Walker v. City of Orlando

Full title: LAFAYETTE WALKER, Plaintiff, v. CITY OF ORLANDO, EDWARD MICHAEL, STANLEY…

Court: United States District Court, M.D. Florida, Orlando Division

Date published: Nov 13, 2007

Case No. 6:07-cv-651-Orl-19DAB (M.D. Fla. Nov. 13, 2007)

Opinion

Case No. 6:07-cv-651-Orl-19DAB.

November 13, 2007

ORDER

DAVID BAKER, Magistrate Judge

This cause came on for consideration with oral argument¹ on the following motion filed herein: MOTION: MOTION OF DEFENDANT, CITY OF ORLANDO, TO COMPEL PRODUCTION OF MENTAL HEALTH, DRUG AND/OR ALCOHOL TREATMENT, AND MEDICAL RECORDS FROM THE CENTER FOR DRUG FREE LIVING (Doc. No. 33) FILED: October 17, 2007 THEREON ORDERED GRANTED

1 Oral argument was held on November 5, 2007.

it is that the motion is . Plaintiff is suing Defendants for civil rights and state claims arising from his arrest² on May 18, 2003, in which he alleges the Defendant Officer Edward Michael used excessive force on him. Doc. No. 2. He also alleges that Defendant City of Orlando failed to properly train the officers and had a custom or policy allowing the use of excessive force. Doc. No. 2. Plaintiff seeks damages for bodily injuries, pain, suffering, and mental anguish arising from the incident. Doc. No. 2.

Following a November 5, 2007 hearing on the matter, Defendants filed a sealed document³ attaching a letter from the Center for Drug Free Living stating the Center has treatment records for Plaintiff Lafayette Walker's treatment in June 2005.

3 Doc. No. S-1.

Plaintiff's claims for damages for "mental anguish," as pled in the Complaint, have placed his mental health in issue. Therefore, Defendant is entitled to discover, within reason, the state of Plaintiff's mental health, and the nature of the other stressors relating to his health during June 2005, which was about two years after the incident alleged.

"Courts considering the issue have generally found that the identities of health providers, the dates of treatment, and the nature of the treatment are relevant to claims for emotional distress damages." See Merrill v. Waffle House, Inc., 227 F.R.D. 467, 471 (N.D. Tex. 2005) (citing representative cases); see also Haney v. Mizell Memorial Hosp., 744 F.2d 1467, 1476 (11^th Cir. 1984) (in complaint seeking damages for future mental anguish, plaintiff's history of alcohol and drug use was relevant to his quality of life). To the extent Plaintiff has privacy concerns regarding releasing this information, such can be resolved by a confidentiality stipulation between the parties. Defendant's use of the information will be limited to this case.

DONE and ORDERED.