Court Opinion

ID: 9942797
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2024-02-21 21:00:39.89951+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T13:44:42.007060
License: Public Domain

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                                             UNPUBLISHED

                               UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS
                                   FOR THE FOURTH CIRCUIT

                                               No. 22-6437

        WILLIAM KIMBLE, JR.,

                             Plaintiff - Appellant,

                      v.

        GREGORY SWINK; HUBERT CORPENING; DAVID COTHRON,

                             Defendants - Appellees.

        Appeal from the United States District Court for the Western District of North Carolina, at
        Asheville. Martin K. Reidinger, Chief District Judge. (1:21-cv-00057-MR-WCM)

        Argued: October 25, 2023                                      Decided: February 20, 2024

        Before DIAZ, Chief Judge, THACKER, Circuit Judge, and Julie R. RUBIN, United States
        District Judge for the District of Maryland, sitting by designation.

        Affirmed by unpublished per curiam opinion.

        ARGUED: Clare W. Magee, Schuyler C. Pruis, WAKE FOREST UNIVERSITY
        SCHOOL OF LAW, Winston-Salem, North Carolina, for Appellant. Alex Ryan Williams,
        NORTH CAROLINA DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE, Raleigh, North Carolina, for
        Appellees. ON BRIEF: John J. Korzen, Maryclaire M. Farrington, Law Student Counsel,
        Sophia Sulzer, Law Student Counsel, Jacob Winton, Law Student Counsel, WAKE
        FOREST UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF LAW, Winston-Salem, North Carolina, for
        Appellant. Joshua H. Stein, Attorney General, NORTH CAROLINA DEPARTMENT OF
        JUSTICE, Raleigh, North Carolina,
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        Unpublished opinions are not binding precedent in this circuit.

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        PER CURIAM:

                  William J. Kimble, Jr. (“Appellant”), was an inmate in the custody of the North

        Carolina Department of Public Safety (“NCDPS”) in February 2018 when he was

        transferred to a unit known as the Rehabilitative Diversion Unit (“RDU”). Appellant

        alleges his placement in the RDU subjected him to solitary confinement conditions for

        nearly 400 days, and that he was placed and held there without due process of law, in

        violation of the Fourteenth Amendment to the Constitution. Appellant filed this lawsuit

        seeking redress for violation of his Fourteenth Amendment rights.

                  The district court dismissed Appellant’s complaint for failure to state a claim upon

        which relief can be granted. Because we conclude that Appellant has not sufficiently

        alleged that the conditions in the RDU amounted to atypical and significant hardship, we

        affirm.

                                                        I. 1

                  Appellant began his term of imprisonment in the custody of the NCDPS in April

        2016.         Initially, Appellant was housed in the general population at the Pasquotank

        Correctional Institution. But after he committed a disciplinary infraction, Appellant was

        transferred to a more restrictive unit known as the Restrictive Housing for Control Purposes

        (“RHCP”) unit. Before his transfer to the RHCP unit, Appellant alleges he was given

        notice and an opportunity to be heard by a disciplinary hearing officer, a facility

                Because we accept Appellant’s allegations as true at this stage, we discuss the facts
                  1

        below as alleged in Appellant’s complaint and the documents expressly referenced therein.

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        classification committee, and a director’s classification committee. Appellant was placed

        in the RHCP on or around January 24, 2018, and his placement there was scheduled to be

        reviewed on May 21, 2018.

               However, just over one month after his placement in the RHCP unit, Appellant was

        transferred to the Marion Correctional Institution (“MCI”) in Marion, North Carolina, and

        placed in the RDU, where he remained “housed in solitary confinement-like conditions for

        approximately 400 consecutive days.” J.A. 5. 2 Appellant alleges that NCDPS officials 3

        (“Appellees”) identified him as eligible for placement in the RDU after he was placed in

        the RHCP. While Appellant alleges that NCDPS officials, including Appellee Swink,

        reviewed his file to determine whether he was appropriate for placement in the RDU,

        Appellant claims that he did not receive notice that he was being considered for transfer

        into the RDU, nor did he receive “a hearing, an opportunity to question witnesses or present

        evidence, or another opportunity to be heard regarding whether he should be enrolled in

        the RDU.” Id. at 21. Appellant further alleges, “neither [Appellee] Swink nor other

        NCDPS staff gave [him] a written or verbal explanation of the reasons behind his

        enrollment in the RDU.” Id. And Appellant alleges that the RDU is “unlike RHCP and

               2
                   Citations to the “J.A.” refer to the Joint Appendix filed by the parties in this appeal.
               3
                 Appellant named Gregory Swink, program director of the RDU; Hubert
        Corpening, Superintendent of MCI; and David Cothron, Assistant Superintendent of
        Programs at MCI, as defendants in his complaint. There is no evidence in the record that
        Appellant ever served Corpening, but the district court dismissed the complaint against him
        on the same legal basis as the other defendants. For clarity, this opinion refers to all
        defendants collectively as “Appellees.”

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        other forms of restrictive housing [because] prisoners in the RDU do not receive any kind

        of meaningful, recurring review of the continued confinement in the RDU.” Id. at 11.

                                                      A.

                                                  The RDU

               Appellant alleges that the RDU is “a non-voluntary program described by NCDPS

        as an alternative to long-term restrictive housing.” J.A. 8. “To be enrolled in the RDU, a

        prisoner must be a close custody male prisoner, be at least twenty-one years old, have an

        active control status of [RHCP],” and meet other mental health and cognitive guidelines.

        Id. Appellant alleges that the RDU is “[u]nlike RHCP and other forms of restrictive

        housing” in that it “has an indefinite duration.” Id. at 11.

               The RDU has three phases, with the first two phases each containing two subphases.

        Inmates placed in the RDU begin in Phase IA, and must progress through Phases IB, IIA,

        IIB, and III before graduating from the RDU and being transferred to less restrictive

        housing. According to Appellant, NCDPS policy does not provide any upper limit on the

        amount of time an inmate may spend in any particular phase, but it does provide the

        following minimums:

                             Phase IA: 60 days
                             Phase IB: 70 days
                             Phase IIA: 70 days
                             Phase IIB: 70 days
                             Phase III: 84 days

        See J.A. 14–15. In other words, once an inmate is placed in the RDU, he remains there for

        a minimum of 354 days. Appellant alleges “[u]pon information and belief, in the past,

        prisoners have spent up to four years in the RDU.” Id. at 11.

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               During each phase of the RDU, prisoners complete specified journaling exercises

        and classes “related to problematic behavioral issues, such as anger management and

        alcohol or drug addiction.” J.A. 12. All prisoners participate in the same classes and

        journaling exercises during Phases I and II, even if the topics are “unrelated to behavioral

        issues they have actually exhibited.” Id. If a prisoner exhibits “aggressive or assaultive

        behavior” or refuses to participate in the classes and journaling exercises, the prisoner may

        be placed on “non-participating status.” Id. at 13. When a prisoner is on non-participating

        status, “he stops progressing through the RDU, loses privileges that he may have had, . . .

        and may be placed in restrictive housing or remain in his current housing unit.” Id. at 13–

        14. There is no limit on the amount of time a prisoner may spend on non-participating

        status, nor is there a limit on the number of times an inmate may be placed on that status.

        When NCDPS officials, including Appellee Swink, determine that a prisoner can be

        removed from non-participating status, the prisoner “may resume RDU participation in a

        subphase they already completed.” Id. at 14.

                                                      B.

                                  Appellant’s Conditions of Confinement

               Appellant alleges he was housed in the RDU for a total of 398 days -- 138 days in

        Phase I, 184 days in Phase II, and 76 days in Phase III. Appellant alleges that the conditions

        in the RDU “mirror and, in some ways, are more limiting and inhumane than those in

        restrictive housing, especially during phases IA and IB.” J.A. 15.

               During the 138 days Appellant spent in Phase I, Appellant received only one hour

        of recreation time, five times per week. He was required to eat all of his meals alone in his

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        cell and was given only twenty minutes for each meal. He could possess only two personal

        books or magazines, twenty sheets of paper, and limited hygiene products. During the first

        60 days of Phase I, Appellant could not make or receive any phone calls and, for the

        remainder of Phase I, he was permitted one fifteen minute call every thirty days. He was

        allowed one non-contact visit each month during his time in Phase I. In addition, he was

        “in full restraints and tethered by short cables to tables in the dayroom for the duration of

        the required weekly group classes.” J.A. 17.

                Appellant does not specifically allege much about the conditions during his 184

        days in Phase II. But he does allege that he was allowed one additional non-contact visit,

        for a total of two every month. Appellant also alleges that during all of Phase I and most

        of Phase II, he was given unsanitary mattresses and, as a result, developed a painful, itchy

        rash.

                During all three phases, Appellant was confined to his cell for 22 hours per day. He

        experienced bright lighting in his cell from 5:45am to 11:30pm, which interfered with his

        sleep. He was not permitted to cover the lights in any way. And during Phases II and III,

        Appellant had to request a form from correctional officers and then submit that form to

        seek permission to use money from his trust account to purchase personal items from the

        canteen. The RDU policies Appellant specifically references in his complaint indicate that

        during his placement in the RDU, Appellant was allowed two pencils, one pack of colored

        pencils, two pens, one pad or 25 sheets of paper, envelopes, ten cards, 25 pictures, personal

        hygiene items, two soft cover books or magazines, two newspapers, certain religious items,

        a radio and earbuds, and a deck of cards.        See Response Br. Addendum at 14–15

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        (reproducing RDU Phase I – D Policy Ch. III § 5404(k)(7)). The policies also indicate that

        Appellant was provided a television. See id. at 24 (reproducing RDU Phase I – D Policy

        Ch. III § 5404(z)).    Appellant’s complaint does not allege that these policies were

        ineffective in practice, except that he does allege the library cart for books and magazines

        was not available while he was housed in the RDU.

               Appellant graduated from the RDU on April 4, 2019, and was transferred to a

        different North Carolina correctional institution.

                                                      C.

                                  The Conditions in General Population

               According to Appellant, the conditions in the RDU were “substantially more

        restrictive and inhumane than those in general population, especially during phases IA and

        IB.” J.A. 17. Appellant alleges that prisoners in general population are “ordinarily only

        expected to be in their cells overnight and during count times, and are able to move around

        to different locations such as dayrooms, dining halls, religious services, the canteen, and

        outdoor and indoor recreation spaces.” Id. In addition, Appellant alleges that prisoners in

        general population are not tethered to tables during group activities; receive one contact or

        non-contact visit weekly; receive substantially more recreation time including the ability

        to play team sports; and are permitted to eat their meals out of their cells, with other

        prisoners, for more than twenty minutes.

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                                                       D.

                                            Procedural History

               On February 26, 2021, Appellant filed suit in the Western District of North Carolina,

        alleging that Appellees violated his Fourteenth Amendment right to due process. Appellees

        filed a motion to dismiss arguing that Appellant failed to state a claim and that they were

        entitled to qualified immunity. The matter was referred to a magistrate judge for a

        memorandum and recommendation. The magistrate judge recommended dismissing the

        case for failure to state a claim or, alternatively, on the basis of qualified immunity. The

        district court overruled Appellant’s objections, accepted the magistrate judge’s

        recommendation, and dismissed Appellant’s complaint.

               Appellant timely noted this appeal. 4

                                                       II.

               We review the grant of a motion to dismiss for failure to state a claim de novo.

        Benjamin v. Sparks, 986 F.3d 332, 351 (4th Cir. 2021). Importantly, at this stage of the

        litigation, we “assum[e] as true the complaint’s factual allegations and we construe all

        reasonable inferences in favor of [Appellant].” Carlton & Harris Chiropractic, Inc. v.

        PDR Network, LLC, 80 F.4th 466, 472 (4th Cir. 2023) (internal quotation marks omitted)

        (first alteration in original).

               4
                Because we determine that Appellant failed to state a claim, we do not consider
        Appellees’ claims of qualified immunity.

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                                                      III.

               The Fourteenth Amendment provides that “[n]o State shall deprive any person of

        life, liberty, or property without due process of law.” U.S. Const. amend. XIV § 1. Thus,

        despite the fact that “‘[l]awful incarceration brings about the necessary withdrawal or

        limitation of many privileges and rights,’ . . . a prisoner’s liberty does not disappear

        entirely.” Thorpe v. Clarke, 37 F.4th 926, 942 (4th Cir. 2022) (quoting Price v. Johnston,

        334 U.S. 266, 285 (1948)). Rather, “[i]n our Circuit, prisoners retain a liberty interest in

        avoiding confinement conditions that impose ‘atypical and significant hardship on the

        inmate in relation to the ordinary incidents of prison life,’ provided they can first establish

        that interest ‘arise[s] from state policies or regulations.’” Id. (quoting Incumaa v. Stirling,

        791 F.3d 517, 526–27 (4th Cir. 2015)) (second alteration in original); see also Prieto v.

        Clark, 780 F.3d 245, 252–53 (4th Cir. 2015). Because we find it conclusive, we focus our

        analysis only on whether the conditions Appellant alleges imposed an “atypical and

        significant hardship” such that due process protection may be warranted here.

                                                      A.

               To determine whether the alleged conditions imposed an atypical and significant

        hardship, we must first determine the “baseline” for comparison. In cases like this one,

        where the plaintiff is an “inmate[] who [was] sentenced to confinement in the general

        prison population and ha[s] been transferred to security detention while serving [his]

        sentence,” “general population is the baseline for atypicality.” Incumaa, 791 F.3d at 527.

        Then, with that baseline established, we determine whether the alleged conditions

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        “constitute[] atypical and significant hardship in relation to the general population.” Id. at

        529 (citations omitted).

               The Supreme Court illuminated the atypicality standard in Wilkinson v. Austin, 545

        U.S. 209 (2005). There, the petitioners were assigned to a “supermax” 5 facility in Ohio

        based on the prison’s evaluation of the security risks they posed. The petitioners alleged

        that they were held in seven by fourteen foot cells for 23 hours each day; the lights

        remained on at all times, though they were sometimes dimmed, and inmates were not

        allowed to cover them; and they received one hour of recreation per day in an indoor

        recreation cell. Id. at 214. In deciding whether the alleged conditions imposed an atypical

        and significant hardship, the Court emphasized three factors in its analysis: “(1) the

        magnitude of confinement restrictions; (2) whether the administrative segregation is for an

        indefinite period; and (3) whether assignment to administrative segregation had any

        collateral consequences on the inmate’s sentence.” Incumaa, 791 F.3d at 530 (citing

        Wilkinson, 545 U.S. at 214).

               As for the first Wilkinson factor, the Court found that incarceration in the supermax

        facility was “synonymous with extreme isolation” because “every aspect of an inmate’s

        life [was] controlled and monitored” and inmates were “deprived of almost any

        environmental or sensory stimuli and of almost all human contact.” 545 U.S. at 214.

        Second, because inmates were confined to the supermax facility for an indefinite period,

               5
                 “Supermax facilities are maximum-security prisons with highly restrictive
        conditions, designed to segregate the most dangerous prisoners from the general prison
        population.” Wilkinson v. Austin, 545 U.S. 209, 213 (2005).

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        their interest in receiving meaningful procedural review was magnified. See id. at 224.

        And third, assignment to the supermax facility “disqualifie[d] an otherwise eligible inmate

        for parole consideration.” Id. The Court concluded, “[w]hile any of these conditions

        standing alone might not be sufficient to create a liberty interest, taken together they impose

        an atypical and significant hardship within the correctional context.” Id.

               As we have explained, applying the Wilkinson factors is a “‘necessarily . . . fact

        specific’ comparative exercise.” Incumaa, 731 F.3d at 527 (quoting Beverati v. Smith, 120

        F.3d 500, 502–03 (4th Cir. 1997)). We have conducted that comparative exercise in several

        published cases that inform our analysis.

               First, consider Incumaa. There, the appellant had been held “in solitary confinement

        for 20 years, despite not having committed a single disciplinary infraction during that

        time.” Incumaa, 791 F.3d at 519. He alleged that he was subject to “near-daily cavity and

        strip searches”; “confin[ed] to a small cell for all sleeping and waking hours, aside from

        ten hours of activity outside the cell per month”; unable to socialize with other inmates;

        and denied educational, vocational, and therapy programs. Id. at 531. We held that the

        appellant’s confinement in those conditions for 20 years imposed an atypical and

        significant hardship sufficient to establish a liberty interest. Indeed, we noted that the

        conditions there were “worse in some respects” than the conditions the Supreme Court held

        created the liberty interest in Wilkinson, because the appellant was “subject to a highly

        intrusive strip search every time he le[ft] his cell.” Id. at 531.

               Similarly, we concluded the alleged conditions of confinement in Smith v. Collins,

        964 F.3d 266 (4th Cir. 2020), were sufficiently atypical and harsh to establish a liberty

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        interest. There, the appellant alleged that he was confined for over four years “alone in a

        nine-by-fourteen-foot cell for twenty-four hours per day on non-recreation and non-shower

        days. Id. at 272. He was only permitted to leave his cell for showers three times per week

        and for recreation in a small, fenced cage five times per week, though recreation was

        frequently canceled. Id. Each time he left his cell, he was subjected to a highly invasive

        strip search, and he remained in shackles. Id. at 272–73. He was required to eat his meals

        alone in his cell, and almost all human contact was prohibited except for two brief phone

        calls per month. Id. at 273. Visitation, when provided, was through glass walls. Id. The

        cell door was solid metal and outfitted with metal strips to prevent communication with

        other prisoners. Id. The lights remained on in the appellant’s cell at all times, dimming

        only at night, and he faced further discipline if he attempted to cover the light in an effort

        to sleep. Id. The appellant was also unable to participate in rehabilitation programs. Id.

               In Smith, we held that these conditions were much the same as those in Wilkinson,

        which the Supreme Court had described as “synonymous with extreme isolation.” See 964

        F.3d at 276 (quoting Wilkinson, 545 U.S. at 214). While we noted that the duration of four

        years was substantially shorter than the duration of confinement in Wilkinson and Incumaa,

        we explained that the magnitude of the conditions was “significant enough to tip the scales

        in [the appellant’s] favor.” Smith, 964 F.3d at 269. In particular, we noted that, like in

        Incumaa, the conditions “may have been worse in some respects, due to the highly intrusive

        [strip] search.” Id. at 276.

               Most recently, in Thorpe, we concluded that the alleged conditions of confinement

        at two supermax facilities in Virginia were sufficient to establish a liberty interest. 37 F.4th

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        at 942–43. The appellants there had been held in the supermax facilities for as long as 24

        years, and they alleged that the Virginia Department of Corrections provided no “genuine

        opportunity to progress though the program” and return to less restrictive confinement. Id.

        at 943. The appellants alleged they were confined to their cells for 22 hours per day; held

        in cells with steel doors and opaque windows that “halt[ed] communication with others”

        and “obscure[d] not just the outside but even the inside of the prison”; allowed one hour of

        exercise per day in a small cage; allowed one hour of non-contact visitation per week;

        denied access to any productive activities; and required to submit to a strip search every

        time they left their cells. Id. at 931. On top of those conditions, the appellants alleged they

        were not permitted to earn good time credits or could only earn them at a much reduced

        rate, and they were not eligible for parole. Id. at 932. We held that the harshness of these

        conditions had been clearly established because they were “even more onerous than” those

        in Wilkinson. Id. at 942.

                                                      B.

               As explained above, Appellant alleges that he was held in the RDU for 398 days.

        During that time, Appellant alleges that he was held in his cell for 22 hours per day and

        that the cell was brightly illuminated from 5:45am to 11:30pm each day. He also alleges

        that the library cart was unavailable for the duration of this stay in the RDU, and that he

        had to request a form from correctional officers in order to access his trust account.

               The remainder of Appellant’s allegations about his conditions are limited to his time

        in Phases I and II which lasted 138 days and 184 days, respectively. In Phase I Appellant

        alleges he (1) received one hour of recreation, five days per week; (2) received his meals

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        alone in his cell and had only 20 minutes to eat; (3) was allowed only one non-contact visit

        per month; (4) was not permitted to make phone calls at all for the first sixty days, and then

        was allowed one fifteen minute call every thirty days; and (5) was shackled to a table for

        weekly group classes. In Phase II, Appellant alleges that he was permitted an additional

        non-contact visit, for a total of two per month. 6

               Considering these allegations, we conclude that the first Wilkinson factor weighs

        slightly against Appellant because the conditions he alleges are less restrictive than those

        in Wilkinson. For example, the lights in Appellant’s cell were on from 5:45am to 11:30pm,

        rather than 24 hours per day like in Wilkinson and Smith. Appellant was permitted outdoor

        recreation for one hour per day five days per week, rather than being restricted to indoor

        recreation. And he was able to attend weekly group classes, indicating that his human

        contact was not as limited as in Wilkinson. To be sure, the conditions Appellant alleges

        are restrictive, but they are less so than those we have previously considered to be of

        sufficient magnitude.

               As to the second Wilkinson factor, though Appellant alleges that his confinement in

        the RDU could have been indefinite, we know that it lasted only 398 days. That does not

               6
                  The complaint does not indicate how Appellant’s conditions changed otherwise
        after he was promoted out of Phase I. But because the complaint separates the allegations
        by phase and pleads specifically that the conditions in the RDU “are substantially more
        restrictive and inhumane than those in general population, especially during phases IA and
        IB,” J.A. 17, we assume that Appellant’s conditions otherwise improved with respect to
        the facts alleged only in reference to Phase I.

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        come close to the 20 plus years alleged in Wilkinson, Incumaa, and Thorpe. And although

        the duration in Smith was only four years, the conditions alleged there were substantially

        worse because the appellant was subject to a highly intrusive strip search each time he left

        his cell, his lights remained on 24 hours per day, and he was unable to participate in

        rehabilitative programs.

               While Appellant alleges that his confinement could have been indefinite because

        NCDPS policies do not provide a maximum amount of time an inmate could be held in the

        RDU, Appellant’s complaint also alleges that prisoners have spent “up to four years in the

        RDU.” J.A. 11. Thus, this case is unlike Thorpe where the 24 year duration supported the

        appellants’ allegation that the Virginia Department of Corrections provided no “genuine

        opportunity to progress though the program.” 37 F.4th at 943. To the contrary, the facts

        here indicate that prisoners in the RDU do progress through the program, and that

        Appellant progressed through it in almost the minimum time possible. On these facts, we

        conclude that the second factor weighs against Appellant.

               Finally, as to the third Wilkinson factor, Appellant has not alleged any collateral

        consequences to his sentence as a result of his placement in the RDU.

               We recognize that Appellant’s conditions, especially in Phase I, were more

        restrictive than those in the general population. But Appellant only experienced the

        harshest set of conditions for the 138 days he spent in Phase I, and his conditions of

        confinement improved for the remainder of the 398 days he spent in the RDU. And, even

        at their worst, the conditions here were not of the magnitude we have previously held

        sufficient to establish a liberty interest. Therefore, we do not find that Appellant’s

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        placement in the RDU created an atypical and significant hardship in relation to the general

        population sufficient to establish a due process liberty interest.

                                                     IV.

               Because Appellant has not established that his conditions of confinement created an

        atypical and significant hardship, the district court’s dismissal of his complaint is

                                                                                        AFFIRMED.

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