Goodman v. ParwatikarGoodman v. Parwatikar
NANGLE, District Judge.
This matter is before the Court upon a variety of motions filed by all defendants herein. Plaintiff, as guardian of the person and estate of Rachel Goodman, brought this suit individually and as a class representative, seeking injunctive and monetary relief. Jurisdiction herein is based on
The head of the hospital shall discharge any voluntary patient who has recovered or whose hospitalization he determines to be no longer advisable. He may discharge any voluntary patient if to do so would, in the judgment of the head of the hospital, contribute to the most effective use of the hospital in the care and treatment of the mentally ill.
Plaintiff contends that the second sentence of this section violates the due process and equal protection clauses of the
From the briefs and documents submitted in support of, and in opposition to, the various motions filed by defendants, it appears that Rachel Goodman was at all times a voluntary patient at the St. Louis State Hospital, although she has since been adjudged incompetent. It further appears that the allegations of physical and mental abuse resulting from Ms. Goodman‘s inability to care for herself are based on physical and mental abuse suffered not in the Hospital but at times of release. It also appears that Dr. Parwatikar did not become Superintendent of the Hospital until 1976.
Defendants have filed a motion to dismiss the St. Louis State Hospital, contending
In Monroe v. Pape, 365 U.S. 167, 81 S.Ct. 473, 5 L.Ed.2d 492 (1961), the Court reviewed the legislative history of that act which is presently
A municipal corporation is but a political subdivision of a state, and if a state‘s political subdivisions are not “persons” under the statute, then neither is the state.
This Court agrees and concludes that the St. Louis State Hospital is not a person within the meaning of
Plaintiff, however, has also asserted
Defendants also seek to dismiss the two individual defendants, claiming that they have a qualified governmental immunity thus barring liability for damages; that any damages recovered would be paid from the state treasury and thus the action is barred by the
Ordinarily, an individual will not be held liable under
The specific allegation in the complaint is that E. D. Trice was the school district‘s chief administrative officer and the more general allegations connecting all of the defendants with the alleged discriminatory policies are sufficient when read together to withstand the objection that the complaint fails to state a claim against him upon which relief can be
granted. Indeed, the Superintendent of Schools is a proper party when it is alleged that the schools which he heads are guilty of discriminatory policies. [cite omitted] This is not to say that a school superintendent is ordinarily responsible for individual acts of discrimination committed by teachers or employees. It is only to say that when discriminatory policies are alleged, the plaintiffs must be given an opportunity to prove discrimination and that the defendant superintendent is wholly or partially responsible for the alleged violations of the Constitution and laws of the United States.
See also, Spence v. Staras, 507 F.2d 554 (7th Cir. 1974); Dewell v. Lawson, 489 F.2d 877 (10th Cir. 1974); Downs v. Department of Public Welfare, supra. Accordingly, the Court concludes that the allegations in the complaint are sufficient to preclude dismissal of the individual defendants for failure to state a claim as to them.
The immunity granted to a public official acting in the course of his duties is qualified. Liability exists
if he knew or reasonably should have known that the action he took within his sphere of official responsibility would violate the constitutional rights of the .. [individual] affected, or if he took the action with the malicious intention to cause a deprivation of constitutional rights or other injury to the ... [individual].... A compensatory award will be appropriate only if the school board member has acted with such an impermissible motivation or with such disregard of the student‘s clearly established constitutional rights that his action cannot reasonably be characterized as being in good faith. Wood v. Strickland, 420 U.S. 308, 322, 95 S.Ct. 992, 1001, 43 L.Ed.2d 214 (1975).
See also, Scheuer v. Rhodes, 416 U.S. 232, 94 S.Ct. 1683, 40 L.Ed.2d 90 (1974); O‘Connor v. Donaldson, 422 U.S. 563, 95 S.Ct. 2486, 45 L.Ed.2d 396 (1975); Harper v. Cserr, 544 F.2d 1121 (1st Cir. 1976). Because of the serious doubts which the Court has with reference to the claimed deprivations of constitutional rights, see discussion infra, the Court can not conclude that the individual defendants knew or should have known that their actions violated constitutional rights. The possibility of malice remains, however. See Harper v. Cserr, supra at 1124-25. Accordingly, the Court will not dismiss the individual defendants on the basis of their asserted qualified immunity.
The claim that the
Defendants have also filed motions to dismiss both Counts I and II of plaintiffs’ complaint. The basis for plaintiffs’ claims, in both counts, is the assertion of a right to treatment. A right to treatment has been recognized in those situations in which an individual is involuntarily committed, on the grounds that “treatment ... [has] to be provided as the quid pro quo [that] society ... [has] to pay as the price of the extra safety it derived from the denial of individuals’ liberty“. Wyatt v. Aderholt, 503 F.2d 1305, 1312 (5th Cir. 1974) [court bases this decision on its decision in Donaldson v. O‘Connor, 493 F.2d 507 (5th Cir. 1974); that decision, however, was held to be without precedential value in O‘Connor v. Donaldson, 422 U.S. 563, 95 S.Ct. 2486, 45 L.Ed.2d 396 (1975)]. See also, Lessard v. Schmidt, 349 F.Supp. 1078 (E.D.Wis. 1972), vacated on other grounds, 414 U.S. 473, 94 S.Ct. 713, 38 L.Ed.2d 661 (1974) (dicta); Lynch v. Baxley, 386 F.Supp. 378 (M.D.Ala.1974); Welsch v. Likins, 373 F.Supp. 487 (D.C.Minn.1974), aff‘d, 525 F.2d 987 (8th Cir. 1975); Morales v. Turman, 364 F.Supp. 166 (E.D.Tex.1973); Stachulak v. Coughlin, 364 F.Supp. 686 (N.D.Ill.1973); Martarella v. Kelley, 349 F.Supp. 575 (S.D. N.Y.1972); Inmates of the Boys’ Training School v. Affleck, 346 F.Supp. 1354 (D.C.R. I.1972). Rachel Goodman, however, was a voluntary patient. In Harper v. Cserr, supra, plaintiff‘s wife had been a voluntary patient who hung herself while at the hospital. She had had a history of suicide attempts. Plaintiff alleged that defendant‘s failure to supervise her or to take any steps to prevent the suicide violated the
The question of whether or not plaintiff has a federal cause of action at all is not free from doubt . . .. First, we reject the argument that plaintiff can claim for the deceased a “right to treatment” under such cases as Wyatt v. Aderholt, 503 F.2d 1305, 1312 (5th Cir. 1974); see Rouse v. Cameron, 125 U.S.App.D.C. 366, 373 F.2d 451, 453 (1966); Note, Right to Treatment, 86 Harv.L.Rev. 1282 (1973). Marilyn Harper was a voluntary patient and it is not suggested that if she or her legal or natural guardian wished her to leave Medfield State Hospital, the state would have detained her assuming usual procedures were followed.... The rationale of the above “right to treatment” cases is that treatment must be afforded in order to legitimate the inmate‘s continued detention which (given the nature and purpose of civil commitment proceedings) might otherwise amount to a deprivation of liberty without due process or the infliction of cruel and unusual punishment within the eighth amendment. [citations omitted] Here, however, since the deceased was not involuntarily committed, such a quid pro quo analysis is not germane, and since she was free to leave at any time, there is no question of an “indefinite detention” which, minus treatment, becomes cruel and unusual punishment. Id. at 1122-23.
The Court agrees with this position and concludes that plaintiffs’ claim of right to treatment must fail. But cf., Inmates of the Boys’ Training School v. Affleck, supra, (plaintiffs include those voluntarily committed by parents; court does not distinguish between voluntary and involuntary commitment); New York State Association for Retarded Children, Inc. v. Rockefeller, 357 F.Supp. 752 (E.D.N.Y.1972) (court mentions that 27% of hospital‘s residents are voluntary patients); Renelli v. Department of Mental Hygiene, 73 Misc.2d 261, 340 N.Y. S.2d 498 (1973) (individual had been voluntarily placed in hospital by parents).
Since both counts of plaintiffs’ complaint are premised on the claim of right to treatment, the Court will dismiss the complaint in its entirety for failure to state a claim.