Hoskins v. Hess

CourtDistrict Court, S.D. Illinois
DecidedMarch 24, 2023
Docket3:20-cv-00575
StatusUnknown

This text of Hoskins v. Hess (Hoskins v. Hess) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, S.D. Illinois primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Hoskins v. Hess, (S.D. Ill. 2023).

Opinion

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF ILLINOIS JOSHUA LEE HOSKINS, ) ) Plaintiff, ) ) vs. ) Case No. 3:20-cv-00575-GCS ) CAITLIN HESS, ) ) Defendant. )

MEMORANDUM & ORDER

SISON, Magistrate Judge:

INTRODUCTION AND BACKGROUND Pending before the Court is Defendant Hess’s motion for summary judgment. (Doc. 132, 133).1 Plaintiff opposes the motion. (Doc. 135). Based on the reason delineated below, the Court GRANTS the motion for summary judgment. On June 16, 2020, Joshua Lee Hoskins, an inmate of the Illinois Department of Corrections (“IDOC”) currently incarcerated at Dixon Correctional Center (“Dixon”), brought this action pursuant to 42 U.S.C. § 1983 for alleged deprivations of his constitutional rights that occurred while he was housed at Pinckneyville Correctional Center (“Pinckneyville”). He requests monetary and injunctive relief. (Doc. 1).

1 Defendant Hess also filed the required Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 56 notice informing Plaintiff of the consequences of failing to respond to the motion for summary judgment and what is required in responding to the motion for summary judgment. (Doc. 134). Plaintiff makes the following allegations. On several occasions between June and August 2019, Plaintiff complained to Defendant Caitlin Hess about several medical

conditions, including spider bites, rashes, boils, swelling, headaches, and blisters. (Doc. 1, p. 48). Defendant Hess refused to provide Plaintiff with any care because she disliked the fact that he had filed grievances against security personnel. Id. Defendant Hess also told Plaintiff she had arranged it so that no other medical staff would provide him with care. Id. Defendant Jana Rueter stated essentially the same thing on numerous occasions between October 2019 and February 2020. Id. Plaintiff also spoke with Defendants Bob

Blum (a nurse practitioner) and Dr. Percy Myers (the Medical Director at Pinckneyville) between October 2019 and February 2020 regarding several medical conditions, which included those cited above, as well as bleeding from his rectum. Id. They refused to provide him with medical care because it was too much paperwork, and they had been informed about his complaints regarding staff. Id.

The Court conducted the required review of Plaintiff’s complaint pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1915A. (Doc. 19). The Screening Order allowed Plaintiff to proceed with the following: an Eighth Amendment deliberate indifference to a serious medical condition claim against all Defendants (Count 1); and a First Amendment retaliation claim against all Defendants (Count 2). Id. On February 11, 2022, the Court granted in part and denied

in part Defendants’ motion for summary judgment regarding exhaustion of administrative remedies. (Doc. 107). The Court granted the motion as to the claims against Defendants Rueter, Myers, and Blum and dismissed those claims without prejudice; it also denied the motion as to the claims against Defendant Hess. Id. Thereafter, Defendant Hess filed the motion for summary judgment. Defendant Hess maintains that she is entitled to summary judgment as Plaintiff cannot set forth any

admissible evidence of each of his claims against her. Specifically, Defendant Hess asserts that she never saw Plaintiff in a Nurse Sick Call appointment, and as such, she never had an opportunity to refuse him medical care. Further, Defendant Hess asserts that there is no evidence to support Plaintiff’s claim that she prevented Plaintiff from seeing other medical professionals. For example, Plaintiff received medical care from Dr. Myers regarding his jaw. Lastly, Defendant Hess asserts that there is no evidence that Plaintiff

suffered a deprivation due to retaliation as she had no authority to require others to deny medical care, and Plaintiff did, in fact, obtain medical care. Defendant Hess contends that there is no evidence to support Plaintiff’s claims except his own self-serving statements. Plaintiff counters that Defendant Hess was deliberately indifferent to his serious medical needs in that she denied him medical care for his health issues. Defendant Hess

also retaliated against him by stating she would not treat him medically, by telling others not to treat him, and by him not receiving medical treatment. Plaintiff maintains that he had no reason to lie about having various health issues. UNDISPUTED FACTS The following facts are taken from the record and presented in the light most

favorable to Plaintiff, the non-moving party, and all reasonable inferences are drawn in his favor. See Ricci v. DeStefano, 557 U.S. 557, 586 (2009). During the relevant times alleged in the complaint, Plaintiff was housed in Pinckneyville. Defendant Hess was employed by Wexford Health Sources, Inc., from October 2018 until November 2022, as a licensed practical nurse (“LPN”). As a nurse, Defendant

Hess performed “Nurse Sick Call” appointments at certain times. At such appointments, she tended to inmates who had one or more medical complaints; she also provided nursing care. At Pinckneyville, an inmate seeking health care should submit a request for a Nurse Sick Call appointment unless the inmate has an emergency that requires immediate care.

From June 2019 to February 2020, Defendant Hess did not do any Nurse Sick Call appointments at Pinckneyville. Defendant Hess never had a Nurse Sick Call with Plaintiff. She did not have any such appointments scheduled, and she never received a request to attend a Nurse Sick Call appointment with Plaintiff. (Doc. 133-4, p. 6, 7, 8, 10, 26). Defendant Hess never received a report of a medical emergency from Plaintiff. (Doc.

133-1, p. 2). Defendant Hess did not have the authority to direct any staff to deny Plaintiff medical or nursing case. (Doc. 133-1, p. 2). Defendant Hess did not have the authority to reassign Plaintiff from one cell to another. Id. Defendant Hess did not have supervisory authority over staff at Pinckneyville. Id.

On August 20, 2019, Grievance Officer S. Mercier issued a response to a grievance filed by Plaintiff which complained about laundry services, denial of showers, denial of human necessities, conditions of his cell, staff telling him to refuse all mental health treatment, and medication and dental issues/supplies. In this grievance, Plaintiff requested a policy to ensure that offenders must sign when laundry is sent out and sign again when laundry is returned. As to the merits of this grievance, Officer Mercier

specifically found: Per R5 Lt: Laundry was started on 7/31/19 and returned 8/1/19. Lt Wall denies the allegations of falsifying documents. The offender transferred to Pinckneyville on 6/5/19. All offenders are given a toothbrush and toothpaste on arrival. The offender made purchases at Commissary in July and August. He is not indigent and needs to buy hygiene supplies himself if he wants them. If the offender needs dental attention, he needs to submit a request to Healthcare. An email was sent on the offender’s behalf on 8/20/19 informing them of his issues stated in this grievance. He has not been to Dental since arriving at Pinckneyville. Policy and procedure are set by Administration. The offender was not placed into the cell in question until after it was cleaned and aired out. The issue of staff telling him to deny medications and mental health has been addressed repeatedly. All staff deny telling this offender to refuse medication. Also, he sees Mental health regularly. There is no merit to the offender’s claim.

(Doc.

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Hoskins v. Hess, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/hoskins-v-hess-ilsd-2023.