Opinion ID: 528815
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: Good Shepherd's Status as a State Actor.

Text: 38 Although but a fine line separates Greco from Jatoi, we conclude, contrary to the decision of the district court, that the former decision carries greater precedential weight in the circumstances present here. Hence, there is not a sufficient nexus between the county and Good Shepherd to justify a finding that Good Shepherd acted under the color of state law for the purposes of Albright's Sec. 1983 claims. 39 The district court determined that Jatoi bore the greater similarity to this case because in both cases the public authorities monitored the private management of the hospital and had authority over major decisions. While we agree that important similarities exist between this case and Jatoi, there are also dispositive differences. Of major significance is the fact that the relationship between the hospital and the county in Jatoi was marked by the presence of a functional intermediary; namely, the hospital authority. The authority was a specially-created government entity which existed for the purpose of overseeing the hospital's activities. Here, however, no such functional intermediary was present in the relationship between Gregg County and Good Shepherd. Its absence makes a critical difference in that it removes the County one organizational step from the activities and operations of the hospital. 40 The distinction between Greco and Jatoi created by the presence of the hospital authority in Jatoi is made particularly poignant by that court's express recognition of the fact that [a]lthough the Authority had no direct input on the day-to-day operation of the hospital, it was informed of decisions, including the decision to terminate Dr. Jatoi's privileges. 807 F.2d at 1221 (emphasis added). Here, Gregg County was never informed of Albright's termination, nor did the County have any right to such information. In Jatoi, however, this information involved the hospital authority in the very constitutional infringement that formed the basis for Dr. Jatoi's suit. Such knowledge by the County could be deemed tacit acceptance of the hospital's alleged racial discrimination against Dr. Jatoi and also provides the necessary link for a finding of state action, that is, that the alleged infringement of federal rights is fairly attributable to the state. Rendell-Baker v. Kohn, 457 U.S. 830, 838, 102 S.Ct. 2764, 2770, 73 L.Ed.2d 418 (1982). Moreover, in Jatoi, we concluded that the authority retained the ability to prevent or control the complained of conduct, 807 F.2d at 1221, while the evidence here does not suggest such a finding as to the county. 41 The degree of closeness between the hospital and the county in Jatoi is also evidenced by the fact that the hospital authority actually owned the hospital operations at the time the discriminatory acts against Dr. Jatoi occurred. It was not until after the litigation had begun that the hospital authority sold the hospital operations. 807 F.2d at 1221. 42 Thus, we are persuaded to apply the rule of Greco to the circumstances here. In Greco, as in the instant case, the hospital was operated by a private, non-profit, tax-exempt corporation organized by local residents for the purpose of leasing and operating the hospital. Also like the present case, the only functional interrelationship that existed between Orange County and the corporation leasing the hospital in Greco was the lease agreement. Indeed, a number of the lease provisions in Greco are similar to the provisions in the lease between Gregg County and Good Shepherd, including provisions containing the hospital's assurances that it would take steps necessary to secure federal funding; make additions to the hospital's exterior only with the written consent of the County; submit an annual audit; and accept County-certified indigent patients. These general assurances, however, were not sufficient to confer state action status upon the hospital's acts in Greco. They are similarly impotent here. 43 Finally, the district court relied upon the fact that, unlike the lessee in Greco, Good Shepherd pays a significant amount of rent to Gregg County. But that distinction, standing alone, will not establish the requisite symbiotic interrelationship. The relationship is fundamentally dissimilar from that envisioned by the Burton Court. In Burton, the Court recognized that the Eagle Coffee Shoppe, and the public authority through it, benefitted from its discriminatory policies. Burton, 365 U.S. at 724-25, 81 S.Ct. at 861-62. No such benefit is present here, especially in light of the fact that Albright's termination was a single occurrence, and not the result of a policy whose continued practice could, through its overt character, eventually be attributed to the County. Further, seizing one detail in a complex relationship runs counter to the Court's admonition in Burton to sift and weigh all the factors to determine whether an entity is acting under the color of law. We conclude, therefore, that Good Shepherd's termination of Albright was not state action for the purpose of this section 1983 claim. 44