Talley v. Clark

1

QUINTEZ TALLEY v. MAJOR CLARK, LAURA BANTA, M. NASH, THOMAS GRENEVICH, J. YODIS, JOSEPH DUPONT, PA DEPARTMENT OF CORRECTIONS and JOHN WETZEL

Civil Action No. 18-5316

United States District Court, E.D. Pennsylvania

March 6, 2023

MEMORANDUM OPINION

Savage, J.

In this § 1983 action, plaintiff Quintez Talley, a serial filer,^[1] asserts claims under the Eighth and Fourteenth Amendments, the Americans with Disabilities Act (“ADA”), and the Rehabilitation Act (“RA”) arising out of his custodial treatment, the DOC's disciplinary hearing process, and the imposition of sanctions for nine misconducts while incarcerated at State Correctional Institutions at Graterford and Fayette in 2017 and 2018. He has sued prison officials who were involved, directly or indirectly, in the disciplinary process resulting in what he contends was solitary confinement. They are Laura Banta, Deputy Superintendent for Centralized Services; Gina Clark, a Correctional Officer; Thomas Grenevich, Counselor and L-Block Unit Manager; McKenzie Nash, Psychological Services Specialist; Joseph Dupont, Chief Hearing Examiner; and Joseph Yodis, Misconduct Hearing Examiner.

Moving for summary judgment, the defendants argue that the undisputed evidence demonstrates that Talley failed to exhaust his administrative remedies pursuant to the Prison Litigation Reform Act (PLRA). They assert that even if he had exhausted his administrative remedies, the evidence does not support his claims. They also invoke qualified and sovereign immunity.

We conclude that the undisputed facts prove that Talley did not exhaust the administrative remedies available to him. Even if he had exhausted his administrative remedies, his claims fail on the merits. Therefore, we shall grant the defendants' motion for summary judgment.

Background

Talley has been in the custody of the Pennsylvania Department of Corrections (“DOC”) since 2012, serving a 29-to-58-year sentence on an arson conviction. Throughout this time, the DOC has identified him as having mental health issues.

It is DOC policy to “deliver a broad continuum of mental health services to ensure that regardless of how major or minor the emotional disturbance, services are available to every inmate in the Department.”^[2] Inmates with mental health problems are monitored on the automated Mental Health/Intellectual Disability (MH/ID) tracking system ensuring continuity of care by identifying, treating, and communicating the most current information about an inmate's mental illness.^[3] Inmates with mental illness are assigned to one of four rosters on the DOC's mental health stability code.^[4]

At all relevant times, Talley was assigned to roster “C.”^[5] Roster C inmates are “receiving psychiatric treatment, but [are] not currently diagnosed with a serious mental illness or functional impairment and [do] not have an intellectual disability or [are] not Guilty But Mentally Ill.”^[6] On May 13, 2015, Talley was assigned to roster “C” because prison staff determined he did not suffer from a significant mental illness.^[7] He has remained on roster C since.^[8]

Talley had been on roster “D” on the DOC's mental health stability code.^[9] D roster inmates are “diagnosed with a serious mental illness, intellectual disability, credible functional impairment, or [are] [guilty but mentally ill]”.^[10]

Talley has a history of suicidal ideations and self-harm. He was frequently admitted to a psychiatric observation cell (“POC”), “[a] cell located in the Infirmary area .. . used to hold inmates who are mentally decompensating to the point where they are considered a danger to themselves, other inmates, and/or property.”^[11] Talley was admitted to the POC at least twelve times during the year he was at SCI Graterford.^[12]

DOC staff, including psychiatric staff, concluded that his suicidal ideations and attempts at self-harm were behavioral and unrelated to mental illness. On January 9, 2018, Psychological Services Specialist Robert Ladonne emailed Deputy Superintendent Banta:

[Talley] keeps slipping through the cracks and finding his way into the [psychiatric observation cell]. Is there a way that he can be managed so that the fire-setting and other dangerous/disruptive behaviors can be managed? It has been our consensus for quite some time now that he is not [serious mental illness] and he does not need a [psychiatric observation cell] and . . . [that his behavior] is not a by-product of mental illness but clear intention to orchestrate his placement. He is really testing us to see if we have what it takes to house him appropriately.^[13]

A week later, Ladonne sent an email to prison staff stating:

Please be advised that inmate Talley/KT-5091 is being discharged from the POC by Dr. Doyle this morning. As you are aware, inmate Talley is a C stability inmate and psychiatry finds no justification for his continued stay in the POC. Upon discharge, it is likely that Mr. Talley will wait for an opportune moment to injure himself or others. Staff who are receiving this email may be aware that he did so the last time he was moved to L block by using the very device that was being used to restrain him (placing the restraint belt around his neck). Psychiatry does not see Mr. Talley's problematic behaviors and attempts to injure himself as emanating from any form of serious mental illness but rather that they are behaviorally driven and employed as means to orchestrate where he will be housed. Deputy Banta has been advised of the discharge and is aware that this inmate will need to be managed by security in order to prevent him from hurting himself or others and to manage his behaviors on the block. Mr. Talley is known to look for times to act out/injure himself during later shifts when there are less staff or when he has behaved well enough to have less eyes on him (you may recall he set a fire on L block not too long ago and told us last week that he would do the same thing if he was placed back there). Deputy Banta will be working with security staff to orchestrate his movement out of the POC and to the RHU. It is important that all psychiatric practitioners who will be on call in the weeks to come are aware of the plan to manage his behavior. It is imperative that psychiatry work closely with security in managing this offender so that POC placements are not ordered for what are purely behavioral reasons. As always, Mr. Talley should not be advised of his discharge or pending move to the RHU until such time that the move is actually taking place. To do so would increase the risk that he would look to injure himself or others or make his movement much more difficult.^[14]

Misconducts

Talley was transferred to SCI Graterford in January 2017.^[15] Upon his arrival, he was housed in general population.^[16] Even though he could leave his cell for recreation and meals, he rarely did.^[17]

Misconducts between April and August 2017 led to the accumulation of significant disciplinary custody (“DC”) time.^[18] As a result, he spent his last few months at SCI Graterford in L-Block,^[19] a free-standing building with a Restrictive Housing Unit (RHU) and a Diversionary Treatment Unit (DTU).^[20] He also spent time in a POC and the mental health unit (“MHU”).^[21]

On October 20, 2017, Talley set fire in the shower area of L-Block. As Correctional Officer Schoeneberger was extinguishing the fire, Talley threw an unknown substance at him. Schoeneberger gave him multiple orders to stop and to put out the fire. Talley responded, “f*** you, you piece of shit, cracker. I'm going to kill cracker!”^[22] A bath towel and shower curtain were burned. Talley was charged with arson; refusing to obey an order; destroying, altering, tampering, and damaging property; and threatening an employee with bodily harm. Talley received Misconduct No. B227909 for this incident.^[23] Talley was placed in the POC that day and was discharged on December 8.^[24] He was admitted to the POC again one week later.^[25] After he was discharged on January 4, 2018,^[26] he was readmitted to the POC after tearing off a piece of his mattress and placing it around his neck.^[27]

Two days later, while in the POC, Talley set a fire in his cell,^[28] igniting paper and his mattress. He ignored several orders to stop and yelled at a correctional officer, “I'm going to f*** you up.”^[29] After the fire was extinguished, he was escorted to medical for evaluation. He was charged in Misconduct No. B816412 with arson; refusing to obey an order; destroying, altering, tampering, and damaging property; and threatening an employee with bodily harm.^[30]

On January 8, Yodis attempted to adjudicate Misconduct No. B227909 based on the fire in the shower area incident.^[31] The hearing was continued because Talley was in the POC.^[32] Talley was discharged from the POC on January 9.^[33] Two days later, he was readmitted to the POC for suicidal ideation.^[34]

Dr. Doyle, a psychiatrist, discharged Talley from the POC the morning of January 16.^[35] He determined Talley's behavior was unrelated to any serious mental illness.^[36]Because he found Talley's “problematic behaviors and attempts to injure himself . . . [as] behaviorally driven and employed as means to orchestrate” his housing, he concluded there was “no justification for his continued stay in the POC.”^[37]

Talley refused to leave the POC. He was given multiple orders to comply with staff, “cuff up,” and prepare for transfer.^[38] He stated “I'm not coming out[.] I'm not going to L-Block[.] I'm suicidal and I'm staying here.”^[39] He received Misconduct No B438532, charging him with refusal to obey an order.^[40] After Talley was transferred to the reception cell in L-Block, he immediately stated that he was suicidal. According to his mental...