Case: Lewis v. Cain

3:15-cv-00318 | U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Louisiana

Filed Date: May 20, 2015

Case Ongoing

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Case Summary

On May 20, 2015, inmates incarcerated at Louisiana State Penitentiary filed this class-action lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Louisiana (Baton Rouge). The plaintiffs sued the Louisiana State Penitentiary and the Louisiana Department of Public Safety and Corrections under the Americans with Disabilities Act, the Rehabilitation Act, and 42 U.S.C. § 1983. The plaintiffs, represented by the ACLU and private counsel, asked the court for declaratory and injunctive relief. The plaintiffs claimed to have serious medical needs that went untreated, undertreated, or mistreated by the defendants in violation of the Eighth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. The plaintiffs claimed that defendants engaged in systemic practices that exposed the plaintiffs to unacceptable risks to their health. These practices included routinely delaying specialty care, declining to provide medically necessary treatment, discouraging plaintiffs from requesting medical assistance, punishing plaintiffs who seek medical treatment, and maintaining an insufficient number of qualified medical personnel. The case was assigned to Judge Brian A. Jackson.

On December 14, 2015, the plaintiffs filed a motion for Entry of Protective Order Governing Protected and Individually Identifiable Health Information (PHI/IIHI). The order was granted on December 16, 2015 and the terms will survive through the end of litigation, and continue to fully apply to all materials containing PHI/IIHI. Further, the court will retain jurisdiction over all parties and persons who received access to such materials, indefinitely.

Plaintiffs moved for class certification on October 14, 2016. Plaintiffs moved for partial summary judgment on their ADA and Eighth Amendment claims on January 6, 2017. Defendants moved to disqualify the judge on February 28, 2017. The court (Judge Brian A. Jackson) granted defendants' motion to disqualify the judge on April 20, 2017, and the case was reassigned to Judge Shelly D. Dick. Defendants filed a sealed motion for summary judgment on May 12, 2017. The court denied both parties' motions for summary judgment on September 21, 2017, but allowed parties to re-urge the motions, without being required to refile them, following the hearing on the class action certification.

The court granted class action certification on February 26, 2018, certifying a class of "all inmates who now, or will be in the future, incarcerated at LSP" and a subclass of "all qualified individuals with a disability, as defined by the ADA/RA, who are now, or will be in the future, incarcerated at LSP." Defendants subsequently moved to re-urge their motion for summary judgment on July 11, 2018. A bench trial was held between October 11 and October 25, 2018.

After both parties submitted post-trial briefs, they engaged in a settlement conference before the court on July 24, 2019. The parties were unable to reach a resolution.

In February 2020, the court issued an order informing the parties that it was preparing to issue a ruling on the merits. The order stated that the court planned to find the medical care at Angola State Penitentiary unconstitutional in some respects and was prepared to order injunctive relief to remediate these findings. The court encouraged the litigants to reach an agreement on some or all of the claims.

The sudden onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in spring 2020 led the plaintiffs to file an emergency motion to re-open discovery on March 28. Given the congregated nature of the Louisiana State Penitentiary and penitentiary's history of inadequate medical care, the plaintiffs were concerned that the penitentiary would be a "tinderbox" for a COVID-19 outbreak. Therefore, the plaintiffs moved to re-open discovery for the "limited and sole purpose of ensuring that Defendants' policies and practices concerning COVID-19 do not place class members at a substantial risk of serious harm or likely death."

Three days later, the plaintiffs filed an emergency motion to restrain the defendants from transferring COVID-19 carriers to the Louisiana State Penitentiary. The plaintiffs argued that the penitentiary already possessed inadequate medical care (as evidenced by the original claim of this case alleging that the medical care was unconstitutional), and that the planned transfer would place the class members at particular risk given that many members were either elderly or suffered from underlying medical conditions. If the transfer were to occur as planned, the plaintiffs argued, the harm would be irreparable.

On April 2, Judge Shelly Dick denied the plaintiff's Emergency Motion to Re-open Discovery, and denied the plaintiff's Emergency Motion to Restrain Defendants from Transferring COVID-19 Carriers. The judge found both measures to be non-justiciable. The two measures were found to be beyond the scope of the original claims asserted, and the plaintiff did not cite an authority for joining these independent claims to their ongoing case. Further, Judge Dick found the plaintiff's measures to be based on speculation and conjecture as to what the defendant "might" do with respect to transferring inmates.

On March 31, 2021, the Court issued an opinion holding that the defendants violated the ADA and Rehabilitation Act, as well as the Eighth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution. 2021 WL 1219988. Specifically, Judge Dick found that the defendants failed to provide constitutionally adequate medical care in clinical and emergency settings, and failed to provide people with disabilities reasonable accommodations. The same day as the opinion was issued, Judge Dick also temporarily stayed the case in order to prepare for the remedy phase.

The defendants subsequently filed a motion to lift the stay in order to file a Motion for Reconsideration or, in the alternative, file an interlocutory appeal. The defendants argued that Judge Dick's March 31 opinion relied on outdated information and therefore did not accurately represent the current state of the correctional facilities. Meanwhile, the plaintiffs filed a motion seeking attorneys' fees and costs.

On October 8, 2021, Judge Dick denied the motion for reconsideration or, in the alternative, to file an interlocutory appeal. 2021 WL 5287856. Judge Dick stated that the court relied on a wide range of evidence in making its decision, including evidence from current staff members, expert testimony, a site visit, and other forms of evidence. The court granted the plaintiffs’ motion for a status conference to discuss the remedy in the case. The following month, on November 29, the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals denied the defendants' request for a writ of mandamus, which would have required the appeals court to intervene in an extraordinary way in an ongoing district court case.

On December 8, 2021, the defendants filed a motion to stay and/or deny plaintiffs’ motion for attorneys’ fees and costs because it was premature. A week later, the court granted the motion to stay.

The following year, on March 17, the parties submitted a partial settlement to the court, but immediately withdrew it because the defendants had failed to consult with the Attorney General’s office before settling.

After numerous discovery disputes, a bench trial on the remedy was held on June 6-17, 2022. Later that year, on November 6, the court ruled in favor of the plaintiffs and granted them a permanent injunction. The court held that the defendants continued to violate the Eighth Amendment, the ADA, and the Rehabilitation Act, warranting injunctive relief. The court laid out in detail the defendants’ numerous continuing violations, including issues related to clinical care, the sick call policy, specialty care, emergency care, infirmary/inpatient care, medical leadership and organization, and accommodations for people with disabilities. 2023 WL 7299130.

As part of the court’s permanent injunction, it ordered the appointment of three special masters as well a physician and a nurse or nurse practitioner to make recommendations and monitor compliance. The court ordered the special masters to propose remedial plans for both medical care and ADA compliance. The court also ordered the defendants to allow the special masters to conduct reviews of the facility, the health care operations, and the ADA operations, and to provide records and documents to the special masters. The special masters were also instructed to submit reports every six months.

On November 20, 2023, the defendants appealed this decision and the order granting class certification to the Fifth Circuit (docket no. 23-30825). Oral argument occurred in the Fifth Circuit on March 4, 2024. Two days later, the Fifth Circuit stayed the lower court's injunction without deciding the merits of the case. This case is ongoing as of December 23, 2024.

	Document
3:15-cv-00318	Docket [PACER]	Nov. 29, 2021	Nov. 29, 2021 Docket
1 3:15-cv-00318	Complaint	May 20, 2015	May 20, 2015 Complaint
27 3:15-cv-00318	Protective Order Governing Protected and Individually Identifiable Health Information	Dec. 16, 2015	Dec. 16, 2015 Order/Opinion
44 3:15-cv-00318	Class Action Complaint	June 10, 2016	June 10, 2016 Complaint
71 3:15-cv-00318	Class Action Complaint	July 25, 2016	July 25, 2016 Complaint
121 3:15-cv-00318	Order on Plaintiffs' Motion to Compel Production	Aug. 31, 2016	Aug. 31, 2016 Order/Opinion
394 3:15-cv-00318	Ruling	Feb. 26, 2018	Feb. 26, 2018 Order/Opinion 324 F.R.D. 159
587 3:15-cv-00318	Ruling	April 2, 2020	April 2, 2020 Order/Opinion 2020 WL 1614424
594 3:15-cv-00318	Opinion Lewis Jr v. Cain	March 31, 2021	March 31, 2021 Order/Opinion 2021 WL 1219988
623 3:15-cv-00318	Ruling	Oct. 8, 2021	Oct. 8, 2021 Order/Opinion 2021 WL 5287856

Title	Description		External URL Date / External URL
Lewis v. Cain (Angola Medical) American Civil Liberties Union	In May 2015, the ACLU of Louisiana, along with The Promise of Justice Initiative (PJI), the law firm Cohen Milstein Sellers & Toll PLLC (Cohen Milstein), and the Advocacy Center (AC), filed a complai…	April 1, 2020	April 1, 2020 https://www.laaclu.org/...
At Angola Prison, Getting Sick Can Be A Death Sentence Katie Rose Quant and James Ridgeway	A 6-month investigation into Louisiana’s Angola prison, the largest maximum-security state prison in the country, reveals substandard and inhumane healthcare—leading to extremely high death rates for…	Dec. 20, 2016	Dec. 20, 2016 http://inthesetimes.com/...

ECF Number	Description	Date	Link Date / Link
1	COMPLAINT against All Defendants ( Filing fee $ 400 receipt number 053N-1236257.), filed by Lionel Tolbert, Clyde Carter, Kentrell Parker, Joseph Lewis, Jr, Otto Barrera, Farrell Sampier, Edward Giovanni, Rufus White, Cedric Evans, Reginald George, Ricky D. Davis, John Wayne Tonubbee. (Attachments: # 1 Exhibit Exhibit A, # 2 Exhibit Exhibit B, # 3 Exhibit Exhibit C, # 4 Attachment Civil Cover Sheet, # 5 Attachment Summons (Cain), # 6 Attachment Summons (Lamartiniere), # 7 Attachment Summons (Leblanc), # 8 Attachment Summons (DOC))(Montagnes, Mercedes) Modified on 5/21/2015 to flatten summons and replace (LLH). (Entered: 05/20/2015) 1 Exhibit Exhibit A View on PACER 2 Exhibit Exhibit B View on PACER 3 Exhibit Exhibit C View on PACER 4 Attachment Civil Cover Sheet View on PACER 5 Attachment Summons (Cain) View on PACER 6 Attachment Summons (Lamartiniere) View on PACER 7 Attachment Summons (Leblanc) View on PACER 8 Attachment Summons (DOC) View on PACER	May 20, 2015	May 20, 2015 Clearinghouse
2	Summons Issued as to Burl Cain, Stephanie Lamartiniere, James LeBlanc, The Louisiana Department of Public Safety and Corrections. (NOTICE: Counsel shall print and serve both the summons and all attachments in accordance with Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 4.) (LLH) (Entered: 05/21/2015)	May 21, 2015	May 21, 2015 PACER
3	Ex-Parte MOTION for Admission to Appear Pro Hac Vice for Jeffrey B. Dubner (Filing fee $100.00, Receipt Number 053N-1243024) by All Plaintiffs. (Attachments: # 1 Exhibit Declaration of Jeffrey Dubner, # 2 Attachment Cert. of Good Standing NY, # 3 Attachment Cert. of Good Standing DC)(Compa, Elizabeth) Modified on 6/5/2015 to edit text(ELW). (Entered: 06/05/2015)	June 5, 2015	June 5, 2015 PACER
	Motions Referred	June 5, 2015	June 5, 2015 PACER
	Order on Motion to Appear Pro Hac Vice	June 5, 2015	June 5, 2015 PACER
	MOTION(S) REFERRED: 3 MOTION for Jeffrey B. Dubner to Appear Pro Hac Vice (Filing fee $100.00, Receipt Number 053N-1243024). This motion is now pending before the USMJ. (ELW)	June 5, 2015	June 5, 2015 PACER
4	ORDER granting 3 Motion for Jeffrey Dubner to Appear Pro Hac Vice. Signed by Magistrate Judge Richard L. Bourgeois, Jr on 6/5/2015. (This is a TEXT ENTRY ONLY. There is no hyperlink or PDF document associated with this entry.) (SMG) (Entered: 06/05/2015)	June 5, 2015	June 5, 2015 PACER
5	SUMMONS Returned Executed by Lionel Tolbert, Clyde Carter, Kentrell Parker, Joseph Lewis, Jr, Otto Barrera, Farrell Sampier, Edward Giovanni, Rufus White, Cedric Evans, Reginald George, Ricky D. Davis, John Tonubbee. All Defendants. (Compa, Elizabeth) (Entered: 06/22/2015)	June 22, 2015	June 22, 2015 PACER
6	MOTION to Designate Additional Lead Counsel by All Plaintiffs. (Compa, Elizabeth) Modified to edit text on 6/23/2015 (BCL). Modified to substitute document per rec. doc. 9 on 6/26/2015 (BCL). (Entered: 06/22/2015)	June 22, 2015	June 22, 2015 PACER
7	MOTION for Extension of Time Responsive Pleadings by All Defendants. (Attachments: # 1 Proposed Pleading; Proposed Order)(Hilburn, James) Modified on 6/26/2015 to edit event(LLH). (Entered: 06/23/2015)	June 23, 2015	June 23, 2015 PACER
	Motions Referred	June 23, 2015	June 23, 2015 PACER
	MOTION(S) REFERRED: 6 MOTION to Designate Additional Lead Counsel, 7 MOTION for Extension of Time Responsive Pleadings. This motion is now pending before the USMJ. (BCL)	June 23, 2015	June 23, 2015 PACER
8	MOTION Substitute Document 6 To Address Typographical Errors by All Plaintiffs. (Attachments: # 1 Proposed Pleading; Corrected Motion to Designate Additional Lead Counsel)(Compa, Elizabeth) (Entered: 06/24/2015)	June 24, 2015	June 24, 2015 PACER
	MOTION(S) REFERRED: 7 MOTION for Extension of Time Responsive Pleadings. This motion is now pending before the USMJ. (LLH)	June 25, 2015	June 25, 2015 PACER
	MOTION(S) REFERRED: 8 MOTION Substitute Document 6 To Address Typographical Errors. This motion is now pending before the USMJ. (LLH)	June 25, 2015	June 25, 2015 PACER
	Motions Referred	June 25, 2015	June 25, 2015 PACER
9	ORDER granting 8 Motion to Substitute Document 6. Plaintiffs may substitute the Attachment to the Motion (R. Doc. 8-1) for the previously filed Document 6. Signed by Magistrate Judge Richard L. Bourgeois, Jr on 6/26/2015. (This is a TEXT ENTRY ONLY. There is no hyperlink or PDF document associated with this entry.) (SMG) (Entered: 06/26/2015)	June 26, 2015	June 26, 2015 PACER
	Order on Motion for Miscellaneous Relief	June 26, 2015	June 26, 2015 PACER
10	ORDER granting 7 Motion for Extension of Time to Answer. Burl Cain, Stephanie Lamartiniere, James LeBlanc, The Louisiana Department of Public Safety and Corrections answer due 7/8/2015. Signed by Magistrate Judge Richard L. Bourgeois, Jr on 6/26/2015. (LLH) (Entered: 06/26/2015)	June 26, 2015	June 26, 2015 PACER
11	ORDER denying 6 Motion to Designate Additional Lead Counsel. Signed by Magistrate Judge Richard L. Bourgeois, Jr on 6/26/2015. (LLH) (Entered: 06/26/2015)	June 26, 2015	June 26, 2015 PACER
12	MOTION for Daniel A. Small to Appear Pro Hac Vice (Filing fee $100.00, Receipt Number 053N-1257656) by All Plaintiffs. (Attachments: # 1 Attachment Declaration of Daniel Small, # 2 Attachment Cert. of Good Standing Maryland, # 3 Attachment Cert. of Good Standing DC)(Compa, Elizabeth) (Entered: 07/08/2015)	July 8, 2015	July 8, 2015 PACER
13	ANSWER and Affirmative Defenses to 1 Complaint, with Jury Demand by Burl Cain, Stephanie Lamartiniere, James LeBlanc, The Louisiana Department of Public Safety and Corrections.(Hilburn, James) Modified on 7/9/2015 to edit text (LLH). (Entered: 07/08/2015)	July 8, 2015	July 8, 2015 RECAP
14	90 DAY CONFERENCE ORDER: Scheduling Conference set for 8/20/2015 at 01:30 PM in chambers before Magistrate Judge Richard L. Bourgeois Jr. Status Report due by 8/6/2015. Signed by Magistrate Judge Richard L. Bourgeois, Jr on 7/9/2015. (JSL) (Entered: 07/09/2015)	July 9, 2015	July 9, 2015 PACER
	Motions Referred	July 9, 2015	July 9, 2015 PACER
	Order on Motion to Appear Pro Hac Vice	July 9, 2015	July 9, 2015 PACER
	MOTION(S) REFERRED: 12 MOTION for Daniel A. Small to Appear Pro Hac Vice (Filing fee $100.00, Receipt Number 053N-1257656). This motion is now pending before the USMJ. (LLH)	July 9, 2015	July 9, 2015 PACER
15	ORDER granting 12 Motion for Daniel A. Small to Appear Pro Hac Vice. Signed by Magistrate Judge Richard L. Bourgeois, Jr on 7/9/2015. (This is a TEXT ENTRY ONLY. There is no hyperlink or PDF document associated with this entry.) (JSL) (Entered: 07/09/2015)	July 9, 2015	July 9, 2015 PACER
16	There is no # 16 Docket Entry, filed in error by Case Administrator. (LLH). (Entered: 07/28/2015)	July 28, 2015	July 28, 2015 PACER
17	Joint STATUS REPORT by All Plaintiffs. (Dubner, Jeffrey) (Main Document 17 replaced on 8/17/2015 in accordance with record document 19) (NLT). (Entered: 08/06/2015)	Aug. 6, 2015	Aug. 6, 2015 PACER
18	MOTION to Amend 17 Status Report by All Plaintiffs. (Attachments: # 1 Attachment Revised Joint Status Report, # 2 Attachment Proposed Order)(Montagnes, Mercedes) (Entered: 08/07/2015) 1 View on RECAP	Aug. 7, 2015	Aug. 7, 2015 PACER
	MOTION(S) REFERRED: 18 MOTION to Amend 17 Status Report . This motion is now pending before the USMJ. (JDL)	Aug. 10, 2015	Aug. 10, 2015 PACER
	Motions Referred	Aug. 10, 2015	Aug. 10, 2015 PACER
19	ORDER granting 18 Motion to Amend Pleading. Revised Status Report (R. Doc. 18-1) attached to Motion to Amend (R. Doc. 18) be substituted for the previously filed Joint Status Report (R. Doc. 17). Signed by Magistrate Judge Richard L. Bourgeois, Jr on 8/17/2015. (This is a TEXT ENTRY ONLY. There is no hyperlink or PDF document associated with this entry.) (JSL) (Entered: 08/17/2015)	Aug. 17, 2015	Aug. 17, 2015 PACER
	Order on Motion to Amend	Aug. 17, 2015	Aug. 17, 2015 PACER
20	Notice to Counsel: The scheduling conference set for 8/20/2015 at 1:30 p.m. before United States Magistrate Judge Richard L. Bourgeois, Jr. is CANCELLED. A scheduling order will be issued as appropriate. (This is a TEXT ENTRY ONLY. There is no hyperlink or PDF document associated with this entry.) (JSL) (Entered: 08/19/2015)	Aug. 19, 2015	Aug. 19, 2015 PACER
21	MOTION for Leave to File Supplemental and Amended Answer and Affirmative Defenses by Burl Cain, Stephanie Lamartiniere, James LeBlanc, The Louisiana Department of Public Safety and Corrections. (Attachments: # 1 Proposed Pleading; Proposed Order, # 2 Proposed Pleading; Supplemental and Amending Answer and Affirmative Defenses)(Hilburn, James) (Entered: 08/28/2015) 2 View on RECAP	Aug. 28, 2015	Aug. 28, 2015 PACER
	MOTION(S) REFERRED: 21 MOTION for Leave to File Supplemental and Amended Answer and Affirmative Defenses . This motion is now pending before the USMJ. (LLH)	Aug. 31, 2015	Aug. 31, 2015 PACER
	Motions Referred	Aug. 31, 2015	Aug. 31, 2015 PACER
	Order on Motion for Leave to File	Aug. 31, 2015	Aug. 31, 2015 PACER
22	ORDER granting 21 MOTION for Leave to File Supplemental and Amended Answer and Affirmative Defenses. The Supplemental and Amended Answer and Affirmative Defenses (R. Doc. 21-2) shall be filed. Signed by Magistrate Judge Richard L. Bourgeois, Jr. on 8/31/2015. (This is a TEXT ENTRY ONLY. There is no hyperlink or PDF document associated with this entry.) (Bourgeois, Richard) (Entered: 08/31/2015)	Aug. 31, 2015	Aug. 31, 2015 PACER

Case: Lewis v. Cain

3:15-cv-00318 | U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Louisiana

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