Opinion
C.A. No. 19-153 Erie
12-31-2020
JAMES T. KNEPP, Plaintiff, v. RAMONA PARAWAY, et al., Defendants.
Magistrate Judge Richard A. Lanzillo MEMORANDUM ORDER
Plaintiff James T. Knepp, an inmate incarcerated at the State Correctional Institution at Albion, Pennsylvania ("SCI-Albion"), initiated this pro se civil rights action on May 24, 2019, against six members of the medical or corrections staff at SCI-Albion: Superintendent Michael Clark, Nurse Ramona Paraway, Corrections Health Care Administrator Jeri Smock, Nurse Robin Miller, Nurse Mike Edwards, and Dr. Amanda Hartwell. Plaintiff claims that Defendants were deliberately indifferent to his serious medical needs in violation of his rights under the eighth amendment to the United States Constitution, and committed the state law tort of medical malpractice. The case was referred to United States Magistrate Judge Richard A. Lanzillo for report and recommendation in accordance with the Magistrates Act, 28 U.S.C. § 636(b)(1), and Rules 72.1.3 and 72.1.4 of the Local Rules for Magistrates. This matter was subsequently reassigned to the undersigned, as presiding judge, on June 20, 2019, with Judge Lanzillo remaining as the referred Magistrate Judge for all pretrial proceedings.
On May 12, 2020, Plaintiff filed a partial motion for summary judgment as to his medical malpractice claim against Defendants Hartwell, Smock, Edwards, and Miller [ECF No. 76]. On May 13, 2020, Defendants Clark, Paraway, Smock, Miller, and Edwards filed a motion for summary judgment [ECF No. 78] as to all claims against them, and Defendant Hartwell subsequently filed his own motion for summary judgment [ECF No. 92] as to all claims against him.
On November 18, 2020, Judge Lanzillo issued a Magistrate Judge's Report and Recommendation ("R&R") recommending that Plaintiff's partial motion for summary judgment be denied and that Defendants' motions for summary judgment be granted [ECF No. 111]. Objections to the R&R were due to be filed by December 7, 2020; however, no objections have been filed to date.
After de novo review of the complaint and documents in the case, together with the report and recommendation, the following order is entered:
AND NOW, this 31ST day of December, 2020;
IT IS HEREBY ORDERED that Plaintiff's partial motion for summary judgment [ECF No. 76], is DENIED; that the motion for summary judgment filed by Defendants Clark, Paraway, Smock, Miller, and Edwards [ECF No. 78] is GRANTED; that Defendant Hartwell's motion for summary judgment [ECF No. 92] is GRANTED; and that judgment is entered in favor of all Defendants and against Plaintiff on all claims in this case. The report and recommendation of Magistrate Judge Lanzillo, issued November 18, 2020 [ECF No. 111], is adopted as the opinion of the court.
The Clerk is directed to mark this case CLOSED.
/s/_________
SUSAN PARADISE BAXTER
United States District Judge cc: The Honorable Richard A. Lanzillo
U.S. Magistrate Judge