Dumel v. Westchester County

Background

Tyron Dumel, proceeding without a lawyer, was a pretrial detainee at the Westchester County Jail when the events occurred. He alleged that he tested positive for chlamydia in September 2018, that medication was ordered, and that he did not receive treatment for approximately three months. He alleged severe pain when urinating and other physical and emotional injuries. After he told Sergeant Matthew Kitt that he had not received treatment, Kitt allegedly acknowledged the condition, promised to contact medical staff, and did not return. Dumel later overheard Kitt laughing about the condition. Dumel received treatment after filing a grievance on January 1, 2019.

Dumel brought claims under 42 U.S.C. § 1983, a federal law allowing claims against government actors for violating constitutional rights. The defendants filed two motions to dismiss under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 12(b)(6), which asks whether the complaint alleges enough facts to state a legally plausible claim. One motion was filed for the County, Correct Care Solutions, LLC, Dr. Raul Ulloa, Dr. Alexis Gendell, and Nurse Vladimir Asseauguste. The other was filed for the County, Commissioner Joseph Spano, and Sergeant Kitt.

Court’s analysis

The court treated Dumel’s medical-care claim as arising under the Fourteenth Amendment because he was a pretrial detainee. To state a deliberate-indifference claim, he had to allege both a sufficiently serious medical need and that the defendant intentionally denied care or recklessly failed to act with reasonable care. Mere negligence was not enough.

The court dismissed the municipal-liability claims against Westchester County and Correct Care. Dumel alleged a general practice of inadequate medical care and referred generally to other lawsuits, grievances, and complaints, but he did not identify comparable incidents or provide facts showing a widespread policy, custom, or specific training or supervision failure. The court also dismissed the claims against Spano because the amended complaint did not plausibly allege his personal involvement; apart from the caption, Spano was mentioned only in a conclusory allegation that he failed to train and supervise staff and oversee Correct Care.

The court dismissed the deliberate-indifference claim against the Medical Defendants. Even assuming that the delay was sufficiently serious, the allegations suggested at most negligence in failing to ensure that Dumel received medication, not intentional or objectively reckless conduct. In contrast, the court held that the allegations against Kitt were sufficient at the motion-to-dismiss stage. The court found that untreated chlamydia accompanied by severe pain and a delay of several days after Kitt’s promise to seek help could satisfy the serious-medical-need requirement. Kitt’s alleged acknowledgment of the condition, promise to obtain medical assistance, failure to do so, and later laughter about the condition plausibly suggested the required intentional or reckless disregard.

The court also dismissed any state-law claims because Dumel did not allege that he had filed the notice of claim required by New York law before suing a municipality or its employees.

Disposition

Judge Karas granted in full the Municipal Defendants’ and Medical Defendants’ motion to dismiss. He granted in part and denied in part the County and Correctional Defendants’ motion to dismiss. The claims that were dismissed were dismissed without prejudice because this was the first adjudication of the claims on the merits and Dumel was proceeding without a lawyer. Dumel was given 30 days to file a second amended complaint addressing the identified deficiencies. If he did not properly and timely amend, the court stated that the dismissed claims would likely be dismissed with prejudice. Without further amendment, the action would proceed on the surviving deliberate-indifference claim against Kitt.