FILED
United States Court of Appeals
Tenth Circuit
November 22, 2016
UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS
Elisabeth A. Shumaker
TENTH CIRCUIT Clerk of Court
JOHN PAUL GARMAN,
Plaintiff - Appellant,
v.
No. 16-4096
(D.C. No. 2:13-CV-00274-DB)
MARCOS GARAYCHOCHEA;
(D. Utah)
HILARY GORDON; DEREK
CHRISTENSEN,
Defendants - Appellees.
ORDER AND JUDGMENT *
Before BRISCOE, GORSUCH, and McHUGH, Circuit Judges.
John Paul Garman appeals the dismissal of his 42 U.S.C. § 1983 complaint
alleging that Salt Lake City detectives violated his Fourteenth Amendment rights
by preventing him from changing his soiled clothing during his pre-trial
detention. As Mr. Garman correctly notes, under the Supreme Court’s Fourteenth
Amendment due process jurisprudence officers owe pre-trial detainees (at the
*
After examining the briefs and appellate record, this panel has determined
unanimously that oral argument would not materially assist in the determination
of this appeal. See Fed. R. App. P. 34(a)(2); 10th Cir. R. 34.1(G). The case is
therefore ordered submitted without oral argument. This order and judgment is
not binding precedent except under the doctrines of law of the case, res judicata,
and collateral estoppel. It may be cited, however, for its persuasive value
consistent with Fed. R. App. P. 32.1 and 10th Cir. R. 32.1.
least) the same degree of care they owe convicted inmates under the Eighth
Amendment and its prohibition against cruel and unusual punishment. Bell v.
Wolfish, 441 U.S. 520, 535-36 (1979); Blackmon v. Sutton, 734 F.3d 1237, 1244
(10th Cir. 2013). And under the Eighth Amendment the Supreme Court has
instructed us that officers may not deliberately disregard conditions that pose a
substantial risk of serious harm to those they incarcerate. Farmer v. Brennan,
511 U.S. 825, 834 (1994). But as the district court correctly explained in a
thorough opinion we adopt as our own, the officers in this case did not come
close to offending that standard or even a much higher one. True, when officers
arrived at his home Mr. Garman explained to them that he had soiled his clothes.
But the officers responded by asking Mr. Garman to bring a clean set of clothes
with him and, after a short ride to the station, they promptly offered to allow him
to change. A fact confirmed by video. Indeed, it was Mr. Garman himself who
initially refused the officers’ invitation to change and only did so after multiple
requests. Given these facts, we cannot say that the officers were deliberately
indifferent to a substantial risk of serious harm, let alone that any reasonable
officer in their shoes would have known their conduct was unlawful. See, e.g.,
Key v. McKinney, 176 F.3d 1083, 1086-87 (8th Cir. 1999). To the extent,
meanwhile, that Mr. Garman suggests that evidence of his interrogation should be
excluded from use in criminal proceedings against him, that is the province of a
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motion to suppress or a habeas application, not a § 1983 suit. Preiser v.
Rodriguez, 411 U.S. 475 (1973).
The judgment of the district court is affirmed. Mr. Garman is reminded of
his obligation to continue making partial payments until his appellate filing fee is
fully paid.
ENTERED FOR THE COURT
Neil M. Gorsuch
Circuit Judge
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