Gallegos v. Bernalillo Cnty. Bd. of Cnty. Comm'rs

MARTIN GALLEGOS, Plaintiff, v. BERNALILLO COUNTY BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS, BERNALILLOCOUNTY DETENTION CENTER, NEW MEXICO DEPARTMENT OF CORRECTIONS, CLYDE KLINE, andJOVANNE KING, Defendants.

No. CIV 16-0127 JB/JHR

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE DISTRICT OF NEW MEXICO

June 29, 2018

MEMORANDUM OPINION AND ORDER¹

THIS MATTER comes before the Court on: (i) the Plaintiff's Motion to File a Second Amended Complaint, filed February 17, 2017 (Doc. 58)("Motion"); and (ii) Defendants Kline's and King's Motion for Summary Judgment on the Basis of Qualified Immunity and Other Grounds, and Supporting Memorandum, filed October 18, 2017 (Doc. 90)("MSJ"). The Court held a hearing regarding the Motion on June 2, 2017 and held a hearing regarding the MSJ on June 12, 2018. The primary issues are: (i) whether the Court should permit Plaintiff Martin Gallegos to file a Second Amended Complaint adding Bernalillo County Metropolitan DetentionCenter Corrections Officers Clyde Kline and Jovonne King² as Defendants, because Gallegos was in jail and could not adequately work with his attorney to timely identify Kline and King; (ii) whether Kline and King acted with deliberate indifference in violation of the Eighth Amendment of the Constitution of the United States of America, because they disregarded Gallegos' court order providing him with medical treatment; and (iii) whether Kline and King are entitled to qualified immunity vis-a-vis Gallegos' deliberate indifference claim. The Court concludes that: (i) Gallegos may amend his complaint, because he has shown good cause by demonstrating that he was in jail and could not adequately work with his attorney to timely identify Kline and King; (ii) Kline and King did not act with deliberate indifference; and (iii) Kline and King are entitled to qualified immunity, because Gallegos has not met his burden of demonstrating that his asserted right is clearly established. Accordingly, the Court will grant the MSJ and grant the Motion in part.³

FACTUAL BACKGROUND

The Court draws the factual background from the parties' assertions of undisputed material facts in their summary judgment motion papers. See MSJ ¶¶ 1-41, at 2-7; Plaintiff's Response to Defendants Kline's and King's Motion for Summary Judgment on the Basis of Qualified Immunity and Other Grounds ¶¶ 1-17, at 1-7, filed November 1, 2017 (Doc. 92)("MSJ Response"); Reply to Plaintiff's Response to Defendants Kline's and King's Motion for Summary Judgment on the Basis of Qualified Immunity and Other Grounds at 2-3, filed November 24, 2017 (Doc. 94)("MSJ Reply").

Gallegos is a former inmate at the Bernalillo County Metropolitan Detention Center ("MDC") and was detained there until November 12, 2014. See MSJ ¶ 1, at 2 (asserting this fact)(citing Inmate Release Form at 1, filed October 18, 2017 (Doc. 90-1)("Release Form")); MSJ Response ¶ 1, at 1 (admitting this fact). On November 6, 2014, a state district judge remanded Gallegos to MDC and ordered that Gallegos remain there until '"his level of methadone treatment has reached a point where [he] will not incur life-endangering withdrawal symptoms upon transfer to the Department of Corrections.'" MSJ ¶ 2, at 3 (asserting this fact)(quoting Order Remanding Defendant to Metropolitan Detention Center at 2, filed November 6, 2014, in State of New Mexico v. Martin Gallegos, Nos. CR 14-4787, CR 13-5315 (Second Judicial District Court, County of Bernalillo, State of New Mexico), filed in federal court October 18, 2017 (Doc. 90-2)("Methadone Order"). See MSJ Response ¶ 1, at 1 (admitting this fact). The Methadone Order was to remain in effect '"for six weeks maximum [before Gallegos] will be transported to Department of Corrections.'" MSJ ¶ 2, at 3 (asserting this fact)(quoting Methadone Order at 2)(alteration added). See MSJ Response ¶ 1, at 1 (admitting this fact). Essentially, the Methadone Order provided that Gallegos would be titrated⁴ down from his current dosage of methadone over a six-week period at MDC before being transferred to the Corrections Department, so that he would not endure severe withdrawal systems associated with immediately stopping methadone. See MSJ Response ¶ 8, at 3-4 (asserting this fact).⁵ Gallegos uses methadone to control pain that he has experienced since agethirteen, when he was injured in an electrical accident and lost half of his right arm. See MSJ Response ¶ 11, at 4-5 (asserting this fact); Deposition of Martin Gallegos at 90:17-22 (taken January 18, 2017), filed November 1, 2017 (Doc. 92-3)("Gallegos Depo.").⁶

Unlike the Corrections Department, MDC maintains a methadone program, which has existed since at least 2013 and is administered through the Recovery Services Company of New Mexico. See MSJ Response ¶ 9, at 4 (asserting this fact)(citing Administrative Meeting Agenda at 1 (dated December 10, 2013), filed November 1, 2017 (Doc. 92-1)).⁷ Methadone orders are common at MDC, and MDC has received these orders for many years and typically sends them to Recovery Services. See MSJ Response 10, at 4 (asserting this fact); Deposition of Alexis Iverson at 7:1-8:25 (taken January 20, 2017), filed November 1, 2017 (Doc. 92-4)("Iverson Depo").⁸

Kline is an MDC Corrections Officer who assists in releasing MDC detainees or transferring them to other prisons. See MSJ ¶ 4, at 3 (asserting this fact)(citing Deposition of Clyde Kline at 3:9-25 (taken December 7, 2016), filed October 18, 2017 (Doc. 90-7)("Kline Depo.").⁹ Kline sees MDC detainees only when they are getting ready to leave MDC. See MSJ ¶ 5, at 4 (asserting this fact)(citing Kline Depo. at 5:17-6:1); MSJ Response ¶ 2, at 2 (admitting this fact). When MDC detainees leave the facility, they are removed from their cells by rovers -- MDC officers on another shift -- and taken to a cell near Kline's office. See MSJ ¶ 6, at 4 (asserting this fact)(citing Kline Depo. at 6-7); MSJ Response ¶ 2, at 2 (admitting this fact). The detainees then await sheriff's deputies, who transport them to prisons. See MSJ ¶ 7, at 4 (asserting this fact)(citing Kline Depo. at 6:5-10); MSJ Response ¶ 2, at 2 (admitting this fact). Kline checks paperwork to verify that each detainee being transported is the correct individual before the sheriff's deputies take them. See MSJ ¶ 8, at 4 (asserting this fact)(citing Kline Depo. at 15:6-12); MSJ Response ¶ 2, at 2 (admitting this fact). By the time Kline verifies the detainees' identities, the detainees "'have already gotten all of their property and everything is done and they are just sitting in there waiting to leave.'" MSJ ¶ 9, at 4 (asserting this fact)(quoting Kline Depo. at 7:6-8). See MSJ Response ¶ 2, at 2 (admitting this fact).

The paperwork that Kline reviews consists of a transport list and the detainees' face sheets. See MSJ ¶ 10, at 4 (asserting this fact)(citing Kline Depo. at 8:12-18); MSJ Response¶ 2, at 2 (admitting this fact). The transport list contains the detainees' names, and the face sheet shows the individual detainees' faces and names. See MSJ ¶¶ 11-12, at 4 (asserting this fact)(citing Kline Depo. at 8:12-18); MSJ Response ¶ 2, at 2 (admitting this fact). Kline's job is to ask a detainee for his name and to examine the face sheet to verify the detainee's identity. See MSJ ¶ 13, at 4 (asserting this fact)(citing Kline Depo. at 14:12-23); MSJ Response ¶ 2, at 2 (admitting this fact). If the photograph on the face sheet does not look like the detainee, Kline asks the detainee for his date of birth and gathers additional information to verify the detainee's identity. See MSJ ¶ 13, at 4-5 (citing Kline Depo. at 14:12-23); MSJ Response ¶ 2, at 2 (admitting this fact).

Kline does not verify court orders relating to detainees; the MDC records clerk verifies '"case numbers and matching of all these orders.'" MSJ ¶ 14, at 5 (asserting this fact)(quoting Kline Depo. at 13:10-11). See MSJ Response ¶ 2, at 2 (admitting this fact). Kline does not verify these things and does not have '"computer access to all that information.'" MSJ ¶¶ 15-16, at 5 (asserting this fact)(quoting Kline Depo. at 13:22). See MSJ Response ¶ 2, at 2 (admitting this fact). Kline verifies only that a detainee is leaving MDC. See MSJ ¶ 17, at 5 (asserting this fact)(citing Kline Depo. at 15:7-8); MSJ Response ¶ 2, at 2 (admitting this fact).

The person who initialed the section on Gallegos' Release Form labeled "file checked to ensure release is valid" was a records clerk. MSJ ¶ 18, at 5 (asserting this fact)(quoting Release Form at 1; citing Kline Depo. at 13:23-25). See MSJ Response ¶ 2, at 2 (admitting this fact). Kline signed the Release Form only in the space labeled '"releasing officer.'" MSJ ¶ 19, at 5 (asserting this fact)(quoting Release Form at 1; citing Kline Depo. at 13:16-17). See MSJ Response ¶ 2, at 2 (admitting this fact). Kline does not have the knowledge or the computer access to confirm any of the information in the detainees' paperwork, although he knows that therecords department prepares the paperwork. See MSJ ¶ 20, at 5 (asserting this fact)(citing Kline Depo. at 15:6-19); Response ¶ 2, at 2 (admitting this fact). The records department has '"the transport orders and all the orders get given to the sheriffs. . . . We hand it to them and I make sure [that what] I'm giving them matches [the person who] is leaving.'" MSJ ¶ 21, at 5 (asserting this fact)(quoting Kline Depo. at 15:21-25)(alterations added). See MSJ Response ¶ 2, at 2 (admitting this fact). Kline does not deeply research the information in the detainees' paperwork. See MSJ ¶ 21, at 5 (asserting this fact)(citing Kline Depo. at 15:25-16:2); Response ¶ 2, at 2 (admitting this fact). All Kline does is ensure that "'Gallegos is going on this transport order that's prepared before, like who knows, days before they get their orders to go to prison.'" MSJ ¶ 22, at 5 (asserting this fact)(quoting Kline Depo. at 17:18-21). See MSJ Response ¶ 2, at 2 (admitting this fact).

Kline's only knowledge of MDC's methadone treatment...