Court Opinion

ID: 9375483
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-02-27 22:00:39.117139+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T17:16:59.289033
License: Public Domain

USCA11 Case: 21-11036   Document: 99-1    Date Filed: 02/27/2023    Page: 1 of 25

                                                [DO NOT PUBLISH]
                                 In the
                 United States Court of Appeals
                        For the Eleventh Circuit

                         ____________________

                               No. 21-11036
                         ____________________

        JOHN STEPHEN RAVAN,
                                                    Plaintiff-Appellant,
        versus
        SHERIFF CULLEN TALTON,
        Houston County, et al.,

                                                           Defendants,

        CORPORAL ALTHEA ADDISON JACKSON,
        Houston County Detention Center,
        DOCTOR ROHL,
        Houston County Detention Center,
        NURSE PRACTITIONER BROOM,
USCA11 Case: 21-11036       Document: 99-1       Date Filed: 02/27/2023      Page: 2 of 25

        2                        Opinion of the Court                   22-11036

        Houston County Detention Center,
        NURSE JEANNIE VAUGHN,
        ASSISTANT NURSE RONNIE SPRAUGE, et al.,

                                                        Defendants-Appellees.

                              ____________________

                   Appeal from the United States District Court
                       for the Middle District of Georgia
                    D.C. Docket No. 5:19-cv-00161-TES-TQL
                            ____________________

        Before ROSENBAUM, LAGOA, Circuit Judges, and WETHERELL,* Dis-
        trict Judge.
        PER CURIAM:
               While John Ravan was incarcerated, medical staff changed
        his medication, causing him to suffer an allergic reaction that was
        immediately obvious and inflicted severe, irreversible damage. Be-
        sides that, prison guards allegedly refused to give Ravan grievance
        forms so that he could ask for better medical treatment, and they
        transferred him out of medical housing. Separately, food-service
        workers gave Ravan, who is Jewish, non-Kosher meals (and refused

        * The Honorable T. Kent Wetherell II, U.S. District Judge for the Northern
        District of Florida, sitting by designation.
USCA11 Case: 21-11036         Document: 99-1        Date Filed: 02/27/2023         Page: 3 of 25

        22-11036                   Opinion of the Court                               3

        to provide Kosher meals) on a number of occasions. Ravan sued
        (1) the doctor and nurses who inadequately treated him, (2) the
        prison officers who prevented him from requesting medical treat-
        ment, and (3) the food-service workers and the company who
        served him non-Kosher meals. After a thorough review of the rec-
        ord and with the benefit of oral argument,1 we affirm in part, va-
        cate in part, and reverse in part.

                                    I.   BACKGROUND
                                 A. Factual Background2
               When Ravan entered the Houston County Detention Cen-
        ter on February 17, 2019, he had a preexisting brain tumor and poor
        vision. Shortly thereafter, Dr. Peter Wrobel, along with Nurses
        Rawni Sprague, Jeannie Vaughn and others 3 (collectively, the

        1 We appointed Nicole Bronnimann and Joshua Mitchell to represent Ravan
        on appeal. We thank both for their service to the court.
        2 Because the district court dismissed Ravan’s claims against the medical de-
        fendants and the food-service defendants before summary judgment, for pur-
        poses of this appeal, we consider the allegations in Ravan’s amended com-
        plaint as true. Erickson v. Pardus, 551 U.S. 89, 94 (2007). The actual facts may
        or may not be as alleged. Because the district court granted summary judg-
        ment for the officer defendants, we consider the facts as to them based on the
        evidence, viewing all conflicts in the light most favorable to Ravan as the non-
        movant. Tolan v. Cotton, 572 U.S. 650, 651 (2014). So again, the facts may or
        may not be as set forth.
        3 Ravan also named Physician’s Assistant Sharon Broome, Nurse Chiquita
        Cox, Nurse Shakira Turner, and Nurse Shannon Wingfield.
USCA11 Case: 21-11036      Document: 99-1     Date Filed: 02/27/2023     Page: 4 of 25

        4                      Opinion of the Court                22-11036

        “medical defendants”), changed Ravan’s medications—without
        doing precautionary bloodwork—causing him to have an allergic
        reaction.
                The allergic reaction manifested itself as “Stevens-Johnson
        syndrome” or “toxic epidermal necrolysis” (“SJS/TEN”). SJS/TEN
        is a single condition that covers a spectrum, with SJS representing
        the relatively less severe form and TEN representing the relatively
        more severe form. Either way, SJS/TEN is a “severe skin reac-
        tion” that causes “the skin . . . to blister and peel, forming very
        painful raw areas called erosions that resemble a severe hot-water
        burn. The skin erosions usually start on the face and chest before
        spreading to other parts of the body. In most affected individuals,
        the condition also damages the mucous membranes, including the
        lining of the mouth and airways[.]” “SJS/TEN often affects the
        eyes as well, causing irritation and redness of the conjunctiva,
        which are the mucous membranes that protect the white part of
        the eye and line the eyelids, and damage to the clear front covering
        of the eye (the cornea) . . . . About 10 percent of people with [SJS]
        die from the disease, while the condition is fatal in up to 50% of
        those with [TEN].” Survivors can suffer long-term effects like hair
        loss, abnormal growth or loss of fingernails, impaired taste, diffi-
        culty urinating, and genital abnormalities.
               Ravan said that, while Dr. Wrobel diagnosed him with
        SJS/TEN, he was kept in a solitary medical cell for weeks with
        bleeding and blistered legs, mouth, and genitals, with no treatment
        other than Tylenol and mouthwash. Ravan’s health continued to
USCA11 Case: 21-11036       Document: 99-1        Date Filed: 02/27/2023      Page: 5 of 25

        22-11036                 Opinion of the Court                            5

        deteriorate, and at one point, Ravan’s mucous membrane came
        out of his eye. In response, a jail officer gave him only a plastic
        evidence bag to put the mucous membrane in. Ravan also devel-
        oped a lump on his testicles, but when Ravan asked Dr. Wrobel to
        exam it, the doctor said, “I don’t want to see or feel your balls
        again.”
                Still seeking help, Ravan asked Deputy Laura Freeman and
        Corporal Althea Jackson (“the officer defendants”) more than fif-
        teen times for “grievance form[s] to address his medical needs and
        issues of bleeding sores”—but they refused every time. “After
        [three] days of begging for a grievance to complain of . . . lo[]sing
        [his] vision more each day, and the sores in [his] mouth, legs and
        eye,” Ravan said, Officers Jackson and Freeman moved him out of
        medical housing into general-population housing knowing that
        Ravan was in danger of being accidentally struck and killed there.
               While in the detention center, Ravan sought Kosher food in
        accordance with his Jewish faith. He had to “repeatedly” get shift
        supervisors to fix his meals because of contamination.4 At one
        point, when he asked kitchen staff to remake his food, the staff
        member refused, stating, “I ain’t doing nothing else.” According to
        Ravan’s records, during his period of incarceration, he was denied

        4 At all material times, Summit Food Service, LLC (“Summit Food Service”)
        was the company that furnished food services for the Houston County Deten-
        tion Center. The operative complaint identifies Summit Food Service and two
        of its employees—Gene Thomas and Michelle Wheeler—as defendants.
        These parties are hereinafter referred to as the “food-service defendants.”
USCA11 Case: 21-11036      Document: 99-1     Date Filed: 02/27/2023     Page: 6 of 25

        6                      Opinion of the Court                22-11036

        Kosher dining on at least seven occasions: April 4, April 5 (the p.m.
        snack), April 6 (breakfast and dinner), April 7 (breakfast), April 9,
        and April 11.
              Upon being released from prison, Ravan suffered from
        blindness, was wheelchair-bound because of seizures, and was told
        he had to have a testicle removed.
                              B. Procedural History
                While incarcerated, Ravan sued (1) the medical defendants,
        (2) the officer defendants, and (3) the food-service defendants. As
        to the medical defendants, Ravan alleged that they had provided
        inadequate care in violation of the Eighth Amendment. Ravan said
        the officer defendants had prevented him from receiving care and
        moved him out of medical housing—also in violation of the Eighth
        Amendment. And finally, about the food-service defendants,
        Ravan alleged that their refusal to provide Kosher meals violated
        both the First Amendment and constituted a substantial burden on
        his religious practice in violation of the Religious Land Use and In-
        stitutionalized Persons Act (“RLUIPA”), 42 U.S.C. § 2000cc et seq.
        Ravan’s original complaint was verified under penalty of perjury
        and had attached to it a ten-page log of events between February
        and April, as well as grievances he had submitted to the jail. The
        combined document was about 120 pages.
              The magistrate judge ordered Ravan to refile his complaint
        on the Middle District of Georgia’s standard § 1983 form and
        warned, in bold, that the new complaint would replace the original
        complaint and that the magistrate judge would consider only the
USCA11 Case: 21-11036          Document: 99-1         Date Filed: 02/27/2023          Page: 7 of 25

        22-11036                    Opinion of the Court                                 7

        allegations in the new complaint. In response, Ravan asked for a
        copy of his original complaint because his copies had disappeared
        during his transfer between facilities. The magistrate judge gave
        Ravan more time to refile and a free copy of the complaint but said
        that Ravan had to pay for copies of the “voluminous” attach-
        ments—about 80 pages.
              Ravan filed an amended complaint but did not resubmit the
        grievances and daily log attached to the original complaint.5 Be-
        cause Ravan proceeded while incarcerated, the magistrate judge

        5 Ravan argues that the grievances and daily log attached to the original com-
        plaint should be considered along with the operative complaint. We agree.
        At the pleading stage, courts may consider (or “incorporate by reference”) doc-
        uments that are not attached to the complaint so long as those documents are
        (1) referred to in the complaint, (2) central to the plaintiff’s claims, and (3) of
        undisputed authenticity. Hi-Tech Pharms., Inc. v. HBS Int’l Corp., 910 F.3d
        1186, 1189 (11th Cir. 2018); accord Day v. Taylor, 400 F.3d 1272, 1276 (11th
        Cir. 2005). Here, no party disputes the centrality or authenticity of Ravan’s
        grievances and daily log. The only dispute is whether the operative complaint
        adequately refers to those documents for purposes of incorporation. It does.
        The operative complaint (1) summarizes the contents of Ravan’s daily log, al-
        leging that he went “weeks . . . with no help or medication” for his medical
        symptoms and that he was denied Kosher meals “over and over”; (2) makes
        broad references to the documents that Ravan previously submitted to the
        court; and (3) alleges that his grievances went ignored by prison staff. Con-
        struing these allegations liberally, and considering that Ravan submitted his
        only copy of the daily log with his original complaint and the magistrate judge
        denied his request for a free copy of the daily log so he could resubmit it with
        his amended complaint, we are satisfied that the operative complaint incorpo-
        rates the grievances and daily log that Ravan attached to the original com-
        plaint.
USCA11 Case: 21-11036      Document: 99-1      Date Filed: 02/27/2023     Page: 8 of 25

        8                      Opinion of the Court                 22-11036

        “screened” Ravan’s amended complaint under 28 U.S.C. § 1915A.
        As to the medical defendants, the magistrate judge found that
        Ravan’s allegations described, at most, negligence—but not delib-
        erate indifference—and dismissed those claims. But the magistrate
        judge allowed Ravan’s claims against the officer defendants and the
        food-service defendants to proceed.
               The food-service defendants moved to dismiss. They ar-
        gued that Summit Food Service was not liable because Ravan had
        not alleged a policy of violating religious rights. They continued
        that (1) Ravan had not stated a claim against the individual defend-
        ants because he did not attribute specific acts to them, (2) the indi-
        vidual defendants were entitled to qualified immunity on the First
        Amendment claim, (3) RLUIPA did not provide for monetary dam-
        ages, and (4) Ravan’s claims for injunctive and declaratory relief
        were moot because he had been released from the jail.
                While the motion to dismiss was pending, the officer de-
        fendants moved for summary judgment. Both Officers Freeman
        and Jackson denied that they had ever refused Ravan grievance
        forms. And they contended that, because Ravan was seen by med-
        ical professionals, they thought (and were entitled to think) that the
        medical professionals were adequately treating Ravan. They also
        said that they moved Ravan at the recommendation of the medical
        staff and therefore were justified in believing that the move did not
        present a risk of harm. The officer defendants also pointed out that,
        in any event, only Officer Jackson, not Officer Freeman, had the
        authority to authorize a move and Ravan didn’t suffer any harm
USCA11 Case: 21-11036         Document: 99-1        Date Filed: 02/27/2023         Page: 9 of 25

        22-11036                   Opinion of the Court                               9

        from the transfer. Finally, they argued that they were entitled to
        qualified immunity because there was no case clearly establishing
        that their conduct was unconstitutional.
               On February 2, 2021, the magistrate judge recommended
        granting both the motion to dismiss and the motion for summary
        judgment. As to the former, the magistrate judge recommended
        dismissing Summit Food Service because Ravan had not alleged a
        policy or custom of violating rights. And as to the individual food-
        service defendants, the magistrate judge concluded that Ravan had
        not made any specific allegations about their conduct. On the
        RLUIPA claims, the magistrate judge agreed that monetary dam-
        ages were not available and Ravan’s claims for injunctive and de-
        claratory relief were moot. The magistrate judge also recom-
        mended entering summary judgment for the officer defendants be-
        cause the officers were entitled to rely on the medical staff to give
        Ravan sufficient care.
               On February 19, 2021, Ravan moved for leave to amend.6
        The motion wasn’t docketed until March 8. In the meantime, on
        February 26, the district court adopted the magistrate judge’s re-
        port and entered judgment against Ravan on all claims. When the
        magistrate judge received the motion for leave to amend, he

        6 Under the “prison mailbox rule,” a document is considered filed “on the date
        it [was] delivered to prison authorities for mailing.” Daniels v. United States,
        809 F.3d 588, 589 (11th Cir. 2015). Because Ravan gave his motion to prison
        authorities on February 19, we consider that as the date of filing.
USCA11 Case: 21-11036      Document: 99-1       Date Filed: 02/27/2023      Page: 10 of 25

        10                      Opinion of the Court                   22-11036

        denied the motion as moot because judgment had been entered.
        Ravan now appeals.

                          II. STANDARDS OF REVIEW
               We review de novo a district court’s order granting a mo-
        tion to dismiss for failure to state a claim. Boyle v. City of Pell City,
        866 F.3d 1280, 1286 (11th Cir. 2017).
               We also review the grant or denial of summary judgment de
        novo. B&G Enters., Ltd. v. United States, 220 F.3d 1318, 1322 (11th
        Cir. 2000). In so doing, we view all evidence and all factual infer-
        ences reasonably drawn from the evidence in the light most favor-
        able to the nonmoving party—here, Ravan. St. Charles Foods, Inc.
        v. America’s Favorite Chicken Co., 198 F.3d 815, 819 (11th Cir.
        1999).
               A party that fails to properly object to a magistrate judge’s
        report and recommendation, after being given notice of the period
        for objecting and the consequences of failing to do so, “waives the
        right to challenge on appeal the district court’s order based on un-
        objected-to factual and legal conclusions.” 11th Cir. R. 3-1. In such
        cases, we may review the district court’s adoption of a recommen-
        dation “for plain error if necessary in the interests of justice.” Id.;
        accord Harrigan v. Metro Dade Police Dep’t Station #4, 977 F.3d
        1185, 1191 (11th Cir. 2020); see also United States v. Perkins, 787
        F.3d 1329, 1343–44 (11th Cir. 2015) (differentiating between ob-
        jected-to and unobjected-to portions of the adopted recommenda-
        tion for purposes of review). Under the civil plain-error standard,
USCA11 Case: 21-11036       Document: 99-1       Date Filed: 02/27/2023       Page: 11 of 25

        22-11036                 Opinion of the Court                           11

        we will consider an issue not properly raised in the district court “if
        it involves a pure question of law, and if refusal to consider it would
        result in a miscarriage of justice.” Roy v. Ivy, 53 F.4th 1338, 1351
        (11th Cir. 2022) (quoting Burch v. P.J. Cheese, Inc., 861 F.3d 1338,
        1352 (11th Cir. 2017)).

                                 III. DISCUSSION
                We proceed in three parts. First, we explain why at least
        some of Ravan’s claims against the food-service defendants should
        have survived their motion to dismiss. Second, we discuss why the
        district court erred in granting summary judgment for the officer
        defendants. And, third, given our rulings, we explain why the dis-
        trict court must reconsider whether to give Ravan leave to amend
        his claims against the medical defendants—namely, because this
        case is not moot.
                             A. Food-service Defendants
                Ravan argues that the district court erred in dismissing his
        First Amendment and RLUIPA claims against the food-service de-
        fendants. We agree in part. 7 As to Summit Food Service, the dis-
        trict court properly dismissed the First Amendment claim but not
        the RLUIPA claim. The reverse is true as to the individual

        7 Because Ravan objected only conclusorily to the magistrate judge’s report
        and recommendation that the food-service defendants be dismissed, we re-
        view for plain error. See 11th Cir. R. 3-1.
USCA11 Case: 21-11036      Document: 99-1      Date Filed: 02/27/2023     Page: 12 of 25

        12                      Opinion of the Court                 22-11036

        defendants: the district court properly dismissed the RLUIPA claim
        but not the First Amendment claim.
               We’ll start with the First Amendment claims and then dis-
        cuss the RLUIPA claims.
                                  1. First Amendment
                To state a valid free-exercise claim, a plaintiff “must allege
        that the government has impermissibly burdened one of his ‘sin-
        cerely held religious beliefs.’” Watts v. Fla. Int’l Univ., 495 F.3d
        1289, 1294 (11th Cir. 2007) (quoting Frazee v. Ill. Dep’t of Emp.
        Sec., 489 U.S. 829, 834 (1989)). Under § 1983, municipalities are li-
        able for only their own conduct. So to state a claim against a mu-
        nicipality, a plaintiff must identify a policy or custom that caused
        his injury, or ratification of, or acquiescence in, an unconstitutional
        decision by a subordinate. Hoefling v. City of Miami, 811 F.3d
        1271, 1279 (11th Cir. 2016) (discussing the three theories of munic-
        ipal liability). In other words, municipalities cannot liable under a
        theory of respondeat superior. Id.
               As to the individual defendants, we think that Ravan has
        plausibly stated a claim that their actions impermissibly burdened
        his sincerely held religious beliefs. Keeping in mind the liberal
        pleading standard afforded to pro se litigants, Ravan alleged that he
        was Jewish and required, as part of his faith, Kosher meals. Ravan
        alleged a number of instances where the individual defendants ei-
        ther refused to provide him Kosher meals in the first instance or
        refused to remake Kosher meals after contamination. He alleged
USCA11 Case: 21-11036     Document: 99-1     Date Filed: 02/27/2023    Page: 13 of 25

        22-11036               Opinion of the Court                      13

        that the individual defendants “over and over” denied him religious
        food.
                The individual defendants have three responses—all unper-
        suasive. First, they argue that Ravan didn’t properly attribute acts
        to them individually. But Ravan named two food-service workers
        as defendants so it is plausible to attribute the alleged actions of
        food-service workers to those two named workers. Given the lib-
        eral standards to which we hold pro se pleadings, we think Ravan
        did just enough to state a claim.
              Second, the individual defendants argue that depriving
        Ravan of a handful of meals over a period of months doesn’t con-
        stitute an impermissible burden on his religion. But the number of
        missed meals is not necessarily determinative because being denied
        three Kosher meals in a row might be more substantial of a burden
        on religion being denied three meals in three months, and for a di-
        abetic, the denial of one meal may be a substantial burden. And
        the record is (at best) muddled about the number and timing of
        Kosher meals that Ravan was denied. Ravan alleged in his com-
        plaint that he was denied meals “over and over.” In response, the
        individual defendants argue that Ravan’s grievances and log—at-
        tached to his original complaint—control and show that Ravan was
        denied Kosher meals only five times in five months. But other
        places in the record bely that interpretation. For instance, Ravan
        alleges that over a five-day period, he was effectively denied five
        meals. And he wrote that, on April 1, his Kosher diet was “abruptly
        stopped,” and though he submitted grievances for “almost five
USCA11 Case: 21-11036       Document: 99-1        Date Filed: 02/27/2023        Page: 14 of 25

        14                        Opinion of the Court                    22-11036

        weeks,” he never got a reply. Given this ambiguity, we think that
        Ravan has stated a plausible claim that his religious practice was
        impermissibly burdened.
               Third, the individual defendants argue that they are entitled
        to qualified immunity. In their view, “a reasonable food service
        worker in a county jail would not have known in April 2019 that
        giving an inmate five non-kosher meals out of 559 total meals over
        206 days would have constituted a substantial burden on the in-
        mate’s First Amendment rights.” The district court didn’t decide
        whether the individual defendants would be entitled to qualified
        immunity. “Because the district court did not reach the question .
        . . [it] is not properly before us and must be remanded for the dis-
        trict court’s consideration.” Nyland v. Moore, 216 F.3d 1264, 1267
        (11th Cir. 2000).
               But we reach a different conclusion as to Summit Food Ser-
        vice. To state a claim against Summit Food Service, Ravan had to
        plead that the company8 had a custom or policy of not providing
        Kosher meals, or acquiesced in or ratified its employees’ doing so.
        Hoefling, 811 F.3d at 1279. Ravan has not done so. His complaint
        is wholly devoid of any allegations as to Summit Food Service’s
        policies or customs, or any facts that would allow a reasonable trier
        of fact to infer that any final policymaker ratified or acquiesced in

        8 Summit Food Service is not a municipality, but it assumes—for the sake of
        this appeal—that it is a state actor because it feeds incarcerated people. We
        therefore assume it is a state actor for purposes of this appeal.
USCA11 Case: 21-11036     Document: 99-1      Date Filed: 02/27/2023     Page: 15 of 25

        22-11036               Opinion of the Court                        15

        the individual defendants’ actions. Accordingly, the district court
        properly dismissed Ravan’s First Amendment claim against Sum-
        mit Food Service.
                                     2. RLUIPA
                Ravan also challenges the dismissal of his claims against both
        the individual defendants and Summit Food Service under
        RLUIPA. In Ravan’s view, the denial of his meals constituted a
        “substantial burden” on his religious exercise, in violation of that
        statute, and the district court erred in deciding that he was not en-
        titled to monetary damages. We agree on the latter point and
        therefore reverse as to Summit Food Service only.
                RLUIPA prohibits policies that “substantially burden” reli-
        gious exercise except where a policy “(1) is in furtherance of a com-
        pelling governmental interest; and (2) is the least restrictive means
        of furthering that compelling governmental interest.” 42 U.S.C.
        § 2000cc–1(a). Once a plaintiff proves that a challenged practice
        substantially burdens religious exercise, the burden shifts to the de-
        fendant to show that the policy is the least restrictive means of fur-
        thering a compelling government interest.               Id.; see also
        id. § 2000cc-2(b).
               Because RLUIPA was passed under Congress’s Spending
        Power, we’ve explained, only those who receive federal funding
        are liable for violating it. Smith v. Allen, 502 F.3d 1255, 1272 (11th
        Cir. 2007) overruled in part on other grounds by Hoever v. Marks,
        993 F.3d 1353 (11th Cir. 2021) (en banc). Accordingly, only institu-
        tions that receive federal funds—not the individual employees of
USCA11 Case: 21-11036     Document: 99-1      Date Filed: 02/27/2023    Page: 16 of 25

        16                     Opinion of the Court                22-11036

        those institutions—are subject to liability. Id. at 1275. RLIUPA
        provides that the complaining party, if successful, may obtain “ap-
        propriate relief against a government.” Id. at 1269 (citing 42 U.S.C.
        § 2000cc-2(a)). We’ve concluded that “appropriate relief” includes
        both monetary and injunctive relief. Id. at 1271.
                The district court dismissed Ravan’s claims because it con-
        cluded Ravan was not entitled to monetary damages under
        RLUIPA and his claims for injunctive relief were moot given his
        release from jail. On appeal, Raven concedes that his claims for
        injunctive and declaratory relief are moot because he has been re-
        leased from the jail. But he says his claims for monetary damages
        are still viable. We agree. Under Smith, institutions that receive
        federal funding are liable for monetary damages for violating
        RLUIPA. Id. But individual defendants aren’t. Id. We therefore
        reverse the dismissal of Ravan’s claim against Summit Food Service
        and affirm the dismissal of Ravan’s claims against the individual de-
        fendants.
               The food-service defendants attempt to avoid this conclu-
        sion with two arguments. First, they say, denying Ravan Kosher
        meals did not constitute a substantial burden on his religious exer-
        cise. But given that the district court did not reach this question,
        we leave it to the district court to determine whether Ravan’s dep-
        rivation (of however many meals he pleaded he lost) constituted a
        substantial burden. Nyland, 216 F.3d at 1267.
               Second, the food-service defendants argue that Ravan did
        not plead that the jail received federal funding so he did not allege
USCA11 Case: 21-11036      Document: 99-1      Date Filed: 02/27/2023     Page: 17 of 25

        22-11036                Opinion of the Court                        17

        a jurisdictional prerequisite. In response, Ravan attaches a spread-
        sheet showing that the Georgia Department of Corrections re-
        ceived federal funding during the year at issue. The food-service
        defendants reply that the spreadsheet shows only that the State of
        Georgia receives federal funding, not that Houston County Deten-
        tion Center does, attaching a link to a list of state-run detention
        centers. These defendants did not make this argument to the dis-
        trict court, though they say they can make it for the first time on
        appeal because it goes to jurisdiction. But given our conclusions
        above, we decline to take judicial notice of either document; in-
        stead, the district court can consider the federal-funding issue in the
        first instance.
              In sum, we affirm the dismissal of Ravan’s First Amendment
        claim against Summit Food Service and Ravan’s RLUIPA claims
        against the individual defendants but reverse the dismissal of
        Ravan’s First Amendment claims against the individual defendants
        and Ravan’s RLUIPA claim against Summit Food Service.
                               B. Officer Defendants
               Ravan also argues that the district court erred in entering
        summary judgment on his claims against the officer defendants for
        allegedly being deliberately indifferent to his serious medical needs.
        Ravan says that the officer defendants were deliberately indifferent
        when they allegedly (1) denied him access to grievance forms and
USCA11 Case: 21-11036       Document: 99-1        Date Filed: 02/27/2023        Page: 18 of 25

        18                        Opinion of the Court                    22-11036

        (2) moved him from medical housing to general-population hous-
        ing. We agree in part. 9
               To establish a prima facie case for Eighth Amendment delib-
        erate indifference, a plaintiff must show “acts or omissions suffi-
        ciently harmful to evidence deliberate indifference to serious med-
        ical needs.” McElligott v. Foley, 182 F.3d 1248, 1254 (11th Cir.
        1999). So such a claim includes two elements: (1) a serious medical
        need and (2) deliberate indifference to that need. Id.
                The second element, deliberate indifference, has three sub-
        parts: “(1) subjective knowledge of a risk of serious harm; (2) disre-
        gard of that risk; (3) by conduct that is more than mere negligence.”
        Farrow v. West, 320 F.3d 1235, 1245 (11th Cir. 2003) (citation omit-
        ted). “[E]ven where medical care is ultimately provided, a prison
        official may nonetheless act with deliberate indifference by delay-
        ing the treatment of serious medical needs, even for a period of
        hours, though the reason for the delay and the nature of the medi-
        cal need is relevant in determining what type of delay is constitu-
        tionally intolerable.” Id. (alteration in original) (citation omitted).
        That said, “[a]n inmate who complains that delay in medical treat-
        ment rose to a constitutional violation must place verifying

        9 Ravan objected to the magistrate judge’s recommendation sufficiently to
        preserve his claims for appellate review. He said that the officer defendants
        moved him “continuously” from dorm to dorm “to keep [him] in imminent
        danger.“ He also complained that “the defendants” refused to get him proper
        treatment. Liberally construed, we think that Ravan did enough to preserve
        his claims.
USCA11 Case: 21-11036       Document: 99-1         Date Filed: 02/27/2023        Page: 19 of 25

        22-11036                  Opinion of the Court                             19

        medical evidence in the record to establish the detrimental effect
        of delay in medical treatment to succeed.” Hill v. Dekalb Reg’l
        Youth Ctr., 40 F.3d 1176, 1188–89 (11th Cir. 1994), overruled in part
        on other grounds by Hope v. Pelzer, 536 U.S. 730, 739 n.9 (2002).
        We’ve further explained that “[d]elay in medical treatment must
        be interpreted in the context of the seriousness of the medical need,
        deciding whether the delay worsened the medical condition, and
        considering the reason for delay.” Id. Finally, to prevail, a plaintiff
        must show causation between the deliberate indifference and his
        injury. Mann v. Taser Int’l., Inc., 588 F.3d 1291, 1306–07 (11th Cir.
        2009).
               The officer defendants do not contest that Ravan suffered
        from a serious medical need. They argue only that they did not act
        with subjective knowledge of a risk of serious harm by conduct that
        was more than mere negligence. We disagree.
                               1. Denial of Grievance Forms
                We conclude that Ravan has raised a genuine issue of mate-
        rial fact as to the denial of the grievance forms. Ravan swore, in a
        verified pleading, that he asked over fifteen times for grievance
        forms to address his medical needs—namely, bleeding sores in his
        mouth, body, and legs. 10

        10 To be sure, the officers swear that they never denied Ravan these forms.
        But as we’ve explained, at summary judgment, we review conflicts in the evi-
        dence in the light most favorable to the nonmoving party. Charles Foods, Inc.,
        198 F.3d at 819.
USCA11 Case: 21-11036     Document: 99-1      Date Filed: 02/27/2023    Page: 20 of 25

        20                     Opinion of the Court                22-11036

               The officer defendants respond that the prison has two kinds
        of forms—“Medical Request” forms and grievance forms. Griev-
        ance forms, they say, wouldn’t help a prisoner obtain medical treat-
        ment. But they concede that, if we read the complaint as referring
        to Medical Request forms, then there is a genuine issue of material
        fact. And given Ravan’s sworn allegations—that he sought “a
        grievance form to address his medical needs”—we think a reason-
        able jury could find that Ravan was seeking a Medical Request
        form, not a grievance form. Alternatively, Ravan’s sworn allega-
        tions can be read to mean that he was seeking to file grievance
        forms to complain to non-medical prison-management officials
        about the medical defendants’ alleged failure to provide him with
        any “medical” treatment, since Ravan asserts that they gave him
        only Tylenol and mouth wash for his extreme medical problems.
               Faced with this reality, the officer defendants respond that
        there is no evidence that their refusal (and the resulting delay)
        caused Ravan any harm. We disagree. To be sure, “[t]he tolerable
        length of delay in providing medical attention depends on the na-
        ture of the medical need and the reason for the delay.” Hill, 40 F.3d
        at 1188 (emphasis in original & citation omitted). But here, Ravan
        swore that he “suffered hour by hour” from “bleeding sores in [his]
        mouth, body, [and] legs.” Especially in light of the nature of
        SJS/TEN, those symptoms present a serious (and obvious) medical
        need and any delay in treatment caused Ravan to suffer additional
        pain. Rather than attempt to justify the delay, the officer defend-
        ants just contend that no delay occurred. That may prove true, but
USCA11 Case: 21-11036      Document: 99-1      Date Filed: 02/27/2023     Page: 21 of 25

        22-11036                Opinion of the Court                        21

        given Ravan’s sworn allegation that a delay occurred while he suf-
        fered—which we must view in his favor at this stage—we are left
        without any justification for the delay.
               Finally, the officer defendants say that Ravan was receiving
        medical care on a daily basis and so they were justified in relying
        on those medical professionals to provide sufficient care. Indeed,
        they say, it would be perverse to require non-medical prison offi-
        cials not to rely on physicians for fear of vicarious liability, citing
        Spruill v. Gillis, 372 F.3d 218, 236 (3d Cir. 2004). But that is not
        what happened here. Instead—viewing the facts in the light most
        favorable to Ravan—Ravan received no care other than Tylenol
        and mouth wash, and Ravan was asking to receive medical care. In
        other words, Ravan was not asking the officer defendants to sec-
        ond-guess the care he was already provided; he was asking for treat-
        ment in the first instance.
                The officer defendants are not entitled to qualified immun-
        ity. Any reasonable official would know that, if a detainee with
        bleeding sores all over his body asks for a medical-treatment form,
        he or she cannot deny the detainee access to medical care. See Har-
        ris v. Coweta Cnty., 21 F.3d 388 (11th Cir. 1994) (“[I]t was clear [by
        1994] that deliberate indifference could be inferred from an unex-
        plained delay in treating a known or obvious serious medical con-
        dition.”).
                      2. Movement out of Medical Housing
              We come to a different conclusion as to Ravan’s claims
        against the officers for transferring him from medical housing to
USCA11 Case: 21-11036     Document: 99-1      Date Filed: 02/27/2023     Page: 22 of 25

        22                     Opinion of the Court                 22-11036

        the general population. In the operative complaint, Ravan alleged
        that this transfer was deliberately indifferent to his serious medical
        needs because, with his brain tumor, if he was “struck in harm or
        by mistake it could kill” him. In fact, he swore, after he was moved,
        nurses asked their supervisors to get him moved back because
        “they knew by the professional training . . . [that] [Ravan] was in
        danger if struck or accidently hit.”
               The district court correctly entered summary judgment for
        the defendant officers because Ravan did not produce any evidence
        that moving him from medical housing to the general population
        caused any injury. Mann, 588 F.3d at 1306–07. To be sure, Ravan
        alleges that he suffered pain both before and after his transfer. But
        he doesn’t allege (or prove) that the transfer caused him any harm
        in particular—much less the concern he alleged. That is, Ravan
        said that, if the officers transferred him to general population, he
        was in danger if he was struck in the head. But fortunately, he was
        not, so there is no injury for which to compensate. And even if the
        transfer was deliberately indifferent, it did not cause Ravan any in-
        jury. Id. See also Hale v. Tallapoosa Cnty., 50 F.3d 1579, 1584 (11th
        Cir. 1995) (explaining that the plaintiff had to show link between
        excessive risk of violence and injury).
               In his brief, Ravan points to other harms he could have suf-
        fered, like that the “undoubtedly poorer sanitation” in the general
        population housing combined with his open skin sores could have
        produced infection. But Ravan did not make that allegation in his
USCA11 Case: 21-11036       Document: 99-1         Date Filed: 02/27/2023        Page: 23 of 25

        22-11036                  Opinion of the Court                             23

        operative or first amended complaint, nor support it with evidence.
        So we do not consider it here.
               In sum, we reverse the grant of summary judgment for both
        officers as to the denial of the grievance forms but affirm for both
        officers on the movement claim.
                                 C. Medical Defendants
               Finally, we turn to the medical defendants. Both sides spend
        much of their time on appeal debating the merits of Ravan’s claims
        against the medical defendants. Because Ravan objected only con-
        clusorily to the magistrate judge’s recommendation that Ravan’s
        claims be dismissed at the 1915A screening stage, we “may” review
        for civil plain error. See 11th Cir. R. 3-1 (providing that this Court
        may review for plain error if necessary in the interest of justice).
              Here, we do not need to review for plain error—so we do
        not. As we have explained, after the district court dismissed
        Ravan’s claims against the medical defendants, the magistrate
        judge denied Ravan’s request for leave to amend as moot. He did
        so because the request was received after the district court entered
        judgment on all claims. Given our rulings here, this case is no
        longer moot. So we vacate the decision denying the motion to
        amend as moot, and we remand for consideration of whether
        Ravan is entitled to leave to amend.11

        11 Two miscellaneous points: First, to the extent that Ravan suggests that the
        judgment entered was not final because his claims were dismissed without
        prejudice, see Reply Br. at 10–11, he is mistaken. If this judgment were not
USCA11 Case: 21-11036        Document: 99-1        Date Filed: 02/27/2023        Page: 24 of 25

        24                        Opinion of the Court                      22-11036

                Finally, we note that the magistrate judge required Ravan to
        refile his complaint but denied him copies of the materials he sub-
        mitted with his original complaint. It is, of course, best practice not
        to submit one’s only copy of a document to the court. But given
        that Ravan was at the time a pro se prisoner suffering from a severe
        and potentially deadly disease, we encourage the magistrate judge
        to consider either giving Ravan a copy of the 80 or so pages he
        asked for or independently reviewing those documents (which are
        already in the record) as a part of Ravan’s submission. As we have
        noted, courts may—and when appropriate in the interest of justice,
        should—consider documents that are referred to in the complaint,
        central to the plaintiff’s claims, and of undisputed authenticity.

                              IV. CONCLUSION
             In sum, we make the following rulings:

        final, then we would not have jurisdiction over this appeal. See 28 U.S.C. §
        1291. Even though Ravan’s claims were dismissed without prejudice, they
        were dismissed involuntarily. The dismissal was therefore final and appeala-
        ble. Justice v. United States, 6 F.3d 1474, 1481 (11th Cir. 1993) (“A plaintiff
        may appeal from an involuntary dismissal without prejudice.”). Second, as we
        have explained, the motion was not moot anyway. Ravan gave his motion to
        prison officials on February 19, and, under the prison mailbox rule, its filing
        date was therefore February 19. Daniels, 809 F.3d at 589. The motion was
        therefore filed well before the district court entered judgment on February 26.
USCA11 Case: 21-11036    Document: 99-1    Date Filed: 02/27/2023    Page: 25 of 25

        22-11036             Opinion of the Court                      25

           1. We vacate the dismissal of the medical defendants and re-
              mand for consideration of whether Ravan should be given
              leave to amend;
           2. We affirm the dismissal of the First Amendment claim
              against Summit Food Service;
           3. We reverse the dismissal of the First Amendment claims
              against the individual food-service defendants;
           4. We affirm the dismissal of the RLUIPA claim against indi-
              vidual food-service defendants;
           5. We reverse the dismissal of the RLUIPA claim against
              Summit Food Service;
           6. We reverse the grant of summary judgment on the deliber-
              ate-indifference claim for denying grievance forms as to
              both Officers Jackson and Freeman;
           7. We affirm the grant of summary judgment on the deliber-
              ate-indifference claim against Officers Jackson and Freeman
              for moving Ravan out of medical housing.
        AFFIRMED IN PART; VACATED IN PART; REVERSED IN
        PART.