IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT 

FOR THE EASTERN DISTRICT OF PENNSYLVANIA

ESTATE OF SEAN WILLIAM RHOAD, :

By and through its Administrator :

GEORGE WILLIAM RHOAD, JR. :

:

v. : CIVIL ACTION 

: No. 05-5875

EAST VINCENT TOWNSHIP, :

BOROUGH OF SPRING CITY, :

BOROUGH OF PHOENIXVILLE :

MEMORANDUM AND ORDER

JOYNER, J. APRIL 18, 2006

Presently pending before the Court are the motions of the

Defendants, East Vincent Township and Borough of Spring City, for

dismissal of Plaintiff’s complaint. For the reasons set forth

below, the motions shall be granted in part and denied in part.

History of the Case

Plaintiff in this case is the Estate of Sean William Rhoad

(“Rhoad”), Deceased, by and through its Administrator, George

William Rhoad, Jr. Plaintiff alleges that Rhoad’s constitutional

rights were violated by Defendant-Municipalities throughout his

cooperation as an informant with their respective police

departments. The factual allegations of this complaint are as

follows: On July 22, 2002, Rhoad was arrested by the Spring City

Police Department for possession of a controlled substance and

drug paraphernalia, and as a result was required to enter the 

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Horsham Clinic for his drug addiction. (Complaint, ¶¶ 9-10). On

or about August 5, 2002, after Rhoad’s release from the Horsham

Clinic, a representative of the Spring City Police Department

approached and compelled him to assist the department with

ongoing investigations in the Spring City area. (Complaint, ¶

11). Around this time, Rhoad’s father informed Chief Roman of the

Spring City Police Department that his son was not physically or

psychologically prepared to deal with this work. (Complaint, ¶

14). On August 6, 2002, Rhoad was interviewed for a second time

by representatives of the Phoenixville Police Department; he was

also interviewed by representatives of the Chester County

Municipal Drug Task Force (“CCMDTF”), an entity with which all

Defendants were participating regarding Rhoad’s cooperation.

(Complaint, ¶¶ 15, 17). 

Throughout this time, Rhoad’s drug addiction was increasing.

(Complaint, ¶ 19). He eventually approached Officer Eckman of

the Phoenixville Police Department, his contact with the CCMDTF,

and requested that he be permitted to cease his cooperation and

enter drug rehabilitation; he was denied. (Complaint, ¶ 20). From

September 3, 2002 through September 16, 2002, Rhoad repeatedly

pled for permission to enter a treatment facility and was at all

times denied by representatives of Defendants. (Complaint, ¶¶ 21,

24). On or about September 17, 2002, Rhoad committed suicide.

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(Complaint, ¶ 25). 

Plaintiff asserts that Rhoad’s actions and appearance made

it clear that he was a harm to himself and that the officers,

agents, and employees of Defendants who came in contact with him

knew or should have known that he was capable of self-inflicted

harm. (Complaint, ¶ 29). Plaintiff further alleges that the

Defendants’ failure to intervene, monitor, or prevent Rhoad from

proceeding with his clear intention to do harm to himself, as

well as their failure to secure him drug, psychiatric, or medical

treatment, directly resulted in his suicide. (Complaint, ¶ 30).

Plaintiff commenced this action on November 8, 2005 alleging

that the Defendants deprived Sean William Rhoad of his

substantive due process rights afforded to him under the

Fourteenth Amendment of the United States Constitution in

violation of 42 U.S.C. § 1983 (“§ 1983"). More specifically,

Plaintiff alleges that the Defendants are at fault under several

theories of § 1983 liability, including: (1) unconstitutional

policy or custom, including the failure to train; (2) statecreated danger; and (3) special relationship. Plaintiff also

alleges that Defendants are liable for wrongful death. It is

these claims which Defendants now seek to dismiss pursuant to

Fed. R. Civ. Pro. 12(b)(6). It must further be noted that based

on the similar nature of Plaintiff’s claims against each

Defendant, in addition to the Defendants’ nearly identical

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responses to such, that Defendants’ motions to dismiss will be

treated together for purposes of this memorandum and order.

Standards Applicable to Rule 12(b)(6) Motions

As a general rule, when considering motions to dismiss

pursuant to Fed. R. Civ. P. 12(b)(6), the district court must

“accept as true the factual allegations in the complaint and all

reasonable inferences that can be drawn therefrom.” Allah v.

Seiverling, 229 F.3d 220, 223 (3d Cir. 2000) (internal quotations

omitted). A motion to dismiss may only be granted where the

allegations fail to state any claim upon which relief may be

granted. See Morse v. Lower Merion Sch. Dist., 132 F.3d 902, 906

(3d Cir. 1997). The inquiry is not whether a plaintiff will

ultimately prevail in a trial on the merits, but whether the

plaintiff should be afforded an opportunity to offer evidence in

support of his claims. In re Rockefeller Ctr. Props., Inc., 311

F.3d 198, 215 (3d Cir. 2002). Dismissal is warranted only “if it

is certain that no relief can be granted under any set of facts

which could be proved.” Klein v. General Nutrition Cos., 186 F.3d

338, 342 (3d Cir. 1999) (internal quotations omitted). It must be

noted that courts are not required to credit bald assertions or

legal conclusions improperly alleged in the complaint and legal

conclusions draped in the guise of factual allegations may not

benefit from the presumption of truthfulness. In re Rockefeller,

311 F.3d at 216. 

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Discussion

I. Plaintiff’s Claims Under 42 U.S.C. § 1983

The threshold question in any § 1983 case is whether the

plaintiff has alleged a deprivation of a right protected by the

Constitution and whether the deprivation was committed by a

person acting under the color of state law. Mark v. Borough of

Hatboro, 51 F.3d 1137, 1141 (3d Cir. 1995). Section 1983

provides, in pertinent part:

Every person who, under color of any statute,

ordinance, regulation, custom, or usage, of any State

or Territory, or the District of Columbia, subjects, or

causes to be subjected, any citizen of the United

States or other person within the jurisdiction thereof

to the deprivation of any rights, privileges, or

immunities secured by the Constitution and laws, shall

be liable to the party injured in an action at law,

suit in equity, or other proper proceeding for

redress... 

42 U.S.C.A. § 1983 (2003). The statute creates no substantive

rights. Brown v. Pa. Dep’t of Health Emergency Med. Servs.

Training Inst., 318 F.3d 473, 477 (3d Cir. 2003). It only acts

as a means to provide remedies for violations of rights secured

under the Constitution or federal laws. Id. Instantly, Plaintiff

alleges that the Borough of Spring City and East Vincent Township

violated Rhoad’s substantive due process rights protected by the

Fourteenth Amendment, including his right to be secure in his

person.(Complaint, ¶¶ 33, 36).

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As a general rule, the Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth

Amendment does not require state actors to protect citizens from

the violence of private actors or themselves. DeShaney v.

Winnebago County Dep’t of Soc. Servs., 489 U.S. 189, 195, 103 L.

Ed. 2d 249, 109 S. Ct. 998 (1989); Estate of Henderson v. City of

Phila., No. 98-3861, 1999 U.S. Dist. 10367, at *14 (E.D. Pa. July

12, 1999). In DeShaney, the Court addressed whether the state

deprived a child of his liberty interest in “free[dom] from...

unjustified intrusions on personal security” after a county’s

department of social services failed to protect the child from

continued physical abuse from his father. 489 U.S. at 195. The

Court found:

[T]he Due Process Clause does not require the State to

provide its citizens with particular protective

services, it follows that the State cannot be held

liable under the Clause for injuries that could have

been averted had it chosen to provide them. As a

general matter, then, we conclude that a State’s

failure to protect an individual against private

violence simply does not constitute a violation of the

Due Process Clause.

Id. at 196-97. Despite this language, the Court went on to note

that a special relationship could exist between the state and a

private individual that would impose an affirmative duty of care

and protection on the state. Id. at 199-201. In dicta, the Court

also alluded to the possibility that another exception may exist

even in the absence of such a relationship. Id. at 201. The Third

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Circuit later recognized this exception in its approval of the

state-created danger theory of liability. See Kneipp by Cusak v.

Tedder, 95 F.3d 1199 (3d Cir. 1996).

A. Special Relationship

Defendants move for the dismissal of Plaintiff’s claim in

Count II, which seeks to impose liability under the special

relationship theory because Rhoad was not in custody of the

Defendants when he committed suicide.

Under the special relationship exception, a state actor may

be held liable “when the state enters into a special relationship

with a particular citizen... [and] fails, under sufficiently

culpable circumstances, to protect the health and safety of the

citizen to whom it owes an affirmative duty.” Morse, 132 F.3d at

907 (quoting D.R. v. Middle Bucks Area Vocational Tech. Sch., 972

F.2d 1364, 1369 (3d Cir. 1992)). As the Supreme Court noted in

DeShaney, “[t]he affirmative duty to protect arises not from the

State’s knowledge of the individual’s predicament or from its

expression of intent to help him, but from the limitation which

it has imposed on his freedom to act on his own behalf.” 489 U.S.

189, 200. The Third Circuit has read this to require physical

custody. D.R., 972 F.2d at 1370. Furthermore, courts have found

that no special relationship exists when the plaintiff

voluntarily places himself in the custodial relationship with the

state. See Fialkowski v. Greenwich Home for Children, Inc., 921

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F.2d 459, 465-66 (3d Cir. 1991); Shalley v. City of Phila., No.

94-5883, 1995 WL 770819, at *4 (E.D. Pa. Dec. 27, 1995).

In G-69 v. Degnan, the court addressed whether the special

relationship doctrine applied to informants. See 745 F. Supp.

254, 262-63 (D. N.J. 1990). There, the plaintiff-informant’s

secret identity was discovered and he claimed that the state,

based on the parties’ special relationship, owed him protection

and a new identity. The court found that a special relationship

could exist when both parties anticipate that, if discovered, the

informant’s cooperation could lead to a threat of that person’s

life and the state offers guarantees of certain protections if

such an event were to occur. Id. at 265. It concluded that once

the state guarantees the informant certain protections it cannot,

consistent with the Constitution, avoid such promises. Id.

Here, the Plaintiff has failed to allege that the state and

Rhoad were in a special relationship creating an affirmative duty

on the state to protect Rhoad from harming himself. While it is

reasonable to infer that the officers’ repeated denials of

Rhoad’s requests to enter treatment until he finished his

cooperation effectively, or constructively, restrained Rhoad from

seeking help on his own, there is no allegation that Rhoad was in

physical custody as required under Third Circuit jurisprudence.

(Complaint, ¶¶ 20, 21, 24). In addition, there is no allegation

that Rhoad’s cooperation with the officers was a result of

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anything but his own volition. Also, unlike G-69, here the harm

which befell Rhoad did not result from anticipated activities

while he was acting in his capacity as an informant; rather, they

resulted from his own actions, which were collateral to his

cooperation. Accordingly, Plaintiff has failed to establish that

Defendant and Rhoad were in a special relationship.

For the reasons stated above, Defendants’ motions to dismiss

Count II are Granted.

B. State-Created Danger

Defendants move for dismissal of Plaintiff’s claim in Count

III under the state-created danger theory of liability because

Rhoad’s suicide was neither foreseeable nor did the police

officers use their authority to create an opportunity for its

commission to occur.

In Kneipp, the Third Circuit formally adopted the statecreated danger theory of liability. See 95 F.3d 1199. There,

Samantha Kneipp and her husband were stopped by police officers

while walking home from a bar on a cold January night. Id. at

1201. The officers allowed Samantha’s husband to continue home to

check on their babysitter while keeping her behind. Id. at 1202.

Samantha was visibly intoxicated and reliant on her husband to

walk, yet the officers eventually left allowing her to walk home

on her own. Id. She never arrived home and was later found lying

unconscious on the side of the road. Id. at 1203. As a result of

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the cold, she suffered hypothermia, which caused severe brain

damage. Id. The circuit court reversed the district court’s

finding of summary judgment for defendants. It found the

defendant state actors could be liable under the state-created

danger theory if:

(1) the harm ultimately caused was foreseeable and

fairly direct; (2) the state actor acted in willful

disregard for the safety of the plaintiff; (3) there

existed some relationship between the state and the

plaintiff; (4) the state actors used their authority to

create an opportunity that otherwise would not have

existed for the third party’s crime to occur.

Kneipp, 95 F.3d at 1208 (quoting Mark, 51 F.3d at 1152). The

court concluded that a reasonable jury could find that the

officers used their authority to create a dangerous situation by

increasing the risk to Samantha. Kneipp, 95 F.3d at 1209. 

In Morse, the Third Circuit again discussed the statecreated danger theory applying the same four-part test. See 132

F.3d. 902. There, private contractors working on a school

building in the Lower Merion School District would often prop

open a back door to ease their access into the building. Id. at

904. The school district unlocked the back door for the workers

in violation of its policy to keep all side and back doors locked

at all times. Id. One day, a mentally ill resident entered the

back door and murdered a teacher. Id. The Third Circuit found

that the plaintiffs, the estate of the teacher, failed to state a

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claim based on the state-created danger theory. It held as a

matter of law that the defendants could not have foreseen that

unlocking the door would result in the commission of a murder by

a local resident. Id. at 908. 

In Estate of Henderson, the district court addressed the

state-created danger theory in a manner instructive for purposes

of this motion to dismiss. See 1999 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 10367.

There, Donna Henderson intended to involuntarily commit her

mentally ill son Salim for psychological treatment because she

feared that his illness made him a danger to himself. Id. at *3.

After contacting 911, two officers were dispatched to her home to

transport Salim to the hospital. Id. When they arrived at the

Henderson home, the officers received papers from Donna Henderson

authorizing her son’s commitment. Id. at *5. While the officers

were reading the papers, Salim Henderson (“Salim”) came

downstairs. Id. He explained to his mother that he knew why the

officers were there and that he did not want to go to the

hospital. Id. He then told everyone that he needed to go upstairs

for something, which the officers allowed him to do without

restraint. Id. When he was out of “earshot,” Donna Henderson told

the officers that Salim might jump out of the window. Id. Shortly

thereafter, there was a loud noise. Id at *6. Salim was found to

have jumped out of the second-story window causing him severe and

permanent injuries. Id. As explained in greater detail below, the

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court found that the plaintiff failed to produce sufficient

evidence to survive summary judgment on the fourth prong of the

Kneipp test. Id. at 31.

1. Sean William Rhoad’s Harm was Foreseeable and

Fairly Direct

The court must determine whether Rhoad’s suicide was a

foreseeable harm that was a fairly direct result of Defendant’s

actions or lack thereof. See Morse, 132 F.3d at 902; Estate of

Henderson, 1999 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 10367, at *21. After a detailed

analysis of Third Circuit jurisprudence on foreseeability in the

state-created danger context, the court in Gremo v. Karlin, 363

F. Supp. 2d 771, 784 (E.D. Pa. 2005) wrote, “a harm is

foreseeable when a state actor has actual awareness, based on

concrete information, of a risk of harm to an individual... such

that the actor is on notice that his or her act or failure to act

significantly enhances the risk of harm. ”

In Estate of Henderson, the district court was required to

make a fact intensive analysis of the alleged incident to

determine if the victim’s harm was foreseeable. It found that

Salim’s attempted suicide was, in fact, foreseeable because the

officers were provided with papers indicating that Salim was a

danger to himself, they were aware he did not want to go to the

hospital, and they were told by his mother that he may jump out

of the second-story window. Id. at *23. The court also found

Salim’s harm a fairly direct result of the officers’ failure to

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act because they did nothing to control his actions three to four

minutes after his mother’s warnings. Id.

Presently, Plaintiff has sufficiently alleged that the

decedent’s suicide was foreseeable and a fairly direct result of

the officers’ actions or lack thereof. First, the complaint

alleges that the officers and other agents and employees of

Defendants, through their contact with Rhoad, knew or should have

known that he was capable of self-inflicted harm. (Complaint, ¶

29). It further asserts that upon commencement of his cooperation

with the CCMDTF, an entity with which all Defendants were

allegedly working, Rhoad’s father warned Chief Roman of the

Spring City Police Department that his son was not

psychologically prepared to assist the officers in their

investigations. (Complaint, ¶¶ 14, 15, 17). While this warning

was not as specific as Denise Henderson’s as to the harm that

faced her son in Estate of Henderson, when coupled with other

factual allegations, the inference can be drawn that the officers

should have been aware that Rhoad posed a serious risk of harm to

himself. For example, while in the control of the officers, Rhoad

“outwardly manifested his... mental health condition.”

(Complaint, ¶ 28). In addition, his actions and appearance

further displayed his psychological decomposition. (Complaint, ¶

29). Taking these allegations as true, Plaintiff has adequately

pled that the officers had notice of Rhoad’s deteriorating mental

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condition making his suicide foreseeable. See Kneipp, 95 F.3d

1199 (finding that the officers’ awareness of the victim’s

intoxicated condition made it foreseeable that she would suffer

harm if left alone on the side of the road in the cold).

Plaintiff has also sufficiently pled that Rhoad’s suicide

was a fairly direct result of the officers’ actions or lack

thereof. Here, the complaint alleges that the officers failed to

protect Rhoad from the harm that he posed to himself. It also

alleges that the officers repeatedly denied his pleas to enter

rehabilitation on his own while at the same time compelling his

continued cooperation with their investigations. (Complaint, ¶¶

20-22, 24). Like the officers’ inaction after Denise Henderson’s

warnings in Estate of Henderson, here the officers were on notice

of the risk of harm Rhoad posed to himself yet did nothing to

prevent the risk from materializing. Instead, the officers

affirmatively denied Rhoad’s repeated pleas to enter

rehabilitation. These acts and omissions helped to ultimately

precipitate his suicide. 

2. The State Actors Acted in Willful Disregard for

Sean William Rhoad’s Safety

The court must next determine whether the officers acted

with willful disregard for Rhoad’s safety. See Kneipp, 95 F.3d at

1208; Estate of Henderson, 1999 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 10367, at * 25.

To do so, “[t]he environment created by the state actors must be

dangerous; they must know it to be dangerous; and ... [they] must

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have at least been deliberately indifferent.” Morse, 132 F.3d at

910 (quoting Johnson v. Dallas Indep. Sch. Dist., 38 F.3d 198,

201 (5th Cir. 1994)). Stated differently, the harm must have

been foreseeable to the state actors and the “state’s actions

must evince a willingness to ignore [that] foreseeable danger or

risk.” Morse, 132 F.3d at 910.

In Estate of Henderson, the court held that a reasonable

jury could find that based on Donna Henderson’s warnings, the

officers knew Salim was in imminent danger and did nothing to

protect him. 1999 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 10367, at * 26-27. In other

words, “their decision to continue reviewing [his commitment

papers] in the face of potentially imminent danger was

deliberately indifferent to [his] safety.” Id. at *27. In Morse,

the court found the defendants could not have been aware of the

danger posed by the mentally ill resident, nor could they have

foreseen it; and, therefore, as a matter of law it held

defendants did not act with willful disregard to the victim’s

safety. 132 F.3d at 910. Finally, in Kneipp, the court “focused

on the police officers’ decision to send Samantha Kneipp home

alone, despite their awareness of her intoxicated and

incapacitated state, as evidence of their deliberate

indifference.” Id. at 910 (analyzing the holding in Kneipp, 95

F.3d 119).

Plaintiff has sufficiently alleged that the officers acted

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in willful disregard for Sean Rhoad’s safety. As aforementioned,

Rhoad’s father’s assertions to Chief Roman concerning his son’s

condition, coupled with Rhoad’s appearance and outward

manifestations of his mental decomposition, created awareness

among the officers of the danger of harm Rhoad posed to himself.

(Complaint, ¶¶ 14, 28-29). Despite this knowledge, the officers

continued to compel Rhoad’s cooperation with their investigations

while denying his repeated pleas to seek rehabilitation for his

drug dependency and psychological ailments. (Complaint, ¶¶ 21-

22). Similar to the cases of Kneipp and Estate of Henderson, here

the officers failed to address the apparent dangers Rhoad posed

to himself evidencing deliberate indifference to his safety.

3. There Existed Some Relationship between the State

and Sean William Rhoad

The court must next determine whether there existed some

relationship between the state and Rhoad. In Kneipp, the court

noted that this relationship requires “some contact such that the

plaintiff was a foreseeable victim in the tort sense.” 95 F.3d at

1209 n. 22. Described as the “foreseeable plaintiff prong,” it

requires a plaintiff to establish that “the plaintiff was a

member of a discrete class of persons subjected to the potential

harm brought about by the state’s actions.” Morse, 132 F.3d at

913. 

In Estate of Henderson, the court found that some

relationship existed between Salim Henderson and the defendants

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in that he was a foreseeable victim of the officer’s failure to

restrain his actions. 1999 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 10367, at *30. It

reasoned that “because Henderson’s injuries resulted from

foreseeable harm and because the officers were warned that he may

injure himself in precisely the manner he did, Henderson was

clearly a foreseeable victim of the officers’ inaction.” Id. at

31. 

Plaintiff has adequately alleged that Rhoad was a

foreseeable victim of both the officers’ denials of his requests

to seek psychological treatment and their inaction to seek

treatment on his behalf. Like Estate of Henderson, here the

danger Rhoad posed to himself was foreseeable. While it is not

alleged the officers were aware of the exact manner in which he

would harm himself, and were not present when he did so, they

were still on notice that he posed a risk to his own safety.

Therefore, Rhoad was an arguably foreseeable victim of the

officers’ acts and omissions.

4. The State Actors used their Authority to Create

the Opportunity for Sean William Rhoad’s Suicide

The court must finally determine whether the officers “used

their authority to create an opportunity that otherwise would not

have existed” for Rhoad to commit suicide. Kneipp, 95 F.3d at

1208. As the court in Morse noted, whether an affirmative act is

required and what constitutes such an act is less than clear. 132

F.3d at 914. The court, however, determined that the “dispositive

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factor is whether the state has placed the plaintiff in a

dangerous position that was foreseeable, and not whether the act

was more appropriately characterized as an affirmative act or an

omission.” Id. at 915. 

Courts within the Third Circuit and Eastern District of

Pennsylvania have found causation under the state-created danger

theory when the state’s intervention or lack thereof has

increased the risk of harm to the plaintiff or subjected the

plaintiff to harm nonexistent before such an act or omission.

Sanford v. Stiles, No.03-CV-5698, 2004 WL 2579738, at *4 (E.D.

Pa. Nov. 10, 2004); Estate of Henderson, 1999 U.S. Dist. LEXIS

10367, at *34. See, e.g., Kneipp, 95 F.3d at 1209 (finding

officers increased the risk of harm to the intoxicated plaintiff

by separating her from the private aid of her husband); Gremo,

363 F. Supp. 2d 771 (concluding that the defendants placed the

plaintiff, a student severely beaten by classmates, in a more

dangerous position by failing to monitor unsafe common areas in

the school and concealing past reports of attacks rather than

taking appropriate steps to address the violence); Sciotto v.

Marple Newtown Sch. Dist., 81 F. Supp. 2d 559, 565 (E.D. Pa.

1999) (holding that the school increased the risk of harm to the

plaintiff, a student wrestler, by encouraging and compelling

wrestlers of a heavier weight class to wrestle lighter, younger

high school wrestlers). But see, Morse, 132 F.3d at 915-16

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(rejecting the plaintiff-teacher’s state-created danger claim

against the school district because her murder by a mentally

unstable resident was not a foreseeable consequence of unlocking

the rear door of the school in which plaintiff worked and because

she could not prove “that defendants placed [her] in a dangerous

environment stripped of means to defend [herself] and cutoff from

sources of aid”); Estate of Henderson, 1999 U.S. Dist. LEXIS

10367, at *34-36 (rejecting the plaintiff’s state-created danger

claim against police officers because his mother’s intention to

involuntarily commit him to a mental hospital, and not the

officers’ arrival at his home to transport him there, increased

the risk that he would attempt to harm himself by leaping from a

second-story window and because the officers did nothing to

remove his private sources of aid).

It must first be noted that Plaintiff’s complaint is replete

with allegations that upon commencement of Rhoad’s cooperation,

Defendants had a duty to evaluate his drug dependency and

psychological needs and offer him care and protective services in

the form of drug rehabilitation and psychiatric help. (Complaint,

¶¶ 50-52). It is further alleged that, by failing to take

adequate actions to protect Rhoad from himself, the officers

effectuated a state-created danger. (Complaint, ¶ 52). While the

officers’ failures to act may be viewed as omissions that are

actionable under Morse, DeShaney makes it clear that there is no

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duty on the state to protect citizens from the violence of

private actors or themselves. See DeShaney, 489 U.S. at 195;

Morse, 132 F.3d at 915. Therefore, this Court must look elsewhere

in the complaint to determine if Plaintiff has established the

fourth prong of the Kneipp test.

Plaintiff has adequately pled that the officers placed Rhoad

in a position of foreseeable danger as to satisfy the fourth

prong of the Kneipp test. The officers both isolated Rhoad from

private sources of aid and increased the risk of danger he posed

to himself. For instance, Plaintiff has alleged that during

Rhoad’s cooperation, his drug dependency was increasing and that

he outwardly manifested his mental health decomposition.

(Complaint, ¶¶ 14, 28). Plaintiff has also alleged that Rhoad

repeatedly requested that the officers allow him to cease

assisting them in order to enter appropriate rehabilitative

treatment. (Complaint, ¶ 21). Despite his pleas, the officers

refused, instead requiring him to continue his cooperation before

he could do so. (Complaint,¶¶ 20, 21, 24). These proscriptions

isolated Rhoad from private sources of aid for his drug

dependency and psychological problems. While it is not alleged

that Rhoad was in custody or physically restrained from seeking

help on his own, it is reasonable to infer that the officer’s

constant denials of his requests constructively prevented him

from doing so. Consequently, without treatment, the danger

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Rhoad’s mental decomposition posed to his own safety increased,

ultimately manifesting into his commission of suicide. For these

reasons, the causal relationship between the officers’ actions

and Rhoad’s suicide is sufficient to satisfy the fourth prong of

the Kneipp test. 

While Plaintiff has sufficiently pled that Defendants may

have effectuated a state-created danger, the inquiry does not

stop here. Plaintiff must further allege that “some municipal

policy or custom caused the underlying constitutional violation

by state actors under the state-created danger theory...” M.B.

v. City of Phila., No. 00-5223, 2003 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 2999, at *

19 (E.D. Pa. Mar. 3, 2003). Although some district courts reject

this layered analysis and treat policy and custom claims

separately from state-created danger claims, based on the Supreme

Court’s holding in Monell v. City of New York Dep’t of Soc.

Servs., 436 U.S. 658, 56 L. Ed. 2d 611, 98 S. Ct. 2018, this

Court is compelled to favor the former approach. In Monell, the

Court found that municipalities could not be held vicariously

liable for constitutional violations committed by their agents or

employees unless the agents or employees were acting pursuant to

a municipal policy or custom. Id. at 690. Therefore, it follows

that municipalities cannot be held vicariously liable for a

state-created danger violation committed by their agents or

employees unless the agents or employees were acting pursuant to

Case 2:05-cv-05875-JCJ Document 17 Filed 04/20/06 Page 21 of 26
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a municipal policy or custom.

C. Policy or Custom

As aforementioned, a municipality cannot be held liable

solely on the basis of its employees’ or agents’ actions under

the doctrine of respondeat superior. Bd. of County Comm’rs of

Bryan County v. Brown, 520 U.S. 397, 403, 137 L. Ed. 2d 626, 117

S. Ct. 1382, 1388 (1997). Rather, a municipality may only be held

liable where the actions of its agents or employees are committed

pursuant to some policy or custom. Monell, 436 U.S. at 690.

Policy and custom have been defined and distinguished as follows:

Policy is made when a ‘decisionmaker possessing final

authority to establish municipal policy with respect to

the action’ issues an official proclamation, policy, or

edict. A course of conduct is considered to be a

‘custom’ when, though not authorized by law, ‘such

practices of state officials [are] so permanent and

well-settled as to virtually constitute law. 

Beck v. City of Pittsburgh, 89 F.3d 966, 971 (3d Cir. 1996)

(quoting Andrews v. City of Phila., 895 F.2d 1469, 1480 (3d Cir.

1990)(citations omitted). Custom may also be established by

showing a policymaker’s knowledge and acquiescence to a practice.

Id. Once a policy or custom has been established, it must also be

shown that the policy or custom was the “moving force” behind the

alleged injury. Bryan County, 520 U.S. at. 403.

In City of Canton v. Harris, 489 U.S. 378, 388, 103 L. Ed.

Case 2:05-cv-05875-JCJ Document 17 Filed 04/20/06 Page 22 of 26
23

2d 412, 109 S. Ct. 1197 (1989), the Court found that inadequate

training may also serve as the basis for § 1983 policy or custom

liability “where the failure to train amounts to deliberate

indifference to the rights of persons with whom the police come

into contact.” Failure to adequately train municipal employees

“can ordinarily be considered deliberate indifference only where

the failure has caused a pattern of violations.” Berg v. County

of Allegheny, 219 F.3d 261, 276 (3d Cir. 2000)(citing Bryan

County, 520 U.S. at 408-09). However, the Supreme Court has not

foreclosed the possibility that a single violation of

constitutional rights arising from a municipality’s failure to

train its employees to handle recurring situations could impose

liability. See Bryan County, 520 U.S. at 409 (citing Harris, 498

U.S. at 390, n. 10). 

Plaintiff has adequately alleged that Defendants, through

their policies and customs, including their failure to train

their police personnel, violated Rhoad’s constitutional rights to

substantive due process. Plaintiff has averred that the

Defendants failed to train their employees concerning the safety

and psychological needs of persons in their control and that

their policies and customs demonstrated deliberate indifference

to the safety and mental needs of Rhoad and those similarly

situated (Complaint, ¶¶ 32, 34). Plaintiff has also established

causation by asserting that these policies and practices resulted

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24

in the death of Rhoad. (Complaint, ¶ 34). In addition, Plaintiff

has pled that the Defendants’ conduct manifested deliberate

indifference for, among other reasons, failing to administer to

Rhoad’s mental health needs after his request for rehabilitation

and by failing to adequately train police personnel regarding

“suicidal behavior/ideation.” (Complaint, ¶¶ 34(b), (d)). To

conclude, Plaintiff has adequately pled that Defendants may be

liable for the violation of Rhoad’s constitutional rights arising

from unconstitutional policies or customs, including Defendants’

failure to train.

For the reasons stated above, Defendants’ motions to dismiss

Counts I and III are Denied.

II. Wrongful Death

Plaintiff’s final count (Count V) seeks to impose liability

upon Defendants under a state law claim for wrongful death

pursuant to 42 Pa. C.S.A. § 8301.

Under the Pennsylvania Political Subdivision Tort Claims

Act, 42 Pa. C.S.A. §§ 8541-8564, local agencies are generally

immune from tort liability. Estate of Brian Sullivan v. Geo

Group, Inc., No. 05-5354, 2005 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 33155, at * 3

(E.D. Pa. Dec. 15, 2005). The act provides, inter alia, that “no

local agency shall be liable for any damages on account of any

injury to a person or property caused by any act of the local

Case 2:05-cv-05875-JCJ Document 17 Filed 04/20/06 Page 24 of 26
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agency or an employee thereof or any other person.” 42 Pa. C.S.A.

§ 8541. It enumerates eight exceptions where a municipality may

be liable for negligent acts resulting in injury to persons.

These include:

(1)vehicle liability; (2) care, custody or control

of personal property; (3) care, custody or control of

real property; (4) dangerous conditions of trees,

traffic signs, lights, or other traffic controls,

street lights or street lighting systems under the

care, custody or control of the local agency; (5) a

dangerous condition of utility service facilities owned

by the local agency; (6) a dangerous condition of

streets owned by the local agency; (7) a dangerous

condition of the sidewalks owned by the local agency;

and (8) the care, custody or control of animals.

42 Pa. C.S.A. § 8542. The immunity conferred by the Act does not

protect state entities from federal claims. Wade v. City of

Pittsburgh, 765 F.2d 405, 407 (3d Cir. 1985).

Plaintiff has failed to allege that the Defendants’ acts

fall within any of the enumerated exceptions; therefore, the

Defendants are immune from Plaintiff’s wrongful death claim.

 For the reasons stated above, Defendants’ motions to

dismiss Count V are Granted.

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 IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

 FOR THE EASTERN DISTRICT OF PENNSYLVANIA

ESTATE OF SEAN WILLIAM RHOAD, :

By and through its Administrator :

GEORGE WILLIAM RHOAD, JR. :

 v. : CIVIL ACTION

EAST VINCENT TOWNSHIP, : No. 05-5875

BOROUGH OF SPRING CITY, :

BOROUGH OF PHOENIXVILLE :

 ORDER

 AND NOW, this 18 day of April, 2006, upon consideration th

of Defendants, East Vincent Township and Borough of Spring City’s 

Motions to Dismiss Plaintiff’s Complaint, it is hereby ORDERED 

that the Motions are GRANTED in part and DENIED in part in

accordance with the rationale set forth in the preceding

Memorandum Opinion, and Counts II and V of the Plaintiff’s

Complaint are DISMISSED.

 BY THE COURT:

 s/J. Curtis Joyner 

 J. CURTIS JOYNER, J.

 

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