Opinion ID: 3065384
Heading Depth: 4
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Open observation

Text: ... If Mental Health staff determines the inmate can be housed with other inmates, the inmate may be housed at MDF or WCDF and shall be based on Mental Health staff’s recommendation. ... Deputies will report any changes in behavior to Medical/Mental Health staff. While this language does not expressly preclude deputies from moving inmates into the general population without mental health staff approval, the language suggests that deputies would ordinarily obtain a recommendation from mental health staff before making such a move. Other evidence in the record indicates that an inmate is moved into general population through a consultation between mental health staff and custodial staff. Captain Pascoe testified that “movement of inmates on M Module is a consultation between health services staff who’s [sic] assigned there and the deputy . . . . If an officer had an indi1148 CLOUTHIER v. COUNTY OF CONTRA COSTA vidual in one regular housing cell and wanted to move them to another, they can facilitate that unless they have some indication that there would be a problem in doing so.” Similarly, Kramer, the head of Detention Health Services, testified that, when deputies are concerned about the directions they receive from mental health staff, they must “get another opinion,” “ask again the next day,” or otherwise follow “whatever is within their procedures” in order to move the inmate. The record indicates that Steele, the deputy who moved Clouthier into the general population, believed that mental health staff had approved the move. Viewing the evidence in the light most favorable to the Clouthiers, this misapprehension was caused by Foley’s failure to document Blush’s instructions, Steele’s misunderstanding of the significance of removing an inmate from the Observation Log in this case, and the unavailability of mental health staff on the late shift. [18] Drawing all inferences in favor of the Clouthiers, a reasonable jury could conclude that the custodial and mental health staff were deficient in their implementation of the County’s written policy, because the custodial staff failed to ensure they had the approval of mental health staff before moving Clouthier. However, that does not create a triable issue of fact on the question whether the County itself is liable for this deficiency. There is no evidence that the County had a longstanding custom or practice of moving detainees from an observation cell into general population without consultation with mental health staff or contrary to their recommendations. Nor is there evidence of a longstanding custom or practice of miscommunication between mental health staff and custodial staff. There is no evidence that the County was on actual or constructive notice that deficiencies in the implementation of its policy would likely result in a constitutional violation. Moreover, nothing in the record indicates that improper transfers of suicidal inmates happened so frequently that the need for corrective measures “must have been plainly obvious CLOUTHIER v. COUNTY OF CONTRA COSTA 1149 to the city policymakers.” Canton, 489 U.S. at 390 n.10. In fact, the evidence in the record indicates that between 2001 and 2006, out of more than 175,000 inmates processed at the County’s Martinez Detention Facility, 158 suicide attempts were discovered and only six inmates succeeded in committing suicide.10 The County’s expert testified that this suicide rate is “far lower than the statewide average, and far lower than the rate in jails in most counties with similar population sizes.” Not only did the Clouthiers fail to adduce evidence of a pattern of repeated tortious conduct by County staff, but they also failed to adduce evidence of even a single other suicide resulting from the improper transfer of an inmate from an observation cell into the general population. [19] The Clouthiers point to the affidavit of an expert, who opined, based on a review of the incident, that the mental health staff and custodial staff did not share their records and “did not work together as a team.” The expert also stated there was a “disconnect” between the mental health staff and the custodial staff and noted “an inadequacy in training which appears to be purposely indifferent to the mental health needs of pre-trial detainees.” But such conclusory assertions are insufficient to avoid summary judgment. Soremekun v. Thrifty Payless, Inc., 509 F.3d 978, 984 (9th Cir. 2007) (“Conclusory, speculative testimony in affidavits and moving papers is insufficient to raise genuine issues of fact and defeat summary judgment.”). Moreover, the factual basis for the expert’s declaration is limited to the “sequence of events and the statements of the participants” surrounding Clouthier’s transfer into the general population. The expert’s report does not address the key question whether the alleged “disconnect” was so obvious and “the inadequacy so likely to result in the violation of constitutional rights, that the policymakers of the [local government] can reasonably be said to have been deliberately indifferent” to the problem. Canton, 489 U.S. at 390. 10 The suicide rate in the prison system at issue in Conn was six in only two years. 572 F.3d at 1053. 1150 CLOUTHIER v. COUNTY OF CONTRA COSTA In sum, there is no material evidence on the issue of the County’s knowledge or the obviousness of the problem. The Clouthiers also failed to dispute the County’s evidence that it was not deliberately indifferent to the needs of mentally ill pretrial detainees. The County had reasonable and wellestablished written policies for handling detainee mental health needs, which the Clouthiers concede “pass constitutional muster.” In addition, the record indicates the County invested considerable resources in developing its policies and training its employees, including requiring all new deputies to complete an eight-week training course and an annual refresher course concerning people with mental disorders. The County’s mental health staff are licensed mental health practitioners with graduate degrees, and they receive both on-thejob training and training in new developments in their areas of expertise. [20] There is little doubt the Clouthiers identified a series of missteps and miscommunications that led to Clouthier’s transfer to the general population while he was suicidal. Yet, the Clouthiers have pointed to no evidence that would allow a reasonable jury to conclude the County had caused the improper transfer through deliberate omissions or the implementation of longstanding practices or customs. Accordingly, the Clouthiers have not adduced evidence creating a triable issue of material fact on the crucial issues for County liability.