United States District Court, D. Connecticut
INITIAL REVIEW ORDER
STEFAN
R. UNDERHILL UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE.
Plaintiff,
James Manson (“Manson”), currently confined at
Osborn Correctional Institution in Somers, Connecticut, filed
this complaint pro se under 42 U.S.C. § 1983
alleging that the defendants violated his Eighth Amendment
right to be free from cruel and unusual punishment and his
First Amendment right to petition the government for redress
of grievances. He names three defendants: Health Services
Administrator Richard Furey, Deputy Warden Snyder, and Dr.
Freston. Manson seeks damages and medical care from a
specialist. Manson's complaint was received on June 3,
2019, and his motion to proceed in forma pauperis
was granted on June 10, 2019.
Under
section 1915A of Title 28 of the United States Code, I must
review prisoner civil complaints and dismiss any portion of
the complaint that is frivolous or malicious, that fails to
state a claim upon which relief may be granted, or that seeks
monetary relief from a defendant who is immune from such
relief. 28 U.S.C. § 1915A. Although detailed allegations
are not required, the complaint must include sufficient facts
to afford the defendants fair notice of the claims and the
grounds upon which they are based and to demonstrate a
plausible right to relief. Bell Atlantic v. Twombly,
550 U.S. 544, 555-56 (2007). Conclusory allegations are not
sufficient. Ashcroft v. Iqbal, 556 U.S. 662, 678
(2009). The plaintiff must plead “enough facts to state
a claim to relief that is plausible on its face.”
Twombly, 550 U.S. at 570. Nevertheless, it is
well-established that “[p]ro se
complaints ‘must be construed liberally and interpreted
to raise the strongest arguments that they
suggest.'” Sykes v. Bank of Am., 723 F.3d
399, 403 (2d Cir. 2013) (quoting Triestman v. Fed. Bureau
of Prisons, 470 F.3d 471, 474 (2d Cir. 2006)); see
also Tracy v. Freshwater, 623 F.3d 90, 101-02 (2d Cir.
2010) (discussing special rules of solicitude for pro
se litigants).
I.
Allegations
On
February 14, 2019, Manson submitted a formal complaint
against the defendants complaining that they were
deliberately indifferent to his serious medical needs in that
they failed to notify him of treatments, cures, and follow-up
care for his medical condition. ECF No. 1, ¶ 1. Manson
suffers from a Helicabacter Pylori AG infection that causes
him severe pain. Id., ¶ 2.
Manson
has submitted requests to each of the defendants. He did not
receive responses to many of his requests. Deputy Warden
Snyder responded to one request by referring the matter to
Health Services Administrator (“HSA”) Furey. HSA
Furey did not respond until Manson filed a Health Services
Review Grievance. Id., ¶ 3. His response of
“No Further Action” was not in compliance with
Department of Correction Administrative Directive 9.6.
Id., ¶ 4. Dr. Freston, Manson's treating
physician at the time, did not respond to Manson's many
attempts to contact him. Id., ¶ 5.
Manson's
infection causes him pain, interferes with his sleep, limits
his recreation and work performance, and causes weight loss.
Id., ¶ 9. Manson has not been provided answers
and information regarding ongoing treatment for his
condition. A medical records staff person gave Manson a
document stating that he had been cured, but a nurse told him
about ongoing screening and treatment because the infection
could spread to other parts of his body. Id., ¶
10.
II.
Analysis
Manson
asserts claims for deliberate indifference to serious medical
needs and interference with his right to petition for redress
of grievances. Id., ¶ 6.
A.
Deliberate Indifference to a Serious Medical Need
Manson
alleges that the defendants have been deliberately
indifferent to his serious medical need because they have not
provided him information about his condition.
Deliberate
indifference to serious medical needs occurs when an official
knows that an inmate faces a substantial risk of serious harm
and disregards that risk by failing to take reasonable
measures to abate it. Harrison v. Barkley, 219 F.3d
132, 137-38 (2d Cir. 1998) (citing Farmer v.
Brennan, 511 U.S. 825, 837 (1994)). To state a claim for
deliberate indifference to serious medical needs, Manson must
allege facts showing both that his medical need was serious
and that the defendants acted with a sufficiently culpable
state of mind. See Smith v. Carpenter, 316 F.3d 178,
184 (2d Cir. 2003) (citing Estelle v. Gamble, 492
U.S. 97, 105 (1976)).
Objectively,
the alleged deprivation must be “sufficiently
serious.” Wilson v. Seiter, 501 U.S. 294, 298
(1991). The condition must be “one that may produce
death, degeneration, or extreme pain.” See Hathaway
v. Coughlin, 99 F.3d 550, 553 (2d Cir. 1996) (internal
quotation marks omitted). Subjectively, the defendants must
have been actually aware of a substantial risk that Manson
would suffer serious harm as a result of their conduct.
See Salahuddin v. Goord, 467 F.3d 263, 280-81 (2d
Cir. 2006).
Manson
alleges that his infection causes pain and weight loss and
interferes with his sleep and ability to exercise and work.
In the inmate request attached to the Complaint, Manson
states that he has suffered from the condition for six years.
ECF No. 1 at 11. Although courts have determined that an H.
pylori infection is not a serious medical need, for purposes
of this ruling, I will assume that Manson's condition is
sufficiently serious. See Robinson v. Edwards, 2016
WL 1889900, at *10 (S.D.N.Y. July 5, ...