Slone v. Lincoln Cnty.

242 F.Supp.3d 579

Carrie SLONE, Administratrix of the Estate of Tuanya Lee Slone, Plaintiff,

v.LINCOLN COUNTY, KENTUCKY, et al., Defendants.

Civil Action No. 5: 15–327–DCR

United States District Court, E.D. Kentucky, Central Division at Lexington.

Signed March 16, 2017

Jason E. Williams, Williams Farmer & Towe Law Group, London, KY, for Defendants.

MEMORANDUM OPINION AND ORDER

Danny C. Reeves, United States District Judge

Approximately seven hours after being booked into the Lincoln County Jail, inmate Tuanya Slone hanged herself in an isolation cell and died. The administratix of Slone's estate filed this action alleging that Lincoln County, the Lincoln County Jailer, and several deputy jailers were deliberately indifferent to Slone's risk of suicide. The plaintiff also contends that the defendants were negligent and grossly negligent under state law and that Slone's estate is entitled to damages under Kentucky's wrongful death statute.

On December 16, 2016, the defendants moved for entry of summary judgment in their favor regarding all claims asserted in this action. [Record No. 54] For the reasons that follow, the defendants' motion will be granted with respect to all defendants except deputy jailer Renata Patton ("Patton").

I. BACKGROUND

Tuanya Slone ("Slone") was arrested on May 15, 2015, for stealing a controlled substance and attempting to escape from the arresting officer. [Record No. 29, p. 4] Patton, who had been working as a deputy jailer for approximately two months, booked Slone into the Lincoln County Jail around 6:00 p.m. that evening. [Record No. 63, pp. 8–9] Patton asked Slone a series of "standard medical questions" during booking and entered Slone's responses into the computerized "Jail Tracker" system. Id. Slone indicated in response to Patton's questions that she was not contemplating suicide, but had attempted suicide in the past. Id. at p. 12. Patton noted that Slone had recently ingested potentially dangerous levels of alcohol and that the arresting officer suggested that Slone also had taken an unknown amount of morphine. Id. Slone's booking apparently coincided with the inmates' evening meal, so she was given a tray of food and a plastic eating utensil known as a "spork." Id. at p. 21.

Slone ate dinner while she answered Patton's questions. Id.

Slone advised Patton that she could not be in a cell with other inmates, although she did not provide a reason. Id. at p. 12. Patton testified that she strip-searched Slone, but was unable to recall precisely when the search occurred. Id. at p. 15. At some point during booking, Patton issued Slone a standard jumpsuit and a bedsheet. Slone remained in the strip-search cell for the rest of the evening. [Record Nos. 63, p. 19–22; 59, p. 19]

Deputy Jailer Bryan Wilmot was the shift supervisor from 4:00 p.m. until midnight on May 15, 2015. [Record No. 59, p. 11] Wilmont was on the second floor handing out medicine to other inmates at the time of Slone's booking. Id. at p. 10. In keeping with his usual practice of reviewing his subordinates' work during each shift, Wilmot reviewed Patton's work around 10:00 p.m. that night. Id. at pp. 16–17. He noticed a Jail Tracker "alert" at the time of this review, indicating that, during a previous booking, Slone had reported attempting suicide. [Record Nos. 59, p. 16; 58, p. 26] Wilmot immediately notified Patton that she had missed the alert and that Slone should not have been dressed in a jumpsuit and placed in a cell. [Record No. 59, p. 16]

Section VII–800 of the jail's Policy Manual provides that inmates who have attempted suicide will be referred to local mental health programs. [See Record No. 54–1, p. 16; see also K.R.S. § 441.048.] Although not expressly addressed in the manual, when a suicide alert is present during intake, the individual being booked waits in the booking area under constant supervision while the deputy contacts Comp Care, the jail's "telephonic behavioral health triage system," K.R.S. § 210.365, to receive further instructions. [Record No. 59, p. 56] Comp Care advises the deputy regarding the inmate's level of behavior health risk. Id. at p. 58. While the jail is not required to adopt Comp Care's recommendation, Defendant Wilmot's testimony suggests that the jail ordinarily does adopt the recommendation and implements Comp Care's recommended protocol for housing and supervising the subject inmate. Id.

Inmates evaluated by Comp Care are classified based on four levels of risk: low, moderate, high, and critical. High-risk inmates are placed in an isolation cell and all of their personal property and clothing is removed. [Record No. 58, p. 30] Additionally, high-risk inmates are dressed in a suicide-prevention smock known as a "turtle suit," given a suicide-prevention blanket and mat, and observed every 20 minutes. Id. Inmates placed on critical risk are also dressed in a suicide smock and, if necessary, are placed in a restraining chair. Id. at p. 31.

The jail's Suicide Prevention Policy, Manual Section VIII–600, provides that any inmate who is under observation due to suicidal tendencies shall have items with which the inmate might harm himself or herself removed from the cell. [See Record No. 66–4.] Before Wilmot discovered that the alert had been missed, Slone had already been given dinner with a spork, as well as a bedsheet, and had spent several hours alone in her cell. [Record No. 59, p. 19]

Wilmot filled out a "jail triage form" and he and Patton promptly went to Slone's cell and asked her a series of questions. [Record Nos. 59, pp. 20, 29; 58–1, p. 8] According to Wilmot, Slone denied being suicidal at that time or having ever attempted suicide. [Record No. 59, p. 20] When reminded that she had previously admitted attempting suicide, Slone conceded that she had attempted suicide in the past by going out in a hail storm; slitting her wrist in middle school; trying to hang herself seven years ago; and shooting herself in the foot the prior year. [Record No. 58–1, p. 8]

Wilmot contacted Comp Care at 9:50 p.m. for guidance regarding Slone's classification. Id. He received a return call from Tia Tenneil ten minutes later. Tenneil advised Wilmot to place Slone on "high risk" for 12 hours and "re-triage" her again at that time. [Record Nos. 59, pp. 21–23; 58–1, p. 8]. Upon her classification as high risk, Slone was permitted only a turtle suit; turtle blanket; turtle mat; and toilet paper in her cell. [Record No. 59, p. 30] Wilmot instructed Patton to "take everything from [Slone]" and "put her in a turtle suit." Id. at pp. 27–28. Wilmot did not direct Patton to perform an additional strip-search, but believed that Slone would remove all clothing and that Patton would watch her closely as she changed. Id. at p. 28. Wilmot recalled advising Patton that staff would check on Slone every 20 or 30 minutes. Id.

Patton claims that she strip-searched Slone when Slone changed from the jumpsuit into the turtle suit, despite not having been instructed to do so. [Record No. 63, p. 17] Patton reported that she used the same technique as during the initial strip search; that is, she watched Slone undress completely before requiring her to squat and cough. Id. Patton could not remember whether Slone was wearing underwear beneath her jumpsuit, whether she was permitted to wear underwear beneath the turtle suit, or whether Slone was menstruating. Id. at pp. 18, 26.¹ Patton testified that, after Slone changed into the turtle suit, her cell was cleared of all items except a roll of toilet paper, a turtle blanket, and a turtle mat. Id. at p. 20. Patton recalled checking on Slone sometime later and believing her to be "ok." Id. at p. 24. By that time, Slone had removed the turtle suit and had wrapped her body with toilet paper. [Record Nos. 63, p. 24; 56, p. 28]

A new staff came on shift at midnight. Wilmot advised the new shift supervisor, Deputy Jailer Brenda Rowland, regarding the situation with Slone. [Record No. 58, pp. 10, 19, 28] Rowland was already familiar with Slone, as she recalled that Slone had been booked into the jail on two previous occasions and, that in August 2014, Slone had been considered at high-risk for suicide. Id. at p. 23. Landon Neff, Chrisana Buice, and Jeffery Gooch were the other deputy jailers working that night. Id. at p. 19. They received information about the inmates in custody from the outgoing deputies during shift change and from a printed document listing every inmate along with the inmate's location, which the deputies referred to as a "grease board." [Record No. 57, p. 33]

Deputy Jailer Buice was primarily in charge of supervising Slone that night. During head count, which occurred during the shift change at midnight, Buice opened Slone's cell door and asked Slone if she was okay. Slone said "yes," according to Buice. [Record No. 56, p. 9–10] Buice believed Slone to be under the influence of an unknown substance, however, based on "her demeanor and the fact that she had wrapped herself in toilet paper." Id. at p. 33. All further checks on Slone were visual. Id. The officers checking on Slone observed her and reported her status to Rowland, which Rowland then recorded in the jail's master log. [Record No. 58, p. 47]

At 12:35 a.m., Sergeant Gooch checked on Slone and observed her to be awake and sitting in the cell's non-working shower area. Id. at p. 50. Gooch observed a clear plastic bag on the floor in Slone's cell at that time. [Record No. 57, pp. 14–16] Absent an emergency, Gooch was not permitted to enter a female inmate's cell without a female guard accompanying him. Id. at p. 14. Gooch did not believe the situation warranted his entrance into Slone's cell, so he asked Deputy Buice to accompany him to retrieve the bag. However, according to Gooch, this request did not occur until approximately 1:00 a.m. Id.

Meanwhile, at 12:48 a.m., Buice checked on Slone again. She was still awake, sitting in the shower area. [Record Nos. 57, pp. 50–51; 56, p. 11] Buice apparently did not see...