Florida Prison Officials’ Failure to Timely Respond to Grievances Results in Exhaustion of Administrative Remedies
Florida Prison Officials’ Failure to Timely Respond to Grievances Results in Exhaustion of Administrative Remedies
The Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals held that Florida prison officials failed to timely respond to a prisoner’s grievance, which satisfied exhaustion of available remedies under the Prison Litigation Reform Act (PLRA).
The U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida dismissed a 42 U.S.C. § 1983 action filed by state prisoner John West Davis, holding he had failed to exhaust administrative remedies as required by the PLRA. Davis appealed.
He argued that the district court failed to consider the time frame in which Florida Dept. of Corrections (FDOC) officials have to answer a prisoner’s grievance. Davis contended that because FDOC officials failed to timely respond to his grievances, he had properly exhausted his available administrative remedies.
Florida has a three-tier grievance procedure: informal grievances, formal grievances, and appeals to the Secretary. Prisoners must file informal grievances within a reasonable time after an incident, which is determined on a case-by-case basis. Prison officials must respond to such grievances within 10 days of receipt.
All other grievances or appeals, including an emergency or medical grievance, must be filed within 15 days of an incident. A formal grievance of any type filed at the prison level must be answered within 20 days of receipt by FDOC officials. An appeal to the Secretary must be answered within 30 days of receipt. In the case of an emergency grievance, a response must be made within 72 hours if no emergency is found to exist, with directions to file an informal grievance with the proper personnel. See: Chapter 33-103.011, Florida Administrative Code (F.A.C.).
Prisoners who are not satisfied with a grievance response must pursue all three levels of the grievance process, and the Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals has held that if any grievance is denied as being untimely, a federal claim is barred for failure to exhaust administrative remedies.
Relevant to this case, however, was prison officials’ failure to timely respond to Davis’ grievances. Under FDOC policy, a prisoner may proceed to the next level if a response is untimely. When a prisoner does not agree to an extension of time for prison officials to provide a response, “expiration of a time limit at any step in the process shall entitle the complainant to proceed to the next step of the grievance process.”
When an extension of time is not granted to the Secretary and a response is not forthcoming within the mandated time limit, the prisoner “shall be entitled to proceed with judicial remedies as he would have exhausted his administrative remedies.” See: Chapter 33-103.011(4), F.A.C.
On appeal, the Eleventh Circuit held that Davis had properly exhausted his available administrative remedies, due to the failure of FDOC officials to provide a timely response to his grievances. As a result, the district court”s order of dismissal was vacated. See: Davis v. Florida Dept. of Corrections, 264 Fed. Appx. 827 (11th Cir. 2008) (unpublished).
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Related legal case
Davis v. Florida Dept. of Corrections
| Year | 2008 |
|---|---|
| Cite | 264 Fed. Appx. 827 (11th Cir. 2008) (unpublished) |
| Level | Court of Appeals |
| Injunction Status | N/A |