Cornejo v. Minglana

Background

The plaintiff, identified as a California prisoner proceeding without a lawyer, brought this civil-rights action under 42 U.S.C. § 1983 against officials at Salinas Valley State Prison, where he was formerly housed. He alleged that on May 24, 2019, after returning to the prison and having previously sued several prison officials and obtained a settlement, he was subjected to harassment, retaliation, and an excessively forceful cage extraction. He also alleged that medical care was delayed after he suffered injuries, including a head injury, and while experiencing suicidal ideation.

Screening and claims

The court conducted the preliminary screening required for prisoner cases under 28 U.S.C. § 1915A. It concluded that the allegations, liberally construed, stated plausible claims under the Eighth Amendment for excessive force and delayed medical care, and under the First Amendment for retaliation.

The court dismissed the claims against Psych Tech S. Quinto and Defendant Wade for failure to state a cognizable claim. As to Quinto, the complaint alleged that she completed a medical injury report before the cage extraction and documented that the plaintiff was not suicidal and had safety concerns, but did not adequately allege an Eighth Amendment claim against her. The plaintiff also stated that he did not seek damages from Quinto.

The court also dismissed the plaintiff’s conspiracy claims under 18 U.S.C. § 241 and deprivation-of-rights claims under 18 U.S.C. § 242 because those criminal statutes do not provide a private right of action. Regarding the medical-care allegations, the court noted that the incident occurred at about 9:45 p.m., that Defendant Minglana allegedly said medical care would have to wait until 6:00 a.m., and that the plaintiff was actually seen by a nurse at 11:25 p.m. and transferred to the infirmary five minutes later. The court concluded that the approximately hour-and-a-half delay could support a plausible Eighth Amendment claim given the possible severity of the injuries.

Order

The claims against Quinto and Wade, and the described conspiracy claims, were dismissed for failure to state a cognizable claim for relief. The court ordered service on Sergeant V. Minglana, Correctional Officer T. Clayton, Correctional Officer C.H. Santos, Correctional Officer A. Gallardo, Correctional Officer R.S. Garcia, Correctional Officer A.S. Vasquez, Correctional Officer C. Reyes, Correctional Officer J. Camacho, Correctional Officer E. Aguirre, Correctional Officer C. L. Lonero, Captain Hughes, Lieutenant Mazariegos, and Lieutenant H. Lomeli.

The case was referred to Magistrate Judge Illman under the Pro Se Prisoner Mediation Program. Mediation was to occur within 120 days after service, and the proceedings were to be confidential. All proceedings were stayed until further order, except for service and the filing of an answer. The court also directed the plaintiff to serve copies of his communications on the defendants or their counsel and to keep the court informed of any address change.