Hancock v. Cnty. of Rensselaer

337 F. Supp. 3d 175
CourtDistrict Court, N.D. New York
DecidedAugust 29, 2018
Docket1:13-CV-1184 (NAM/CFH)
StatusPublished
Cited by3 cases

This text of 337 F. Supp. 3d 175 (Hancock v. Cnty. of Rensselaer) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, N.D. New York primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Hancock v. Cnty. of Rensselaer, 337 F. Supp. 3d 175 (N.D.N.Y. 2018).

Opinion

Hon. Norman A. Mordue, Senior U.S. District Judge

I. INTRODUCTION

The amended complaint in this action for relief under 42 U.S.C. § 1983 claims that Defendants, while acting under color of state law, infringed Plaintiffs' Fourteenth Amendment rights to privacy in their medical records. (Dkt. No. 60, ¶¶ 47-50). This Court granted Defendants' motions for summary judgment. The Second Circuit vacated the award of summary judgment and remanded for further proceedings, including a consideration of whether qualified immunity might apply.1 Hancock v. County of Rensselaer , 1:13-CV-1184 (NAM/CFH), 2016 WL 8732374 (N.D.N.Y. Aug. 5, 2016), aff'd in part, vacated in part, and remanded , 882 F.3d 58 (2d Cir. 2018).

Defendants again move for summary judgment. As set forth below, the summary judgment motion by Defendants County of Rensselaer, Jack Mahar, and David Hetman (Dkt. No. 149) is granted with respect to Jack Mahar and David Hetman and denied with respect to the County of Rensselaer. The summary judgment motion by Defendant Elaine Young (Dkt. No. 151) is granted.

II. BACKGROUND

A. The Amended Complaint2

At all relevant times, the three Plaintiffs were employees at the Rensselaer County Jail ("Jail"), which the Rensselaer County Sheriff's Department oversees. Defendant Jack Mahar ("Sheriff Mahar") was Rensselaer County Sheriff. Defendant David Hetman was a Lieutenant at the Jail. Defendant Elaine Young ("Nurse Young") was a Registered Nurse employed at the Jail as Nursing Supervisor.

The nearby Samaritan Hospital ("Samaritan") provided Jail nursing staff with access to its electronic medical records *179through a computer terminal in the nurses' station. The nursing staff was authorized to access only inmate records and only for authorized purposes. Nurse Young was entrusted with the password for this system and was expected to keep the password secure. Plaintiffs claim that Nurse Young instead taped the password to a drawer in her office.

Plaintiffs allege that in or around 2004, Sheriff Mahar instituted a policy to monitor and limit the use of sick days by Jail employees. Employees who violated the sick policy were placed on "sick abuse" status and were denied privileges or required to submit a physician's note explaining their absences. Plaintiffs allege that, in instituting this policy, Sheriff Mahar scrutinized the sick days of employees that he personally did not like.

The amended complaint states that Plaintiff Keith Hancock was placed on sick abuse multiple times because he was a labor union official in the Sheriffs Employees Association of Rensselaer County. In March 2013, Hancock received a letter from Samaritan informing him that his medical records may have been improperly accessed by Jail employees on January 9, 2009.

Plaintiff Tamera Thomas injured her hand in January 2007 in the course of duty and was treated at Samaritan's emergency room. Thomas applied for workers' compensation for lost pay and medical expenses in connection with this injury, but was denied. She received a letter from Samaritan in March 2013 informing her that her medical records may have been improperly accessed on January 26, 2007, which she alleges was shortly after she applied for workers' compensation.

Plaintiff Jason Dessingue underwent heart surgery in August 2011. He alleges that Sheriff Mahar was hostile toward him because he endorsed another candidate for Sheriff. Dessingue received a letter in March 2013 informing him that his records may have been improperly accessed by Jail employees on August 23, 2011.

All three Plaintiffs allege that they did not give permission for the allegedly improper accesses. They further allege that Sheriff Mahar personally directed his employees, including Defendants Hetman and Nurse Young, to access Plaintiffs' records to verify their medical treatment. The amended complaint claims that, in so doing, Defendants violated Plaintiffs' Fourteenth Amendment right to privacy in their medical information. Plaintiffs seek compensatory damages from all Defendants and punitive damages from all Defendants except the County of Rensselaer ("County").

B. Disputed Facts3

It is undisputed that none of Plaintiffs' accessed records revealed any psychological or emotional treatment. (Thomas Dep. 33; Dessingue Dep. 17; Hancock Dep. 16). Similarly, there is no evidence suggesting that Plaintiffs were treated for HIV or any *180other variety of sexually transmitted disease. (See Hancock Dep. 29-30).

The following facts remain in dispute. Defendants argue that Hancock does not know what records were accessed, nor did he confirm from Samaritan what records were accessed. (Hancock Dep. 34-35). Defendants contend that Thomas does not know what medical records were accessed, or what records could possibly have been accessed. (Dkt. No. 123-4, ¶ 9). Defendants assert that the only records that could have been seen were Thomas' treatment for an injured hand and possibly a prescription for an emotional or psychiatric condition, although Thomas never went to Samaritan for "any psychiatric related matter." (Thomas Dep. 19, 27, 33-34, 58). Plaintiffs contend, however, that although Thomas admitted she did not know what information was accessed, she knows it included her emergency room reports, each of which includes her present complaints and prior medical history, including her smoking habits and living situation. (Dkt. No. 132-16, pp. 1-2; see generally Dkt. No. 132-44). Plaintiffs also note that, according to the deposition testimony of Patricia Ahrens, the individuals accessing Plaintiffs' records could have seen all of Thomas' and Dessingue's emergency room visits and all related treatments, orders, and notes, as well as all of Hancock's lab test results.4 (Ahrens Dep. 67, 76-77, 115-116, 117).

Defendants dispute that Plaintiffs have any evidence that any Defendant was responsible for accessing their medical records. (Dkt. Nos. 123-4, ¶¶ 12, 20, 26; 151-11, ¶¶ 18, 24). Plaintiffs contend that circumstantial evidence, including the timing of the access, supports a finding that it was Defendants who accessed the records. (Dkt. No. 156, pp. 7-9). Hancock alleges that his records were accessed while the Sheriff's Department monitored him for sick abuse and that the Sheriff suspected him of illicit drug use. (Hancock Aff. ¶¶ 4-5, 7). He also alleges that Sheriff Mahar was angry at him for resigning from an awards committee that was important to the Sheriff. (Id. ¶ 8). Plaintiffs note that someone accessed Thomas' records at about the time she applied for worker's compensation benefits. (Thomas Dep. 66).

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Bluebook (online)
337 F. Supp. 3d 175, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/hancock-v-cnty-of-rensselaer-nynd-2018.