FILED
United States Court of Appeals
UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS Tenth Circuit
FOR THE TENTH CIRCUIT December 5, 2017
_________________________________
Elisabeth A. Shumaker
Clerk of Court
ARCHIE RACHEL,
Plaintiff - Appellant,
v. No. 17-6123
(D.C. No. 5:14-CV-00655-R)
JEFFREY TROUTT, D.O. in his official (W.D. Okla.)
capacity as the facility doctor and
individual capacity; KATRYNA FRECH,
R.N. in her official and individual capacity;
JANET DOWLING, Warden in her official
and individual capacity; FELICIA
HARRIS, Law Librarian in her official and
individual capacity,
Defendants - Appellees.
_________________________________
ORDER AND JUDGMENT*
_________________________________
Before LUCERO, BACHARACH, and MORITZ, Circuit Judges.
_________________________________
Archie Rachel is an Oklahoma prisoner who sued several prison officials under
42 U.S.C. § 1983. He primarily claims that his medical care in prison was so
inadequate that it rose to the level of cruel and unusual punishment under the Eighth
*
After examining the briefs and appellate record, this panel has determined
unanimously to honor the parties’ request for a decision on the briefs without oral
argument. See Fed. R. App. P. 34(f); 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 This order and judgment is not binding
precedent, except under the doctrines of law of the case, res judicata, and collateral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.
Amendment. Rachel appeals the district court’s order granting summary judgment
for the defendants.1 But we agree that Rachel failed to show there is a genuine
dispute of material fact, so we affirm.
I. Background
Rachel has medical problems. While an inmate at the James Crabtree
Correctional Center (JCCC), he suffered from heartburn, indigestion, and muscle
pain in his hands. He also “leak[ed] urine on himself frequently.” Aplt. Br. at 4.
Unhappy with his medical care, Rachel sued a prison physician (Dr. Jeffrey Troutt)
and nurse (Katryna Frech), claiming they were deliberately indifferent to his medical
needs. He also claimed Frech and the warden (Janet Dowling) were liable as
supervisors.2
The district court screened Rachel’s complaint under 28 U.S.C. § 1915A, and
ordered JCCC to investigate his allegations and prepare a Special Report,
see Martinez v. Aaron, 570 F.2d 317, 319-20 (10th Cir. 1978). When the Special
Report was completed, the defendants filed a dispositive motion. In his response,
Rachel sought more time to conduct discovery and use JCCC’s law library. The
district court denied his request and granted summary judgment for the defendants.
1
Rachel is proceeding pro se, as he did in the district court. Although he must
follow the same rules of procedure as counseled litigants, we liberally construe his
pleadings and hold them to a less stringent standard than those drafted by attorneys.
See Garrett v. Selby Connor Maddux & Janer, 425 F.3d 836, 840 (10th Cir. 2005).
2
Rachel’s complaint included a third claim regarding the prison’s grievance
procedure, but the district court previously granted summary judgment on this claim
and we affirmed. See Rachel v. Troutt, 820 F.3d 390, 398 (10th Cir. 2016).
2
We reversed, holding the district court should have given Rachel more time.
See Rachel v. Troutt, 820 F.3d 390, 395-96 (10th Cir. 2016).
On remand, the parties completed discovery and the defendants again filed
dispositive motions. Specifically, Frech moved to dismiss and Troutt and Dowling
moved for summary judgment. But despite several extensions of time, Rachel failed
to respond. A magistrate judge recommended granting summary judgment on
Rachel’s deliberate indifference and supervisory liability claims,3 and the district
court adopted his report and recommendation.
II. Standard of Review
We review the grant of summary judgment de novo. Felkins v. City of
Lakewood, 774 F.3d 647, 650 (10th Cir. 2014). A party is entitled to summary
judgment if he shows there is no genuine dispute of material fact and he is entitled to
judgment as a matter of law. Fed. R. Civ. P. 56(a). A dispute “is genuine if there is
sufficient evidence on each side so that a rational trier of fact could resolve the issue
either way.” J.V. v. Albuquerque Pub. Schs., 813 F.3d 1289, 1295 (10th Cir. 2016)
(internal quotation marks omitted).
At the summary-judgment stage, the court must view the facts in the light most
favorable to the nonmoving party, and must resolve all factual disputes and make all
reasonable inferences in his favor. Cillo v. City of Greenwood Vill., 739 F.3d 451,
461 (10th Cir. 2013). But the “plaintiff has an obligation to present some evidence to
3
The magistrate judge relied on documents attached to the Special Report, so
he treated both dispositive motions as motions for summary judgment. See Fed. R.
Civ. P. 12(d). Rachel does the same.
3
support the allegations; mere allegations, without more, are insufficient to avoid
summary judgment.” Serna v. Colo. Dep’t of Corr., 455 F.3d 1146, 1150-51
(10th Cir. 2006) (internal quotation marks omitted).
III. Deliberate Indifference
Rachel argues the district court erred by granting summary judgment on his
claim that Troutt and Frech were deliberately indifferent to his medical needs. But
he directs us to no evidence supporting his allegations, so we see no error. See id.
A prison official’s deliberate indifference to a prisoner’s serious medical needs
violates the Eighth Amendment prohibition on cruel and unusual punishment. Estelle
v. Gamble, 429 U.S. 97, 104 (1976). A deliberate indifference claim has two
components, one objective and one subjective. Al-Turki v. Robinson, 762 F.3d 1188,
1192 (10th Cir. 2014). The objective prong requires the prisoner to show his medical
condition was serious enough to implicate the Eighth Amendment. See id. This
requirement is satisfied if his condition was diagnosed by a doctor as requiring
treatment or was “so obvious that even a lay person would easily recognize the
necessity for a doctor’s attention.” Id. at 1192-93. To satisfy the subjective prong,
the prisoner must show the official knew he faced “a substantial risk of serious harm
and disregard[ed] that risk by failing to take reasonable measures to abate it.”
Farmer v. Brennan, 511 U.S. 825, 847 (1994).
Rachel argues that Troutt and Frech demonstrated deliberate indifference to his
medical needs by taking him “off all the meds he needed” when he arrived at JCCC
and forcing him to “live[e] in complete misery” for 30 days while he waited to see a
4
doctor. Aplt. Br. at 4. Although a delay in treatment that causes considerable pain
may be sufficient to satisfy the objective prong of the deliberate indifference test,
see Al-Turki, 762 F.3d at 1193, Rachel cites no evidence supporting his allegations.
And his medical records from JCCC, which were included in the Special Report,
paint a different picture. Rachel submitted three requests for health services before
his first medical examination at JCCC, which occurred about a month after he
arrived. But Rachel neither complained of pain nor asked to see a doctor. See R.
Vol. I at 229-31. Rather, he simply requested refills of certain medications. If
Rachel did require immediate care upon arriving at JCCC, he provides no evidence
suggesting Troutt or Frech knew this.4
Rachel argues his medical care was inadequate even after Troutt began treating
him. Specifically, he claims the medications Troutt prescribed were less effective
than those he had taken previously. But even if Rachel’s complaints of heartburn,
indigestion, muscle pain, and urine leakage are serious enough to implicate the
Eighth Amendment, he cites no evidence suggesting Troutt’s prescribed treatment
was inappropriate. Rachel’s medical records show that, from the time he arrived at
JCCC until he filed this lawsuit, the medical staff examined him on a monthly basis,
ordered laboratory tests and x-rays, and provided treatment and medications
consistent with his symptoms. Rachel points to no evidence suggesting these
4
Rachel says Troutt and Frech “should have known from [his] medical records
. . . that he was at risk of serious harm if not properly medicated.” Aplt. Br. at 5. But
he does not direct us to the medical records he refers to or any other evidence
supporting this assertion. This sort of unsubstantiated allegation carries no weight in
summary judgment proceedings. Self v. Crum, 439 F.3d 1227, 1230 (10th Cir. 2006).
5
measures were inadequate. See Self v. Crum, 439 F.3d 1227, 1232-33 (10th Cir.
2006) (when “a doctor orders treatment consistent with the symptoms presented and
then continues to monitor the patient’s condition, an inference of deliberate
indifference is unwarranted”).
Rachel also claims he was forced to wait outside in a “pill line,” which caused
him “unnecessary pain [and] suffering.” Aplt. Br. at 3 (internal quotation marks
omitted). But he does not explain who forced him to do this or why it demonstrates
extreme indifference to his serious medical needs. Nor does he support this
statement with citations to the record or legal authority. Without more, this argument
does not warrant appellate review. See Fed. R. App. P. 28(a)(8)(A) (the appellant’s
brief must contain his “contentions and the reasons for them, with citations to the
authorities and parts of the record on which the appellant relies”); Champagne Metals
v. Ken-Mac Metals, Inc., 458 F.3d 1073, 1092 (10th Cir. 2006) (declining to consider
argument consisting of conclusory statements without legal authority).
In short, Rachel raises several complaints about his medical treatment at
JCCC, but he points to no evidence that would allow a rational jury to conclude
Troutt or Frech acted with deliberate indifferent to his serious medical needs. The
district court, therefore, did not err by granting summary judgment on Rachel’s
deliberate indifference claim.
IV. Supervisor Liability
We also reject Rachel’s argument that the district court erred by granting
summary judgment on his supervisory liability claim. The first step in establishing a
6
§ 1983 claim against a supervisor is showing that her subordinates violated the
constitution. Serna, 455 F.3d at 1151. Because there is no evidence supporting
Rachel’s Eighth Amendment claim, his supervisory liability claim also fails.
V. Conclusion
We affirm the district court’s order granting summary judgment. We also
grant Rachel’s motion to proceed on appeal without prepayment of fees. Because we
can excuse only prepayment of fees, see 28 U.S.C. § 1915(a)(1), Rachel remains
obligated to pay all fees to the clerk of the district court.
Entered for the Court
Nancy L. Moritz
Circuit Judge
7