Jane Luna, as Administratrix of the Estate of Charles Jason Toll, Plaintiff-Appellant (17-5608), Plaintiff-Appellee (17-5675),
v.
Ricky J. Bell; Gaelan Doss; James Horton, Defendants-Appellees, (17-5608), Defendants-Appellants. (17-5675),
Argued: February 1, 2018
Appeal
from the United States District Court for the Middle District
of Tennessee at Nashville. No. 3:11-cv-00093-John T. Nixon,
Todd J. Campbell, and Aleta Arthur Trauger, District Judges.
ARGUED:
David
J. Weissman, RAYBIN & WEISSMAN, P.C., Nashville,
Tennessee, for Appellant in 17-5608 and Appellee in 17-5675.
Leslie
Ann Bridges, OFFICE OF THE TENNESSEE ATTORNEY GENERAL,
Nashville, Tennessee, for Appellees in 17-5608 and Appellants
in 17-5675.
ON
BRIEF:
David
J. Weissman, RAYBIN & WEISSMAN, P.C., Nashville,
Tennessee, Jeff Roberts, JEFF ROBERTS & ASSOCIATES, PLLC,
Nashville, Tennessee, for Appellant in 17-5608 and Appellee
in 17-5675.
Leslie
Ann Bridges, Steven A. Hart, OFFICE OF THE TENNESSEE ATTORNEY
GENERAL, Nashville, Tennessee, for Appellees in 17-5608 and
Appellants in 17-5675.
Before: MERRITT, MOORE, and BUSH, Circuit Judges.
OPINION
KAREN
NELSON MOORE, Circuit Judge.
Defendants
Ricky J. Bell ("Bell"), Gaelan Doss
("Doss"), and James Horton ("Horton")
(together, "Defendants") appeal the first district
court's[1] order granting Plaintiff Jane Luna
("Luna"), as Administratrix of the Estate of
Charles Jason Toll ("Toll"), deceased, relief under
Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 60(b)(2); additionally,
Defendants appeal the second district court's and the
third district court's denials of Defendants'
requests to reconsider the order granting Luna relief under
Rule 60(b)(2). Luna appeals the third district court's
order granting summary judgment to Defendants.
For the
reasons discussed below, we AFFIRM the first
district court's order granting Luna relief under Rule
60(b)(2) from the judgments and from the order denying a new
trial. We also AFFIRM the orders denying
Defendants' requests to reconsider. Lastly, we
REVERSE the third district court's order
granting summary judgment to Defendants, and we
REMAND for further proceedings consistent
with this opinion.
I.
BACKGROUND
In
August 2010, Toll was in solitary confinement at Riverbend
Maximum Security Institution ("Institution"), when
he allegedly threw liquid at a correctional officer. R. 52
(Am. Compl. ¶¶ 3, 8, 19, 21) (Page ID #237, 238,
240). Because of this incident, Horton, the shift commander,
decided to extract Toll from his cell. Id.
¶¶ 23, 32 (Page ID #240, 241). Once the cell
extraction team, which included Doss and Horton, removed Toll
from his cell, Toll became unresponsive. Id.
¶¶ 2, 32, 57 (Page ID #237, 241, 246). An ambulance
transported Toll to a hospital, where a doctor pronounced him
dead. Id. ¶ 65 (Page ID #247).
Because
of Toll's death, Toll's mother, Luna, asserted two
claims under 42 U.S.C. § 1983 against Defendants. R. 1
(Compl.) (Page ID #1). Luna sued Horton and Doss in their
individual capacities for excessive force. R. 52 (Am. Compl.
¶¶ 2, 94-111) (Page ID #237, 251- 54). She also
asserted a failure-to-train claim against Bell, who is or was
the warden, in his individual capacity. Id.
¶¶ 4, 112-23 (Page ID #237, 254-56).
In
August 2013, the first district court held a jury trial
regarding both claims. R. 157 (Verdict) (Page ID #994); R.
166 (Min. Entry) (Page ID #1010). At the end of this trial,
the jury delivered a favorable verdict for Defendants on all
counts. R. 157 (Verdict) (Page ID #994); R. 160 (Verdict)
(Page ID #1000); R. 161 (Verdict) (Page ID #1002). In light
of the jury's findings, the first district court entered
judgments in favor of Defendants. R. 162 (J.) (Page ID
#1004); R. 163 (J.) (Page ID #1005); R. 164 (J.) (Page ID
#1006).
After
the trial, Luna moved for a new trial under Federal Rule of
Civil Procedure 59 on the grounds that the first district
court omitted a jury instruction and included confusing
language. R. 168 (Mot.) (Page ID #1012); R. 169 (Mem. at 13)
(Page ID #1026). The first district court disagreed, so it
denied Luna's motion. See ...