Bell v. United States
Bell v. United States
Opinion of the Court
This matter is before the Court on defendants' motion to dismiss or Transfer [ECF No. 8] and plaintiff's motions to amend her complaint [ECF Nos. 20-21]. For the reasons discussed below, the Court grants the defendants' motion to dismiss.
I. BACKGROUND
Yolanda Bell, a former employee of the United States Department of the Interior, filed an employment discrimination complaint in the United States District Court for the Northern District of California.
*161Assistant United States Attorney Victoria Boesch ("AUSA Boesch") represented the defendant. Discovery disputes arose, and among other rulings, the court ordered plaintiff to undergo an independent medical examination ("IME"). Mem. of Law in Support of Mot. to Dismiss or Transfer, Ex. A (Order, Bell v. U.S. Dep't of Interior , No. 2:12-cv-1414 (E.D. Cal. Aug. 19, 2013) at 14).
According to plaintiff, AUSA Boesch scheduled "an [IME] with Dr. Mark A. Mills at 0900 hours at 6635 Hillandale Road, Chevy Chase, Maryland 20815" on August 21, 2013. Compl. at 3 ¶ 1 (page numbers designated by ECF; paragraph numbers designated by plaintiff). Plaintiff described the building as "an attached end unit townhouse in a residential community adjacent to the Clara Barton Historical Park." Compl. at 3 ¶ 3. The building did not appear to be "a medical or office building," and "there was no signage ... to indicate ... it was a business at all-medical or otherwise." Id. at 3 ¶ 3. She "called 411 information which revealed no number listed at that address in Chevy Chase for a Dr. Mark Mills, MD." Id. at 3 ¶ 5. Plaintiff also called the United States District Court for the District of Maryland, the United States Attorney's Office for the District of Maryland, and the Maryland Board of Physicians, and "none ... had a Maryland address for Dr. Mills." Id. at 4 ¶ 5. Further, plaintiff alleged, "the Maryland Medical Board of Physicians showed no Maryland license having been issued to Dr. Mark. J. Mills, MD current or past." Id.
Plaintiff called AUSA Boesch to share her "safety concerns" about Dr. Mills and to express her willingness "to attend the IME at another location such as Dr. Mills['] office complex in the District of Columbia or another Business location." Id. at 4 ¶ 6. AUSA Boesch arranged a conference call for later that morning, id. at 4 ¶ 7, which the Court presumes was a telephone conference with the court, see Bell v. U.S. Dep't of the Interior , No. 2:12-cv-1414,
In plaintiff's view, defendants were "wrongfully and forcefully pressuring [her] under threat to see Dr. Mark Mills (to her detriment), an ... unlicensed physician, to take part in the IME ... despite being informed ... that ... Mark Mills was not licensed to practice medicine in Maryland[.]"Id. at 5 ¶ 1 (emphasis in original). She alleged that a "reasonable person" would not pressure "a lone female[,] to enter said location for eight (8) hours with an unknown male ..., into a townhouse that had no sign indicating that it was a ... physician's office, that was adjacent to a large forest, and/or with a man [she] did not know [or] had ever seen before even if he was supposed to be a physician[,]"
Plaintiff brings this action under the Federal Tort Claims Act ("FTCA"), see
II. DISCUSSION
A. Dismissal Under Rule 12(b)(6)
A plaintiff need only provide a "short and plain statement of [her] claim showing that [she is] entitled to relief," Fed. R. Civ. P. 8(a)(2), that "give[s] the defendant fair notice of what the ... claim is and the grounds upon which it rests." Erickson v. Pardus,
A complaint survives a motion under Rule 12(b)(6) only if it "contain[s] sufficient factual matter, accepted as true, to state a claim to relief that is plausible on its face."
B. Plaintiff's Complaint Fails to Allege a Negligence Claim
The United States enjoys sovereign immunity, United States v. Sherwood ,
For purposes of this Memorandum Opinion, the Court presumes without deciding that venue in this district is proper and that District of Columbia tort law applies. A plaintiff bringing a negligence claim must show: "that there was a duty *164of care owed by the defendant to the plaintiff, a breach of that duty by the defendant, and damage to the interests of the plaintiff, proximately caused by the breach." Girdler v. United States ,
First, defendants contend that plaintiff "does not adequately allege that AUSA Boesch," who was opposing counsel in plaintiff's employment discrimination lawsuit, "owed her a legal duty."
Second, defendants argue, even if AUSA Boesch owed a duty to plaintiff, the complaint fails to allege adequately an actionable breach of that duty. See Defs.' Mem. at 8-9. Review of the docket of plaintiff's employment discrimination case in the Eastern District of California reveals that the court ordered the IME. Specifically, the court order provided that "[p]laintiff shall appear for an independent medical examination by Dr. Mark Mills, M.D., on August 21, 2013, at 9:00 a.m., at 6635 Hillandale Road, Chevy Chase, Maryland 20815[.]"
Third, to the extent that plaintiff's complaint is interpreted as raising a claim of misrepresentation or fraud, see Compl. at 7 ¶ 8, the FTCA precludes it. Expressly *165excluded from the FTCA's coverage is "[a]ny claim arising out ... misrepresentation [or] deceit."
C. Plaintiff's Motion to Amend the Complaint
The 21-day period within which plaintiff could have amended her complaint as a matter of course under Fed. R. Civ. P. 15(a)(1) has passed. At this juncture, amendment of the complaint is allowed "only with the [defendant's] written consent or the court's leave." Fed. R. Civ. P. 15(a)(2). "The court should freely give leave when justice so requires."
The Court notes that plaintiff's proposed amended complaint is substantially similar to the original pleading-and suffers its same defect. It is no more successful in alleging a viable negligence claim arising from the purported acts or omissions of AUSA Boesch. An amendment is futile if it merely restates the same facts as the original complaint in different terms, reasserts a claim on which the court previously ruled, fails to state a legal theory or could not withstand a motion to dismiss." Robinson v. Detroit News, Inc. ,
III. CONCLUSION
The Court concludes that plaintiff's complaint fails to state an FTCA claim upon which relief can be granted. Accordingly, the Court grants defendants' motion to dismiss the complaint and denies as futile plaintiff's motion to amend the complaint. An Order is issued separately.
Plaintiff refers in her complaint, see Compl. at 7 n.6, to a miscellaneous action in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia, see Bell v. Jewell , No. 1:13-mc-0023 (E.D.V.A. July 15, 2013). The Court may, see Jones v. Lieber ,
The Magistrate Judge, who on July 31, 2013 granted defendant's motion to compel the IME pursuant to Rule 35 of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, explained:
The morning of the scheduled examination, on August 21, 2013, plaintiff drove to Dr. Mills' office but would not leave her car to enter his office for the examination. Plaintiff refused to appear for the examination claiming that she was concerned with Dr. Mills' office location. That same morning, following some telephonic discussions between the parties, the court held a telephonic conference with the parties during which plaintiff articulated the following additional concerns: Dr. Mills' office was located in a residential area, his office is not zoned properly, and he is not licensed to practice in Maryland. Defense counsel represented that Dr. Mills spoke with plaintiff outside his office, assured her that she was at his office and offered for her to look around his office. The undersigned considered plaintiff's objections and specifically declined to vacate the August 19, 2013, order requiring the examination .... During the telephone conference, the court explained to plaintiff that the court had previously found Dr. Mills to be eminently well-qualified to conduct the examination, and the fact that his office is in what she considers a residential area does not alter the court's ruling .... Notwithstanding the court's ruling, and the earlier admonition on August 21, 2013, regarding failure to comply with discovery rules and orders, plaintiff refused to comply with this court's explicit order to appear for her examination.
Bell ,
The only proper defendant to an action under the FTCA is the United States of America. See, e.g., Johnson v. Veterans Affairs Med. Ctr. ,
This court finding may even collaterally estop plaintiff from raising her current claims. See Yamaha Corp. of Am. v. United States ,
Defendants argue that "[p]laintiff does not plausibly allege that she suffered any damages due to her being sent for an [IME]." Defs.' Mem. at 9. It seems unlikely that plaintiff's travels to Chevy Chase, Maryland for an IME she refused to undergo resulted in the extreme and pervasive harms she alleges. However, at this stage of the proceedings, the Court is not inclined to dismiss this pro se plaintiff's complaint merely because her demand for damages seems exaggerated.
Reference
- Full Case Name
- Yolanda BELL v. UNITED STATES of America
- Cited By
- 5 cases
- Status
- Published