Goff v. McLennan County

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT WESTERN DISTRICT OF TEXAS WACO DIVISION

KENNETH GOFF, § § Plaintiff, § § v. § CIVIL NO. W-21-CV-00494-ADA § MCLENNAN COUNTY, § CORRHEALTH, LLC, BILLY § GARRETT, DANITA LOFTIS, PA, § DEBORAH SANT'ANNA, NP, § MELISSA JARRETT, § § Defendants. § ORDER ADOPTING MAGISTRATE JUDGE’S REPORT AND RECOMMENDATION Before the Court is the Report and Recommendation of United States Magistrate Judge Jeffrey C. Manske. ECF No. 85. The report recommends Defendant McLennan County’s Motion for Summary Judgment (ECF No. 58) and Defendants CorrHealth, LLC, Danita Loftis, Melissa Jarrett, and Deborah Sant’anna’s Motion for Summary Judgment (ECF No. 59) (collectively, Defendants’ “Motions”) be GRANTED-IN-PART and DENIED-IN-PART. The report and recommendation was filed on November 21, 2024.

A party may file specific, written objections to the proposed findings and recommendations of the magistrate judge within fourteen days after being served with a copy of the report and recommendation, thereby securing de novo review by the district court. 28 U.S.C. § 636(b); Fed. R. Civ. P. 72(b). A district court need not consider “[f]rivolous, conclusive, or general objections.” Battle v. U.S. Parole Comm’n, 834 F.2d 419, 421 (5th Cir. 1987) (quoting Nettles v. Wainwright, 677 F.2d 404, 410 n.8 (5th Cir. 1982) (en banc), overruled on other grounds by Douglass v. United States Auto. Ass’n, 79 F.3d 1415 (5th Cir. 1996)).

Defendants filed objections on November 27, 2024, and December 3, 2024. ECF Nos. 87 and 89. The Court has conducted a de novo review of Defendants’ Motions, the responses, the report and recommendation, the objections to the report and recommendation, and the applicable laws. After that thorough review, the Court is persuaded that the Magistrate Judge’s findings and recommendation should be adopted.

IT IS THEREFORE ORDERED that the Report and Recommendation of United States Magistrate Judge Jeffrey C. Manske (ECF No. 58) is ADOPTED.

IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that Defendant McLennan County’s and Defendants CorrHealth, LLC, Danita Loftis, Melissa Jarrett, and Deborah Sant’anna’s objections are OVERRULED.

IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that Defendant McLennan County’s Motion for Summary Judgment (ECF No. 58) and Defendants CorrHealth, LLC, Danita Loftis, Melissa Jarrett, and Deborah Sant’anna’s Motion for Summary Judgment (ECF No. 59) are GRANTED- IN-PART and DENIED-IN-PART in accordance with the Report and Recommendation. For clarity, the remaining claims are: (1) Goff’s medical negligence claims, under Chapter 74 of the Texas Civil Practice and Remedies Code, against Defendants CorrHealth LLC, Loftis, Sant’anna and Jarrett; (2) Goff’s § 1983 conditions-of-confinement claim against McLennan County; and (3) Goff’s § 1983 episodic act claim against McLennan County for its failure to protect Goff from a suicide attempt.

SIGNED this 9th day of December, 2024.

Bex \bot \O\bo ALAN D ALBRIGHT UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE