Figueroa v. Oklahoma Department of Corrections , 501 F. App'x 746 ( 2012 )


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  •                                                            FILED
    United States Court of Appeals
    UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS       Tenth Circuit
    FOR THE TENTH CIRCUIT           November 1, 2012
    Elisabeth A. Shumaker
    Clerk of Court
    IVETTE FIGUEROA,
    Plaintiff-Appellant,
    v.                                               No. 12-6099
    (D.C. No. 5:10-CV-00760-M)
    OKLAHOMA DEPARTMENT OF                          (W.D. Okla.)
    CORRECTIONS; JUSTIN JONES,
    Director DOC; MIKE JACKSON, Chief
    of Medical Services; JOHN DOE,
    Warden, Lexington OK; MILLICENT
    NEWTON-EMBRY, Warden, Mabel
    Bassett; MIKE MURRAY, Deputy
    Warden, Mabel Bassett; MS. IPAYE,
    Kitchen Manager; MS. AMUS, Kitchen
    Supervisor; DR. MCMASTER, Doctor,
    Mabel Bassett; JANE DOE, Inmate Trust
    Fund; JANE DOE, Medical Accounts
    Payable; MS. HURLEY, Officer,
    Isolation Unit; NURSE NUNN, Mable
    Bassett; DENNIS COTNER, Medical
    Services; MR. HENDRICKSON, Case
    Manager; VALETA DUNCAN, SATP
    Director; SONI FORT, Records Officer
    MBCC; MIKE MURRY, Deputy
    Warden; OLA ONAJOBI, Unit Manager;
    SHOLA SHOPEYIN, Unit Manager;
    WARDEN ERIC FRANKLIN,
    Defendants-Appellees,
    and
    SHOLA SHOEPEYING; MS.
    ANAYOBI, Unit Manager; JANE DOE,
    Director SATP,
    Defendants.
    ORDER AND JUDGMENT*
    Before LUCERO, TYMKOVICH, and HOLMES, Circuit Judges.
    Plaintiff Ivette Figueroa, proceeding pro se, appeals from dismissal of her
    
    42 U.S.C. § 1983
     prisoner civil rights complaint. We have jurisdiction under
    
    28 U.S.C. § 1291
    , and we affirm.
    BACKGROUND
    Ms. Figueroa’s claims arise out of her custody by the Oklahoma Department of
    Corrections (ODOC) during the time period 2006 through 2010. She has since
    discharged her Oklahoma sentence and was released from ODOC custody on
    August 4, 2010. She is currently in the custody of the Arkansas Department of
    Corrections. Ms. Figueroa’s amended complaint includes allegations that ODOC
    prison officials discriminated against her on account of her sexual preference; denied
    her medical treatment, dietary needs, and toiletries; removed money from her trust
    account; forced her to climb stairs when unable; opened her mail; and only tolerated
    Christian religious activities. She seeks compensatory and punitive damages.
    *
    After examining the briefs and appellate record, this panel has determined
    unanimously to grant 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.
    -2-
    A group of Defendants1 filed a motion to dismiss pursuant to Fed. R. Civ. P.
    12(b)(1) and 12(b)(6) for, among other things, Ms. Figueroa’s failure to exhaust her
    administrative remedies pursuant to 42 U.S.C. § 1997e(a). In the alternative, Group
    1 Defendants moved for summary judgment under Fed. R. Civ. P. 56(b).
    Ms. Figueroa also submitted a motion for summary judgment. The magistrate judge
    recommended summary judgment against Ms. Figueroa on the issue of exhaustion.
    Ms. Figueroa filed a timely objection to the report and recommendation. On
    March 30, 2012, the district court conducted a de novo review, adopted the
    magistrate judge’s report and recommendation, and granted summary judgment for
    Group 1 Defendants on exhaustion grounds. Ms. Figueroa appealed on April 12,
    2012.
    Group 2 Defendants, though, had not yet been dismissed from the case. After
    conducting an initial review of Ms. Figueroa’s amended complaint pursuant to
    1
    Group 1 Defendants include Justin Jones, Director DOC; John Doe, Warden,
    Lexington OK (identified as Warden Eric Franklin); Millicent Newton-Embry,
    Warden, Mabel Bassett; Mr. Hendrickson, Case Manager; Jane Doe, Inmate Trust
    Fund (identified as Soni Fort, Records Officer); Jane Doe, Director SATP (identified
    as Valeta Duncan, SATP Director); Mike Murry, Deputy Warden, Mabel Bassett
    (spelled Mike Murray in amended complaint); Ola Onajobi, Unit Manager (spelled
    Ola Anayobi in amended complaint); and Shola Shopeyin, Unit Manager (spelled
    Shola Shopeying in amended complaint).
    Group 2 Defendants include Mike Jackson, Chief of Medical Services;
    Ms. Ipaye, Kitchen Manager; Ms. Amus, Kitchen Supervisor; Dr. McMaster, Doctor,
    Mabel Bassett; Jane Doe, Medical Accounts Payable; Ms. Hurley, Officer, Isolation
    Unit; Nurse Nunn, Mable Bassett (properly identified as Nurse Nelms); and Dennis
    Cotner, Medical Services.
    -3-
    
    28 U.S.C. §§ 1915
     and 1915A, the magistrate judge issued a second report and
    recommendation recommending dismissal of Ms. Figueroa’s claims against Group 2
    Defendants on the grounds of failure to state a claim upon which relief can be
    granted. Ms. Figueroa filed an objection, but it was untimely. On April 16, 2012,
    the district court, conducting a de novo review despite the absence of an objection,
    adopted the second report and recommendation and dismissed Ms. Figueroa’s claims
    against Group 2 Defendants pursuant to §§ 1915 and 1915A. The district court
    declined to exercise jurisdiction over Ms. Figueroa’s state-law claims and dismissed
    them without prejudice. Also on April 16, 2012, the district court entered a Fed. R.
    Civ. P. 58 final judgment dismissing the entire action. Ms. Figueroa filed an
    untimely amended notice of appeal on June 14, 2012.
    DISCUSSION
    We must first consider our jurisdiction over Ms. Figueroa’s appeal. In general,
    a party may not appeal until entry of a final order. See 
    28 U.S.C. § 1291
    .
    Ms. Figueroa filed her first notice of appeal before the Group 2 Defendants had been
    dismissed from the case. This premature notice of appeal may have ripened when the
    district court entered its final order disposing of the remaining claims and defendants.
    See, e.g., Fed. R. App. P. 4(a)(2); Fields v. Okla. State Penitentiary, 
    511 F.3d 1109
    ,
    1112 (10th Cir. 2007); Copeland ex rel. Copeland v. Toyota Motors Sales U.S.A.,
    Inc., 
    136 F.3d 1249
    , 1251-52 (10th Cir. 1998). Regardless, Ms. Figueroa filed a
    motion seeking leave to appeal in forma pauperis fourteen days after the entry of
    -4-
    judgment. We treat this application as the functional equivalent of a notice of appeal.
    See Fleming v. Evans, 
    481 F.3d 1249
    , 1253-54 (10th Cir. 2007) (motion to proceed
    on appeal in forma pauperis may serve as the functional equivalent of a notice of
    appeal).2 The clear intent of Ms. Figueroa’s filings in this court was to appeal the
    district court’s dismissal of her claims against both groups of Defendants. We
    therefore have jurisdiction over Ms. Figueroa’s appeal.
    This, however, does not end our analysis. Because Ms. Figueroa failed to
    timely file an objection to the second report and recommendation, she may have
    waived the right to appeal the district court’s dismissal of Group 2 Defendants under
    this circuit’s firm waiver rule. See Key Energy Res. Inc. v. Merrill (In re Key Energy
    Res. Inc.), 
    230 F.3d 1197
    , 1199-1200 (10th Cir. 2000) (“This court has adopted a
    ‘firm waiver rule’ which provides that a litigant’s failure to file timely objections to a
    magistrate’s report and recommendation waives appellate review of both the factual
    and legal determinations.” (brackets and internal quotation marks omitted)).
    Ms. Figueroa asserts that she was confused by the multiple report and
    2
    Even further, in Ms. Figueroa’s untimely objection to the magistrate’s second
    report and recommendation, which she submitted after entry of final judgment,
    Ms. Figueroa stated that she “disagree[s] with the court decision, due to various
    factors[,] w[h]ich will be explained, and also appeal[s].” Aplt. App. Vol. 1 (part 3)
    at 144 (emphasis added). It is appropriate to also construe this submission as the
    functional equivalent of a notice of appeal because it provides the notice required by
    Fed. R. App. P. 3(c)(1). See Smith v. Barry, 
    502 U.S. 244
    , 248 (1992).
    -5-
    recommendations and she did not understand that she needed to file a second
    objection. She also claims she did not receive the correct forms from the court.
    The waiver rule applies to a pro se party unless (1) the party has not been
    informed of the time period within which to file objections and the consequences for
    failing to do so, or (2) the “interests of justice” require review. Morales-Fernandez
    v. INS, 
    418 F.3d 1116
    , 1119 (10th Cir. 2005).3 The magistrate judge did inform
    Ms. Figueroa of the time period within which to file an objection to the second report
    and recommendation. However, we believe the interests of justice require review in
    this instance. Ms. Figueroa did make an effort to comply with the magistrate’s
    instruction to file an objection, albeit untimely. Furthermore, Ms. Figueroa was
    faced with two separate response dates to two separate reports and recommendations
    dealing with two sets of defendants—groupings that she had never contemplated. It
    is not implausible that a pro se litigant would have been confused concerning her
    obligation to file a separate objection to the second report and recommendation.
    See 
    id. at 1119-20
     (providing several factors to consider in applying the interests of
    justice exception, including a plaintiff’s efforts to comply with instructions and the
    3
    We do not find that Group 2 Defendants forfeited their claim to waiver by failing
    to properly object to Ms. Figueroa’s appeal. See Hicks v. Franklin, 
    546 F.3d 1279
    ,
    1283 n.3 (10th Cir. 2008) (“Because a failure to timely object to a magistrate’s report
    is not jurisdictional, the State has forfeited any claim that we should not consider the
    appeal because of [the plaintiff’s] failure to timely object.” (internal citation
    omitted)). The district court dismissed Group 2 Defendants under its 
    28 U.S.C. § 1915
     obligation to first screen an in forma pauperis complaint; therefore, Group 2
    Defendants had not yet actively participated in the action and did not have the
    opportunity to raise the lack-of-objection issue.
    -6-
    plausibility of the explanation for noncompliance). In the utmost concern for justice
    and in order to ensure that Ms. Figueroa has an opportunity to be heard, we conclude
    that the waiver rule should not apply in this case.4
    Dismissal of Group 1 Defendants
    “We review de novo the district court’s finding of failure to exhaust
    administrative remedies.” Jernigan v. Stuchell, 
    304 F.3d 1030
    , 1032 (10th Cir.
    2002). Exhaustion of available administrative remedies is mandatory under the
    Prison Litigation Reform Act (PLRA), 42 U.S.C. § 1997e(a). See Booth v. Churner,
    
    532 U.S. 731
    , 741 (2001). ODOC has adopted standard grievance procedures:
    The ODOC has a four-step process for administrative exhaustion of
    prisoner claims. Initially, a prisoner must seek to resolve any complaint
    by informally raising the matter with an appropriate staff member. If
    the matter is not resolved informally, the prisoner must submit [a
    Request to Staff]. If the matter still remains unresolved, the prisoner
    may file a Grievance Report Form (“grievance”) with the reviewing
    authority, which is usually the prison’s warden. Finally, a prisoner may
    appeal the warden=s decision to the Administrative Reviewing Authority
    (“ARA”). The ruling of the [ARA] . . . is final and [concludes] the
    internal administrative remedy available to the inmate . . . .
    Little v. Jones, 
    607 F.3d 1245
    , 1249 (10th Cir. 2010) (alterations in original) (internal
    quotation marks and citations omitted). Further, “[a]n inmate who begins the
    grievance process but does not complete it is barred from pursuing a § 1983 claim.”
    4
    The district court’s de novo review of the second report and recommendation,
    despite the absence of an objection, does not change the analysis. See United States
    v. 2121 East 30th St., 
    73 F.3d 1057
    , 1061 (10th Cir. 1996) (“[T]he district court’s
    decision to conduct a de novo review, sua sponte, does not warrant lifting the bar of
    appellate review under the circumstances presented here.”).
    -7-
    Jernigan, 
    304 F.3d at 1032
    ; see also Fields, 
    511 F.3d at 1112
     (“To exhaust
    administrative remedies an inmate must properly comply with grievance procedures;
    substantial compliance is insufficient.”).
    In her report and recommendation, the magistrate judge extensively outlined
    the grievance steps Ms. Figueroa took to resolve her claims against Group 1
    Defendants. In short, Ms. Figueroa submitted formal grievances for some of her
    claims and failed to submit grievances for other claims. She also failed to complete
    the appeals process for those grievances that she did submit.5 Thus, we agree with
    the district court that Ms. Figueroa failed to exhaust the available administrative
    remedies for her claims against Group 1 Defendants.
    Ms. Figueroa’s claim that ODOC grievance procedures do not apply because at
    the time she filed her amended complaint she had discharged her Oklahoma sentence
    and was in the custody of the Arkansas Department of Corrections is mistaken. The
    PLRA applies to a prisoner “confined in any jail, prison, or other correctional
    facility.” 42 U.S.C. § 1997e(a). Further, Ms. Figueroa’s claims relate to her
    confinement in ODOC custody, and she filed her original complaint while she was in
    ODOC custody. “[I]t is the plaintiff’s status at the time he files suit that determines
    5
    Ms. Figueroa submitted some of her grievances after the filing of her complaint
    in this action. “[R]esort to a prison grievance process must precede resort to a
    court.” Steele v. Fed. Bureau of Prisons, 
    355 F.3d 1204
    , 1207 (10th Cir. 2003)
    (alteration in original) (quotation marks and citation omitted), abrogated on other
    grounds by Jones v. Bock, 
    549 U.S. 199
     (2007). Further, it appears that
    Ms. Figueroa’s grievances, which she submitted in 2010 for claims against her that
    occurred in 2006-2008, are untimely under ODOC regulations.
    -8-
    whether § 1997e(a)’s exhaustion provision applies.” Norton v. City of Marietta,
    Okla., 
    432 F.3d 1145
    , 1150 (10th Cir. 2005).
    Dismissal of Group 2 Defendants
    The district court adopted the magistrate judge’s second recommendation and
    dismissed Ms. Figueroa’s claims against Group 2 Defendants pursuant to 
    28 U.S.C. § 1915
    (e)(2)(B)(ii) for failure to state a claim. We review de novo an order
    dismissing a prisoner’s § 1983 complaint for failure to state a claim under
    §§ 1915(e)(2)(B)(ii) and 1915A(b)(1). See McBride v. Deer, 
    240 F.3d 1287
    , 1289
    (10th Cir. 2001). “If the plaintiff proceeds pro se, the court should construe his
    pleadings liberally and hold the pleadings to a less stringent standard than formal
    pleadings drafted by lawyers.” Riddle v. Mondragon, 
    83 F.3d 1197
    , 1202 (10th Cir.
    1996). “However, the broad reading of the plaintiff’s complaint does not relieve the
    plaintiff of the burden of alleging sufficient facts on which a recognized legal claim
    could be based. . . . [C]onclusory allegations without supporting factual averments
    are insufficient to state a claim on which relief can be based.” 
    Id.
     (alterations and
    internal quotation marks omitted).
    Again, the magistrate judge succinctly reviewed and analyzed Ms. Figueroa’s
    claims against Group 2 Defendants in the second report and recommendation, and we
    agree that Ms. Figueroa has failed to allege sufficient details to state her claims.6
    6
    “[A] prison official cannot be found liable under the Eighth Amendment for
    denying an inmate humane conditions of confinement unless the official knows of
    (continued)
    -9-
    Accordingly, we AFFIRM the judgment of the district court. We also
    GRANT Ms. Figueroa’s motions to add-on exhibits and to proceed in forma
    pauperis.
    Entered for the Court
    Jerome A. Holmes
    Circuit Judge
    and disregards an excessive risk to inmate health or safety; the official must both be
    aware of facts from which the inference could be drawn that a substantial risk of
    serious harm exists, and he must also draw the inference.” Farmer v. Brennan,
    
    511 U.S. 825
    , 837 (1994). As to the temporary lack of toiletries, the Eighth
    Amendment is not implicated by mere allegations of discomfort or temporary adverse
    conditions posing no risk to a prisoner’s health and safety. See Hudson v. McMillian,
    
    503 U.S. 1
    , 9 (1992). Further, Ms. Figueroa’s claims for lack of adequate nutrition
    and medical care also fail to state the required particularity. See Thompson v.
    Gibson, 
    289 F.3d 1218
    , 1222 (10th Cir. 2002); Perkins v. Kan. Dep’t of Corr.,
    
    165 F.3d 803
    , 811 (10th Cir. 1999). Finally, an isolated instance of mail being
    opened “without any evidence of improper motive or resulting interference with [the]
    right to counsel or to access to the courts” is insufficient to establish a constitutional
    violation. See Smith v. Maschner, 
    899 F.2d 940
    , 944 (10th Cir. 1990).
    - 10 -