Revilla v. Glanz

7 F. Supp. 3d 1207, 88 Fed. R. Serv. 3d 226, 2014 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 34214, 2014 WL 1017903
CourtDistrict Court, N.D. Oklahoma
DecidedMarch 17, 2014
DocketCase No. 13-CV-315-JED-TLW
StatusPublished
Cited by1 cases

This text of 7 F. Supp. 3d 1207 (Revilla v. Glanz) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, N.D. Oklahoma primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Revilla v. Glanz, 7 F. Supp. 3d 1207, 88 Fed. R. Serv. 3d 226, 2014 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 34214, 2014 WL 1017903 (N.D. Okla. 2014).

Opinion

OPINION AND ORDER

JOHN E. DOWDELL, District Judge.

Before the Court is defendant Stanley Glanz’s Motion to Dismiss (Doc. 32), to which plaintiffs have responded (Doc. 36), and Sheriff Glanz has replied (Doc. 39).

I. Background

This action was commenced by one plaintiff, Bridget Nicole Revilla, regarding injuries she allegedly suffered as a result of the “Tulsa County Jail’s unconstitutional medical care policies and customs.” (Complaint, Doc. 2). The same day that Ms. Revilla filed the initial Complaint, an Amended Complaint, adding three additional plaintiffs, was filed. (Doc. 4). The additional plaintiffs are: (1) Alma McCaf-frey, as the Personal Representative'of the Estate of Gregory Brown; (2) Christine Wright, as Special Administrator of the Estate of Lisa Salgado; and (3) Deborah Young, as Special Administrator of the Estate of Gwendolyn Young. All four plaintiffs allege that Sheriff Glanz is liable, in his official and individual capacities, under 42 U.S.C. § 1983 and the Oklahoma Constitution, art. 2, §§ 7 and 9. They allege that he maintained and was responsible for a policy, custom, or practice of constitutionally deficient medical care at the Tulsa County Jail, that he was deliberately indifferent to serious risks to inmate health and safety, and that the alleged deliberately indifferent failure to provide medical care resulted in injuries to or the deaths of plaintiffs or their decedents who were incarcerated at the Jail.

Sheriff Glanz seeks dismissal on several grounds, including improper joinder of the three additional plaintiffs in the Amended Complaint, and dismissal of plaintiffs’ individual and official capacity claims against Glanz under 42 U.S.C. § 1983 and the Oklahoma Constitution, for failure to state a claim under Fed.R.Civ.P. 12(b)(6). Sher[1212]*1212iff Glanz also requests that the Court dismiss plaintiffs’ requests for punitive damages against him in his official capacity.

II. Dismissal Standards

In considering a Rule 12(b)(6) dismissal motion, a court must determine whether the plaintiff has stated a claim upon which relief may be granted. See Fed.R.Civ.P. 12(b)(6). The Federal Rules of Civil Procedure require “a short and plain statement of the claim to show that the pleader is entitled to relief.” Fed.R.Civ.P. 8(a)(2). A complaint must provide “more than labels and conclusions, and a formulaic recitation of the elements of a cause of action.” Bell Atlantic Corp. v. Twombly, 550 U.S. 544, 555, 127 S.Ct. 1955, 167 L.Ed.2d 929 (2007). The standard does “not require a heightened fact pleading of specifics, but only enough facts to state a claim to relief that is plausible on its face,” and the factual allegations “must be enough to raise a right to relief above the speculative level.” Id. at 555-56, 570, 127 S.Ct. 1955 (citations omitted). “Asking for plausible grounds ... does not impose a probability requirement at the pleading stage; it simply calls for enough facts to raise a reasonable expectation that discovery will reveal evidence [supporting the claim]. And, of course, a well-pleaded complaint may proceed even if it strikes a savvy judge that actual proof of those facts is improbable, and ‘that a recovery is very remote and unlikely.’” Id. at 556, 127 S.Ct. 1955. “Once a claim has been stated adequately, it may be supported by showing any set of facts consistent with the allegations in the complaint.” Id. at 562, 127 S.Ct. 1955.

Twombly articulated the pleading standard for all civil actions. See Ashcroft v. Iqbal, 556 U.S. 662, 684, 129 S.Ct. 1937, 173 L.Ed.2d 868 (2009). For the purpose of making the dismissal determination, a court must accept all the well-pleaded factual allegations of the complaint as true, even if doubtful, and must construe the allegations in the light most favorable to the claimant. See Twombly, 550 U.S. at 555, 127 S.Ct. 1955; Alvarado v. KOB-TV, L.L.C., 493 F.3d 1210, 1215 (10th Cir.2007).

III. Discussion

A. Joinder of Plaintiffs

Sheriff Glanz seeks dismissal of plaintiffs McCaffrey, Wright, and Young on misjoinder grounds. He asserts that “each plaintiffs claims arise from separate occurrences at different times,” and that joinder of their claims is thus improper under Fed.R.Civ.P. 20, such that dismissal is appropriate under Fed.R.Civ.P. 21. (Doc. 32 at 4). In the alternative, Glanz requests severance of each of the plaintiffs. Rule 20(a)(1) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure governs permissive joinder of plaintiffs. The rule provides:

Persons may join in one action as plaintiffs if:
(A) they assert any right to relief jointly, severally, or in the alternative with respect to or arising out of the same transaction, occurrence, or series of transactions or occurrences; and
(B) any question of law or fact common to all plaintiffs will arise in the action.

Fed.R.Civ.P. 20(a)(1). “Misjoinder of parties is not a ground for dismissing an action. On motion or on its own, the court may at any time, on just terms, add or drop a party. The court may also sever any claim against a party.” Fed.R.Civ.P. 21.

Sheriff Glanz does not argue that there is no “question of law or fact common to all plaintiffs.” See Fed.R.Civ.P. 20(a)(1)(B). However, the parties dispute whether these plaintiffs seek relief arising out of the same transaction, occurrence, or series of transactions or occurrences. See [1213]*1213FecLR.Civ.P. 20(a)(1)(A). The courts have adopted a case-by-case approach as to whether a particular factual situation constitutes a transaction or occurrence for purposes of Rule 20. Jacobs v. Watson Pharm., Inc., 10-CV-120-TCK, 2011 WL 2216257, *2 (June 7, 2011) (citations omitted). Borrowing from the judicial construction of “transaction or occurrence” used in Fed.R.Civ.P. 13

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7 F. Supp. 3d 1207, 88 Fed. R. Serv. 3d 226, 2014 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 34214, 2014 WL 1017903, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/revilla-v-glanz-oknd-2014.