James E. Fuller v. Linda A. Dillon, Patti Wilson, John Zielinski, Doctor Vallabhaneni and Doctor Vidal

236 F.3d 876, 2001 U.S. App. LEXIS 276, 2001 WL 21354
CourtCourt of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit
DecidedJanuary 10, 2001
Docket97-4192
StatusPublished
Cited by26 cases

This text of 236 F.3d 876 (James E. Fuller v. Linda A. Dillon, Patti Wilson, John Zielinski, Doctor Vallabhaneni and Doctor Vidal) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
James E. Fuller v. Linda A. Dillon, Patti Wilson, John Zielinski, Doctor Vallabhaneni and Doctor Vidal, 236 F.3d 876, 2001 U.S. App. LEXIS 276, 2001 WL 21354 (7th Cir. 2001).

Opinions

COFFEY, Circuit Judge.

On January 7, 1994, James Fuller, an inmate formally confined at Menard Psychiatric Center (MPC),1 filed suit under 42 U.S.C. § 1983 alleging that he was wrongfully administered psychotropic medication against his will. Specifically, Fuller claimed that his due process rights were violated because the decision to medicate him against his will was not accompanied by adequate procedural protections as required by the United States Constitution.2 Fuller sought $1.5 million and a transfer to a medium or minimum security prison. The district court granted summary judgment in favor of the defendants3 on quali[878]*878fied immunity grounds. The judge also concluded that defendants Dillon and Wilson were entitled to summary judgment because of their lack of personal involvement in the decision to medicate Fuller. The judge denied Fuller’s request for in-junctive relief as moot. We affirm.

I. BACKGROUND

A. Fuller’s Forced Medication

On August 5, 1992, Fuller was placed at MPC because he had attempted to set himself on fire and was experiencing auditory hallucinations.4 Dr. Vallabhaneni, the psychiatrist who treated Fuller at MPC, found that Fuller was “suffering from a serious mental illness with a diagnosis of delusional disorder, paranoid, with a differential diagnosis of paranoid schizophrenia.” In October 1992, Fuller was once again transferred to MPC “due to paranoid delusions that he was being poisoned, presenting himself in an inappropriate fashion by remaining undressed, experiencing auditory hallucinations, and attempt (sic) to burn himself alive by putting a sheet over his head and lighting it.”5

On February 18, 1993, after Fuller refused to voluntarily take psychotropic medication, Dr. Vallabhaneni wrote to the Treatment Review Committee recommending that Fuller be involuntarily medicated with psychotropic medication because Fuller was “becoming very paranoid,” “gravely disabled,” and “likely to ... pose harm to self or others.” According to Dr. Vallabhaneni, the forced psychotropic medication “may help [Fuller] relieve his paranoid delusions.”

On February 22, 1993, the Treatment Review Committee, consisting of defendants Zielinski and Dr. Vidal, met to review Dr. Vallabhaneni’s forced medication recommendation. At the February 22nd hearing, Fuller “presented himself to the Committee in a very polite and appropriate fashion” and challenged Dr. Vallabhan-eni’s recommendation to force him to undergo psychotropic medication on the grounds that the doctor did not speak with him for more than five minutes on any one occasion and that sometimes Dr. Valla-bhaneni was unable to remember Fuller’s name. Fuller further argued, incorrectly, that he had no history of violent episodes (he twice tried to kill himself by lighting himself on fire (once by putting a sheet over his head and lighting it)). Finally, Fuller explained that his opinion that Dr. Vallabhaneni was the Anti-Christ was only a religious belief and that such beliefs did not harm any one.

The Committee concluded that Fuller had no insight into his mental illness nor into his need for medication. The administration of enforced medication is without doubt in the inmate’s best interests. Without the medication the inmate will continue to deteriorate. It is believed that a substantial risk exists that physical harm will be inflicted by the inmate upon himself and/or others as has been evidenced by his behavior during his psychotic episodes.
Though the inmate is not displaying any florid symptoms of psychosis at this point, his letters clearly indicate that he is delusional and paranoid and somewhat agitated in his beliefs. It is thus believed that such symptoms are prodro-mal to his deteriorating to a more severe state.

After the Committee approved Dr. Val-labhaneni’s decision, Fuller was forcibly administered psychotropic medication, and although he filed a written appeal to Dr. [879]*879Shansky, the Illinois Department of Corrections Medical Director, no written decision by Dr. Shansky was ever produced.6

B. Illinois’ Forced Administration of Psychotropic Medication

If prison officials in the State of Illinois determine that an inmate is in need of forced psychotropic medication, prison medical staff must follow the guidelines set forth in the Illinois Administrative Code. Pursuant to Ill.Admin.Code 20 § 415.70 (2000), prison officials may administer psychotropic medication as follows:

a) Administration of Psychotropic Medication
1) Psychotropic medication shall not be administered to any committed person against his or her will or without the consent of the parent or guardian of a minor who is under the age of 18 and confined in the Juvenile Division, unless:
A) A psychiatrist, or in the absence of a psychiatrist a physician, has determined that:
i) The committed person suffers from a mental illness or mental disorder; and
ii) The medication is in the medical interest of the committed person; and
iii) The committed person is either gravely disabled or poses a likelihood of serious harm to self or others; and
B) The administration of such medication has been approved by the Treatment Review Committee after a hearing (see subsection (b) of this Section).
5-4 # # ‡ * *
b) Treatment Review Committee Procedures
The Treatment Review Committee shall be comprised of two members appointed by the Chief Administrative Officer, both of whom shall be mental health professionals and one of whom shall be a physician. One member shall serve as Chairperson of the Committee. Neither of the Committee members may be involved in the current decision to order the medication. The members of the Committee shall have completed a training program in the procedural and mental health issues involved which has been approved by the Agency Medical Director.
* * ❖ ❖ *
c)Review by Agency Medical Director
1) If the committed person appeals the Treatment Review Committee’s decision, staff shall continue to administer the medication as ordered by the physician and approved by the Committee while awaiting the Agency Medical Director’s decision on the appeal.

The following series of events must occur, under the Illinois Administrative Code, before prison officials are authorized to administer psychotropic medication against an inmate’s will. Initially, a psychiatrist or physician must conclude that: 1) the inmate was suffering from a mental illness or mental disorder; 2) the medication is in the prisoner’s medical interest; and 3) the inmate is either gravely disabled or poses a likelihood of serious harm to self or others. Ill.Admin. Code 20 § 415.70(a)(l)(A)(i)-(iii).

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Bluebook (online)
236 F.3d 876, 2001 U.S. App. LEXIS 276, 2001 WL 21354, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/james-e-fuller-v-linda-a-dillon-patti-wilson-john-zielinski-doctor-ca7-2001.