Ojo v. United States

364 F. Supp. 3d 163
CourtDistrict Court, E.D. New York
DecidedMarch 4, 2019
Docket15-cv-6089 (ARR) (LB)
StatusPublished
Cited by27 cases

This text of 364 F. Supp. 3d 163 (Ojo v. United States) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, E.D. New York primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Ojo v. United States, 364 F. Supp. 3d 163 (E.D.N.Y. 2019).

Opinion

ROSS, United States District Judge

While he was in the custody of the Federal Bureau of Prisons ("BOP") as a pretrial detainee, pro se plaintiff, Olukayode David Ojo, was diagnosed with a dental condition caused by a decayed and broken tooth. It was not until December 2012, nearly fourteen months after his initial diagnosis, that he received a follow-up appointment with a dentist at the Metropolitan Detention Center ("MDC"). He alleges that the gap in his treatment was caused by an unconstitutional BOP policy of denying necessary dental care to pretrial detainees. He initiated this lawsuit in October 2015 against the United States and various officials at MDC (collectively, "defendants"), alleging inadequate and negligent dental care resulting in severe bone loss and extensive damage to his two front teeth.

In August 2018, the court granted partial summary judgment to defendants on all but two of the claims in plaintiff's amended complaint. Defendants now bring a renewed motion for summary judgment with respect to plaintiff's sole remaining Bivens claim, arguing that the Supreme Court's recent decision in Ziglar v. Abbasi , --- U.S. ----, 137 S.Ct. 1843, 198 L.Ed.2d 290 (2017), demonstrates that the law does not provide a cause of action for plaintiff to obtain the remedy he seeks. Because I conclude that there are special factors in this case that caution against implying a damages remedy outside of the three established Bivens contexts, defendants' motion is granted.

BACKGROUND

Plaintiff entered into the custody of BOP on July 11, 2011.1 See Defs.' Suppl. 56.1 Statement ¶ 1, ECF No. 84. On August 8, 2013, following a jury trial, he was convicted of one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and one count of conspiracy to possess with intent to unlawfully use five or more identification documents. See Pl.'s Opp'n, Ex. A, ECF No. 90; Defs.' 56.1 Statement ¶ 4, ECF No. 60. He was sentenced to 37 months of incarceration on *166February 17, 2014, and was released from BOP custody on March 14, 2014. Defs.' 56.1 Statement ¶¶ 5-6.

A. Plaintiff's Dental Treatment

On October 13, 2011, soon after his arrival at MDC, plaintiff made a sick call visit to Pamela Hamilton, D.D.S., a Public Health Service dentist at BOP. Id. ¶ 42. He complained of severe tooth pain and was diagnosed with a "periapical abscess without sinus," a condition for which he was prescribed amoxicillin and ibuprofen. Id. From October 13, 2011 through December 4, 2012, plaintiff continued to experience dental pain, which led to stress and weight loss. See Ojo Decl. in Opp'n to Defs.' Mot. for Summary J. ¶¶ 26-27, ECF No. 75-1. He alleges that he repeatedly raised the issue of his pain and discomfort in person and in written grievance and complaint forms directed to Dr. Hamilton, John Doe Medical Director, and Warden Strada. Id. ¶¶ 28, 32-33. Despite his persistent complaints, he was denied follow-up treatment and was informed by Dr. Hamilton that, "as a policy, [he would] have to wait for 12 months for [his] name to be included on the list of those that will receive routine care." Id. ¶ 25; see also id. ¶ 29.

On December 4, 2012, plaintiff met with Dr. Hamilton for a second dental appointment, fourteen months after his first visit and diagnosis. Defs.' 56.1 Statement ¶ 43. She conducted an examination and completed a "medicated interim restoration." Id. During the remainder of his incarceration at MDC, plaintiff visited Dr. Hamilton several more times for continued dental treatment, including two visits in which Dr. Hamilton performed a root canal of plaintiff's two front teeth. Id. ¶¶ 44-51. Plaintiff alleges that the treatment he received was inadequate, as he continued to suffer severe pain and experienced significant bone loss. See Pl.'s 56.1 Resp. ¶¶ 45, 48-51, ECF No. 75-2. According to plaintiff's expert witness, Jay Grossman, D.D.S., the fourteen-month delay in the dental treatment plaintiff received at MDC contributed to "the eventual loss of [his] teeth." See Pl.'s Opp'n Ex. A, 58:6-10, ECF No. 75-5 ("Grossman Dep.").2

B. BOP's Dental Care Policies

During the time that plaintiff was incarcerated at MDC, BOP's dental care policy was set forth in Program Statement 6400.02, dated January 15, 2005. See Defs.' Suppl. 56.1 Statement ¶ 3; Castiglione Aff., Ex. A ("BOP Policy"), ECF No. 85-1. The BOP Policy began by declaring that its "purpose and scope" was "[t]o stabilize and maintain the inmate population's oral health" by providing "conservative" dental care, balancing the provision of "necessary treatment" with "available resources." BOP Policy at US00532. Its objective was to provide "quality care consistent with professional standards." Id. In service of these goals, the policy directed that "[e]mergency dental care will be available to all inmates on a 24-hour basis," including to inmates serving sentences of one year or less. Id. at US00542. The policy *167provides a non-exhaustive list of treatment needs that constitute "emergency care," including "relief of severe dental pain, ... acute infections, ... [and] extraction of non-restorable teeth." Id. Non-emergency or routine care, by contrast, would be prioritized and provided on a tiered basis. Id. at US00543. Inmates with "special designations," including those who were housed in "jail units for less than a 12 month period," would "have access to dental triage and emergency care only." Id. Barring an exception to the BOP Policy approved by the Chief Dentist, inmates would not be eligible to receive routine care until the conclusion of this twelve-month period. Id. For sentenced inmates serving over twelve months in BOP custody, the BOP Policy provided for elective non-emergency dental care as long as "resources of staff, time, and materials are available, and commensurate with the inmate's ability to maintain good oral health."Id. Non-emergency or routine care includes hygiene appointments and radiographs. Id.

In addition to the BOP Policy represented in Program Statement 6400.02, plaintiff alleges that MDC maintained a second, unwritten policy that required pretrial detainees to wait for twelve months to receive even emergency dental treatment. See Pl.'s Suppl. 56.1 Resp. ¶ 3, ECF No. 90. He asserts that Dr. Hamilton refused to provide him with emergency care to treat his dental condition, instead informing him that he needed to wait for twelve months before he could obtain the necessary treatment. Id. ¶¶ 3, 5; see also Pl.'s Additional Material Facts ¶ 5, ECF No. 90. Defendants argue in response that "there is simply no evidence to support [plaintiff's] assertion that there was some other policy in existence." Defs.' Reply 8, ECF No. 92. Furthermore, they note that plaintiff's summary of Dr. Hamilton's statement-in which he alleges that she told him that he would have to wait for twelve months to receive routine care-"is nothing more than an accurate statement of Program Statement 6400.02." Id.

Free access — add to your briefcase to read the full text and ask questions with AI

Related

TORO v. ASAO
D. New Jersey, 2024
Carattini v. Behun
S.D. New York, 2024
Caraballo v. Pliler
S.D. New York, 2023
Davis v. Althauser
E.D. Kentucky, 2023
Jones v. Hurley
E.D. Kentucky, 2023
Johnson v. Quay
E.D. New York, 2022
Sabir v. Licon-Vitale
D. Connecticut, 2022
Rodriguez v. Easter
D. Connecticut, 2022
PRUCHA v. WATSON
S.D. Indiana, 2021
Doss v. Bureau of Prisons
M.D. Pennsylvania, 2021
Williams v. Krivitskaya
E.D. New York, 2021
Bacon v. Core Civic
D. Nevada, 2021
Seeley v. Edge
E.D. New York, 2020
Oneil v. City of New York
E.D. New York, 2020

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
364 F. Supp. 3d 163, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/ojo-v-united-states-nyed-2019.