Source: http://fl.findacase.com/research/wfrmDocViewer.aspx/xq/fac.20180402_0001137.MFL.htm/qx
Timestamp: 2019-04-18 11:11:15+00:00

Document:
RICHARD WILKINSON, RICHARD LEBLANC, RYAN WILSON, JAMES NELSON, JUAN PADILLA, PENELOPE GRAY, NANCY MENDOZA, RODNEY MARTIN, ANDREA DISTIN-CAMPBELL and ORANGE COUNTY FLORIDA, Defendants.
7. Officer-Defendants' Reply to Plaintiffs' Response to Their Motion to Dismiss (Doc. 50), filed November 27, 2017.
With briefing complete, the matter is ripe for review.
This action centers on the death of William Howard (“Mr. Howard”). Mr. Howard died from injuries sustained while in the custody of correctional officers at the Orange County Jail (or the “Jail”), who broke Mr. Howard's neck while relocating him to a different cell within the Jail. His injuries went untreated for more than twenty-four hours, and at 9:10 a.m. on November 20, 2016, Mr. Howard was pronounced dead. His family brought this action, claiming wrongful death and § 1983 claims for Fourteenth Amendment violations, against Orange County, Florida, and various Jail employees. Defendants deny any responsibility.
At 9:52 p.m., a correctional officer found Mr. Howard unresponsive in his cell. (Id. ¶ 50.) He was taken to Orlando Regional Medical Center in critical condition, and pronounced the dead the following morning. (Id. ¶¶ 51-52.) An autopsy determined that Mr. Howard's cause of death was blunt force impact resulting in neck fracture with cervical spinal cord trauma and hypoxic encephalopathy. (Id. ¶ 53.) The medical examiner ruled Mr. Howard's death a homicide. (Id.) Following this ruling, Plaintiff brought this action.
The Complaint proceeds in thirteen Counts. Counts I through IV allege 42 U.S.C. § 1983 claims for excessive use of force against the Officer Defendants (apart from Defendant Nelson). Count V brings a § 1983 excessive force claim against Defendant Nelson-who filmed the use of force incident-premised on Defendant Nelson's deliberate indifference to the excessive use of force. Counts VI through IX assert § 1983 claims against the Nurse Defendants for their deliberate indifference to Mr. Howard's serious medical needs. Count X alleges a municipal liability claim against Orange County, Florida, for delegating final policymaking authority to the Nurse Defendants. Counts XI through XIII aver wrongful death claims against Orange County premised on (XI) battery, (XII) negligent hiring and retention, and (XIII) negligence.
A Rule 12(b)(6) motion to dismiss tests the legal sufficiency of the plaintiff's complaint. To survive the motion, the complaint must “state a claim to relief that is plausible on its face.” Bell Atl. Corp. v. Twombly, 550 U.S. 544, 570 (2007). A claim is plausible on its face when the plaintiff alleges enough facts to “allow the court to draw the reasonable inference that the defendant is liable for the misconduct alleged.” Ashcroft v. Iqbal, 556 U.S. 662, 678 (2009). The mere recitation of the elements of a claim is not enough, and the district court need not give any credence to legal conclusions that are unsupported by sufficient factual material. Id. District courts must accept all well-pleaded allegations within the complaint and any documents attached thereto as true and must read the complaint in the light most favorable to the plaintiff. Hunnings v. Texaco, Inc., 29 F.3d 1480, 1484 (11th Cir. 1994) (per curiam).

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