Sheila McCullum v. Kenneth Tepe
2012 U.S. App. LEXIS 18171
| 6th Cir. | 2012Background
- Hughes died by hanging in Butler County Prison; he had a history of depression and had asked to see Dr. Tepe for antidepressants.
- Tepe, a private physician employed by a nonprofit, provided prison psychiatric services under a contract with the county and designed the prison psychiatry program.
- Hughes never met Tepe; a social worker triaged him and Hughes told staff he was not currently contemplating suicide at the time.
- The social worker and Hughes’s medical reviews indicated no immediate need for Tepe, and Hughes did not see Tepe before his death.
- McCullum, Hughes’s mother, sued Tepe under §1983 for deliberate indifference and asserted a wrongful-death claim; the district court denied Tepe’s summary-judgment motion on qualified immunity, which we review de novo.
- Tepe contends he is entitled to qualified immunity as a private actor exercising government function; the district court and we analyze whether there is a historically rooted immunity for privately employed doctors working for the government.
Issues
| Issue | Plaintiff's Argument | Defendant's Argument | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Whether Tepe may invoke qualified immunity as a private doctor | McCullum contends there is no historical immunity for private doctors. | Tepe contends immunity should apply if history and policy justify it. | Tepe is not entitled to qualified immunity. |
| Whether there was a firmly rooted common-law immunity for private doctors working for the government | McCullum argues no such immunity exists in common law. | Tepe argues historical immunity should be recognized in this context. | No firmly rooted common-law immunity for private doctors; immunity not available. |
Key Cases Cited
- Richardson v. McKnight, 521 U.S. 399 (1997) (requires history and purpose to support immunity under §1983)
- Wyatt v. Cole, 504 U.S. 158 (1992) (immunity if history and purpose support it; discusses traditional immunities)
- Filarsky v. Delia, 132 S. Ct. 1657 (2012) (private-employee immunity analyzed using historical inquiry at time of §1983 enactment)
- West v. Atkins, 487 U.S. 42 (1988) (doctor contracts with state; acts under color of state law for §1983 purposes)
- Hinson v. Edmond, 192 F.3d 1342 (1999) (private company employees as prison personnel; no immunity established)
- Jensen v. Lane County, 222 F.3d 570 (2000) (no common-law immunity for private doctor in public setting ( Ninth Cir.))