86 F.4th 938
1st Cir.2023Background
- July 2–8, 2015: Paul McDonald was arrested, medically cleared at a hospital, and booked into Somerset County Jail; booking records identified him as high suicide risk.
- MedPro contractor Cheryll Needham performed suicide-risk assessments on July 6 and July 7, 2015; after the July 7 assessment she cleared McDonald for general population on July 8.
- July 9, 2015: McDonald attempted suicide in his cell during an apparent lapse in security checks; he was resuscitated but remained comatose.
- July 16, 2015: McDonald died from brain injury caused by oxygen deprivation; an internal county investigation was later conducted (details not pled).
- July 16, 2021 (six years after death): Yvonne Martin, as personal representative of McDonald’s estate, filed a § 1983 suit against Somerset County, jail staff, MedPro, and Needham alleging constitutional violations leading to his death.
- The district court dismissed claims against MedPro/Needham as time-barred (Rule 12(b)(6)) and later granted judgment on the pleadings for the remaining county defendants (Rule 12(c)); Martin appealed.
Issues
| Issue | Plaintiff's Argument | Defendant's Argument | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Accrual date for § 1983 claim | Martin: claim accrued at decedent's death (so filing was within 6-year Maine statute) | Defendants: claim accrued earlier — at assessment (July 8) or at suicide attempt (July 9) — making suit untimely | Accrual governed by federal law; accrues when injured party knows or should know of injury (not when harm fully manifests). Claim accrued by time of suicide attempt/assessment and is time-barred |
| Equitable tolling for plaintiff/decendent incapacitation | Martin: tolling warranted due to decedent's coma and alleged delay in obtaining records; coma prevented knowledge and defendants controlled records | Defendants: no extraordinary circumstance or diligence shown to justify tolling | Equitable tolling not warranted. Plaintiff failed to show extraordinary circumstances or due diligence; five-day coma would not save an otherwise untimely suit |
| Invocation of Maine tolling or FTCA-style accrual | Martin: state tolling statute for mentally ill and FTCA survivorship accrual analogies could rescue suit | Defendants: these theories were not pleaded below and are inapplicable | Arguments not preserved in district court and thus forfeited on appeal; court did not consider them |
Key Cases Cited
- Wallace v. Kato, 549 U.S. 384 (accrual of § 1983 claims governed by federal law; accrual when cause of action is complete and present)
- Bay Area Laundry & Dry Cleaning Pension Tr. Fund v. Ferbar Corp., 522 U.S. 192 (accrual occurs when cause of action is complete and present)
- Nieves v. McSweeney, 241 F.3d 46 (1st Cir. 2001) (§ 1983 accrues when plaintiff knows or has reason to know of the injury)
- Morán Vega v. Cruz Burgos, 537 F.3d 14 (1st Cir. 2008) (plaintiff deemed to know injury at time of act, not when harmful consequences fully felt)
- Vistamar, Inc. v. Fagundo-Fagundo, 430 F.3d 66 (1st Cir. 2005) (equitable tolling in § 1983 actions is available only in exceptional cases)
- Holland v. Florida, 560 U.S. 631 (equitable tolling requires diligence plus extraordinary circumstance)
- Arellano v. McDonough, 598 U.S. 1 (equitable tolling pauses limitations where diligence and extraordinary circumstance exist)
- LaChapelle v. Berkshire Life Ins. Co., 142 F.3d 507 (1st Cir. 1998) (limitations defenses can justify dismissal at pleading stage)