignored “several direct orderfs] to come [to the cell door flap] to be uncuffed.” S.A. 2. When Robinson finally complied, and Beckles started to uncuff him, Robinson “tr[ied] to yank his hand away from [Beckles],” Appellant’s Br. 7 (quoting the incident report), which presented a security concern because “an open cuff [could be used] as a weapon.” S.A. 2. Neither Beckles’ incident report nor his deposition testimony mentions hitting Robinson’s foot with the cell door.

Robinson’s pretrial excessive force claim is governed by the Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment, which “protects a pretrial detainee from the use of excessive force that amounts to punishment.” Kingsley v. Hendrickson, — U.S. -, 135 S.Ct. 2466, 2473, 192 L.Ed.2d 416 (2015) (quoting Graham v. Connor, 490 U.S. 386, 395 n.10, 109 S.Ct. 1865, 104 L.Ed.2d 443 (1989)). To demonstrate a due process violation, a detainee must prove “that the force purposely or knowingly used against him was objectively unreasonable,” meaning “that the actions [were] not ‘rationally related to a legitimate nonpuni-tive governmental purpose.’ ” Id. (quoting Bell v. Wolfish, 441 U.S. 520, 561, 99 S.Ct. 1861, 60 L.Ed.2d 447 (1979)). We consider the so-called Kingsley factors: “[1] the relationship between the need for the use of force and the amount of force used; [2] the extent of the plaintiffs injury; [3] any effort made by the officer to temper or to limit the amount of force; [4] the severity of the security problem at issue; [5] the threat reasonably perceived by the officer; and [6] whether the plaintiff was actively resisting.” Id.

The District Court granted judgment in favor of Beckles, finding Robinson’s “minor” or “minimal” injuries were insufficient to support a Fourteenth Amendment claim. Robinson v. Beckles, 117 F.Supp.3d 528, 536 (D. Del. 2015). We conclude the District Court erred by focusing exclusively on the severity of Robinson’s injury at the expense of the other Kingsley factors. A detainee’s injury is only one of several factors to be considered in determining whether the application of force was punitive, Kingsley, 135 S.Ct. at 2473, and while we have held in the context of the Eighth Amendment that “the degree of injury is relevant[,] ...

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Bluebook (online)
673 F. App'x 205, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/gregory-robinson-v-carl-danberg-ca3-2016.