Waldron v. Streeval

CourtDistrict Court, W.D. Virginia
DecidedAugust 5, 2025
Docket7:24-cv-00324
StatusUnknown

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

Bluebook
Waldron v. Streeval, (W.D. Va. 2025).

Opinion

CLERK'S OFFICE U.S. DIST. ¢ AT HARRISONBURG, V. FILED IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT August 05. 2025 FOR THE WESTERN DISTRICT OF VIRGINIA ow ROANOKE DIVISION LAURA A. AUSTIN, CLI] By: s/J.Vasquez RONDELL WALDRON, ) DEPUTY CLERK Plaintiff, ) Case No. 7:24-cv-00324 ) Vv. ) ) By: Hon. Michael F. Urbanski J.C. STREEVAL, et al., ) Senior United States District Judge Defendants. ) MEMORANDUM OPINION Rondell Waldron, a federal inmate proceeding pro se, was previously incarcerated at USP Lee. He filed this civil action against the United States, the Federal Bureau of Prison (BOP), the Department of Justice (DOJ), USP Lee, and J.C. Streeval, the former Warden of USP Lee, seeking to recover damages for injuries that resulted from falling from a top bunk while having a seizure. The defendants construed the complaint as attempting to assert claims under the Federal Tort Claims Act (FTCA) and Bivens v. Six Unknown Named Agents of Fed. Bureau_of Narcotics, 403 U.S. 388 (1971), and Waldron does not dispute that construction. The case is presently before the court on the defendants’ motion to dismiss and for summaty judgment, ECF No. 10. For the reasons set forth below, the motion is GRANTED. I. Background Waldron alleges that he suffered a seizure at USP Lee on January 21, 2023, during which he fell from his top bunk, hit his head, and fractured his toe. Compl., ECF No. 1, at 1; Compl. Attach., ECF No. 1-1, at 1. Medical records attached to the complaint indicate that

Waldron underwent x-rays following the incident and that he was prescribed medication for pain. Compl. Attach. at 5–8. Waldron alleges that he had been assigned to the top bunk two days prior to the

incident, despite notifying the unit officer that he required a bottom bunk due to his history of seizures. Compl. Attach. at 1. Waldron claims that the officer acted with deliberate indifference to his medical needs and that the BOP is “liable for this neglect” because the officer was acting within the scope of his employment. Id. On July 19, 2023, Waldron submitted an administrative claim under the FTCA using Standard Form 95. Defs.’ Ex. 2, Attach. A, ECF No. 11-2. He described his claim as one for

“deliberate indifference to medical needs” and alleged that he had sustained injuries to his toe, ear, and head as a result of falling from a top bunk at USP Lee. Id. The BOP denied the administrative claim by letter dated August 17, 2023. See Compl. Attach. at 10; Defs.’ Ex. 3, Attach. B, ECF No. 11-3. The letter stated that “[a]n investigation into [the] claim failed to reveal that [Waldron] suffered a compensable personal injury due to the negligence of a government employee acting within the scope of employment.” Id. The

letter advised Waldron that if he was dissatisfied with the decision, he could “file suit in the appropriate U.S. District Court not later than six months after the date of this letter.” Id. The letter indicates that it was sent by certified mail with tracking number 7019 1640 0000 0834 9848. Id. More than seven months later, on March 20, 2024, Waldron resubmitted the same administrative claim to the BOP. Compl. Attach. at 2; Defs.’ Ex. 4, Attach. C, ECF No. 11-4.

By letter dated March 28, 2024, the BOP advised Waldron that it could not accept the administrative claim because it was “a duplicate of claim TRT-MXR-2023-07206, which was denied via certified letter on August 17, 2023.” Compl. Attach. at 12; Defs.’ Ex. 5, Attach. D, ECF No. 11-5.

By letter dated April 11, 2024, Waldron clarified that his March 20, 2024, submission was intended to be a request for reconsideration. Defs.’ Ex. 6, Attach. E, ECF No. 11-6. Because more than six months had passed since Waldron’s administrative claim was denied, the BOP denied the request for reconsideration on April 18, 2024. Compl. Attach. at 11; Defs.’ Ex. 7, Attach. F, ECF No. 11-7. The letter indicated that Waldron’s claim was “forever barred” because he “failed to meet the statutory deadline.” Id. The letter also indicated, incorrectly,

that Waldron had six months from the date of the letter to file suit in the appropriate United States District Court, should he choose to do so. Id. II. Procedural History On May 14, 2024, Waldron executed a form complaint against the United States and other defendants, seeking to recover $7,000,000 in monetary damages. In response to the complaint, the defendants filed a motion to dismiss and for summary judgment. Among other

arguments, the defendants contend that the FTCA claim is untimely and that a Bivens remedy is unavailable for Waldron’s claim of deliberate indifference. See Defs.’ Mem., ECF No. 11, at 2. Waldron has responded to the motion, ECF No. 14, and the motion is ripe for review. III. Standards of Review The defendants filed their motions pursuant to Rules 12(b)(6) and 56 of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure. Under Rule 12(b)(6), a defendant may seek dismissal for failure to

state a claim upon which relief may be granted. Fed. R. Civ. P. 12(b)(6). To survive a Rule 12(b)(6) motion, the complaint “must contain sufficient factual matter, accepted as true, to ‘state a claim for relief that is plausible on its face.’” Ashcroft v. Iqbal, 556 U.S. 662, 678 (2009) (quoting Bell Atlantic Corp. v. Twombly, 550 U.S. 544, 570 (2007)). A claim is facially plausible

when the plaintiff’s allegations “allow[] the court to draw the reasonable inference that the defendant is liable for the misconduct alleged.” Id. Under Rule 56, the court must grant summary judgment “if the movant shows that there is no genuine dispute as to any material fact and the movant is entitled to judgment as a matter of law.” Fed. R. Civ. P. 56(a). When ruling on a motion for summary judgment, the court must view the evidence in the light most favorable to the nonmoving party. Anderson

v. Liberty Lobby, Inc., 477 U.S. 242, 255 (1986). To survive summary judgment, there must be sufficient evidence from which a reasonable finder of fact could return a verdict in the nonmoving party’s favor. Id. at 252. “Conclusory or speculative allegations do not suffice to oppose a properly supported motion for summary judgment, nor does a mere scintilla of evidence.” Matherly v. Andrews, 859 F.3d 264, 280 (4th Cir. 2017) (internal quotation marks omitted).

IV. Discussion A. FTCA Claim “As a general matter, the United States is immune from suit unless it waives that immunity.” Sanders v. United States, 937 F.3d 316, 327 (4th Cir. 2019) (internal quotation marks omitted). The FTCA, which authorizes certain tort claims against the United States, provides a “limited waiver of the government’s sovereign immunity for injury or loss caused

by the negligent or wrongful act or omission of government employees acting within the scope of their employment.” Doe v. Meron, 929 F.3d 153, 161 (4th Cir. 2019); see also 28 U.S.C. § 1346(b)(1)). “This waiver permits suit only on terms and conditions strictly prescribed by Congress.” Gould v. U.S.

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