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STATE OF MICHIGAN
COURT OF APPEALS


In re Estate of CHRISTOPHER R. MORDEN, Deceased.

ELIZABETH MORDEN, Personal Representative of the Estate of CHRISTOPHER R. MORDEN, Plaintiff-Appellee, v GRAND TRAVERSE COUNTY, GRAND TRAVERSE COUNTY JAIL, MARGARET SCHOFIELD, RN, ELAINE LOZEN, RN, SANDI MINOR, RN, GRAND TRAVERSE SHERIFF, Defendants-Appellees, and MARILYN CONLON, MD, Defendant-Appellant,

FOR PUBLICATION April 24, 2007 9:05 a.m.

No. 272505 Grand Traverse Circuit Court LC No. 04-024311-NM

Official Reported Version and WELL-SPRING PSYCHIATRY, PC, ANNE MARIE BAASE, JIM TALBOT, and TONY KARLIN, Defendants.

Before: Smolenski, P.J., and Saad and Wilder, JJ. PER CURIAM. This case arises out of the death of Christopher R. Morden (the decedent). Plaintiff Elizabeth Morden, as personal representative of the estate of her son, the decedent, has sued defendants Marilyn E. Conlon, M.D., and David J. Wilcox, D.O., among others, asserting state

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law malpractice claims and federal constitutional claims under 42 USC 1983. After the state law claims were dismissed, Conlon moved for summary disposition of the federal claims under MCR 2.116(C)(8) and (10), which the trial court denied, finding an issue of fact regarding whether Conlon acted with deliberate indifference in treating the decedent, to the extent that Conlon was not entitled to qualified immunity. Because we hold that (1) no genuine issue of material fact exists regarding plaintiff 's claim of deliberate indifference, and (2) Conlon would be entitled to qualified immunity even if an issue of fact did exist, we reverse and remand for the entry of summary disposition in Conlon's favor. I The essential facts are largely undisputed. After being arrested on February 4, 2002, the decedent claimed that he was hearing voices and expressed thoughts of self-harm. A suicide alert was issued. The decedent was already taking prescribed medications. Wilcox, the jail physician, continued the decedent's psychotropic medications of 1 mg Risperdal1 three times daily and 40 mg Celexa2 daily, the doses prescribed in December 2001. On or around February 10, 2002, the decedent was hearing voices and wanted to hurt someone in his cell. Conlon (a consulting psychiatrist) and Wilcox visited the decedent on February 12, 2002. Conlon recommended that Wilcox increase the decedent's Risperdal dose. Conlon asserts that Wilcox was free to implement or reject that recommendation. That decedent's Risperdal dose was increased according to Conlon's recommendation. On February 27, 2002, a sheriff 's deputy found the decedent unresponsive in his cell. He was rocking back and forth in a fetal position. His speech was slow. On March 5, 2002, the decedent was again put on suicide watch after reporting that voices were telling him to stab himself with his pencil. When Conlon visited the decedent on March 12, 2002, although she noted some improvement, she recommended an increase of Risperdal. Plaintiff visited the decedent on March 15, 2002, and found him acting "druggy." Plaintiff told a social worker at the jail that she was worried about her son. On March 18, 2002, the social worker reported that the decedent got dizzy and that his vision blacked out when he stood up. Wilcox noted that on March 19, 2002, the decedent suffered from head rushes, and that the side effects had started the last time his Risperdal dosage was increased. Wilcox took the decedent's blood pressure.3 Wilcox recommended a psychiatric consultation.

Risperdal is an antipsychotic medication. It is categorized as an "atypical" antipsychotic (like Clozaril, Zyprexa or Seroquel). Its method of action is that of a serotonin and dopamine receptor antagonist (SDA). Tarascon Pocket Pharmacopoeia 2000, p 70. Celexa is an antidepressant medication. It is a selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI). The maximum recommended daily dose is 40 mg. Tarascon Pocket Pharmacopoeia 2000, p 68. Plaintiff posits that Wilcox apparently thought he was ruling out postural or orthostatic hypotension (a condition in which the blood pressure abnormally decreases when moving from a
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On March 23, 2002, Conlon visited the decedent and noted the decedent's complaints of tingling, head rush when he stood up, and that he could not stand without holding onto a wall. Conlon stated that improvement with Risperdal was apparent, but that the drug was likely causing orthostatic hypotension,4 so she suggested switching to a different neuroleptic, according to the following schedule:

Download ELIZABETH MORDEN V GRAND TRAVERSE CNTY.pdf

Michigan Law