Curran v. Aleshire (67 F. Supp. 3d 741, 2014)

ORDER AND REASONS

JAY C. ZAINEY, District Judge.

Before the Court are a Motion for Summary Judgment as to the claims of April Curran filed by defendants Philip Aleshire and Sheriff Rodney Strain, individually and in his official capacity (Rec. Doc. 44) (“Aleshire” and “the Sheriff’); a Motion for Summary Judgment as to the “non-consortium” claims of Colleen Curran filed by defendants Philip Aleshire and Sheriff Rodney Strain, individually and in his official capacity (Rec. Doc. 45); and a Motion for Summary Judgment as to the claims of April Curran and Colleen Curran filed by defendants St. Tammany Parish School Board, Gayle Sloan, individually and in her official capacity, and Johnny Vitrano, individually and in his official capacity (Rec. Doc. 46). Plaintiffs filed a single Opposition to all motions (Rec. Doc. 48).

1. Background

This suit arises out of incidents taking place at Fontainebleau High School (“Fon-tainebleau”) on September 24, 2008. Plaintiff April Curran (“April”), then a fifteen year-old student at Fontainebleau, attempted to use her cell phone after her morning classes while on school grounds to get a ride to the New Orleans Center for the Creative Arts after missing her bus. This violated Fontainebleau’s rule regarding cell phones on campus. A teacher, observing this behavior and seeking to enforce the rule, approached April to determine her name and to confiscate her cellphone. After April refused to comply, the teacher requested Officer Aleshire’s help in enforcing the rule.

At this point, there is a conflict among the parties in the recounting of events. April reports that Aleshire yanked her student ID hanging around her neck, grabbed her, and slammed her against the auditorium wall. (Rec. Doc. 1, ¶¶ 10-11). He then forced her arms behind her back and handcuffed her. Id. at ¶ 11. However, while April denies striking Aleshire during this first incident (Rec. Doc. 44-5 at 3), the state court adjudicated her delinquent for battery of a police officer. See, e.g., (Rec. Doe. 44-5, at 5). Thus, it is a judicially established fact that April committed a battery of Aleshire during this first incident. This battery occurred prior to April being thrown against the auditorium wall. (Rec. Doc. 48, at 10; Rec. Doc. 44-6, ¶¶ 10-13).

Aleshire then led April to Assistant Principal Kevin Darouse’s office, room #402 (“room 402”). During this walk, Aleshire at one point shoved April against a bank of lockers, at which point her cell phone fell out of her shirt. (Rec. Doc. 484).

The school contacted Colleen Curran (“Colleen”), April’s mother, to come get her. While waiting, April complained of pain caused by the handcuffs. Kevin Da-rouse instructed Aleshire to- remove the handcuffs, which he did. (Rec. Doc. 48-6, ¶ 16).

Colleen, upon her arrival, requested medical attention for her daughter, but the school declined to provide any. (Rec. Doc. 48-6, ¶ 18). April and Colleen left the school and proceeded to a nearby hospital where April was treated for “forearm abrasions from the handcuffs, and a head contusion.” Id. at ¶ 19. Aleshire arrived shortly thereafter at the hospital, informed her that she was being charged with battery of an officer, and then departed. (Rec. Doc. 48-6, ¶ 21).

Plaintiffs filed their Complaint on March 4, 2009. (Rec. Doc. 1).. The matter was stayed pending resolution of the state juvenile proceedings, including appeal, and was reopened on January 6, 2014.

April brought the following claims under federal and state law (where applicable): against Phillip Aleshire for battery, assault, false arrest, false imprisonment, negligent and/or intentional infliction of emotional distress, malicious prosecution, unlawful search and seizure, cruel treatment, and failing to provide medical attention; against St. Tammany Parish Sheriffs Office for negligent hiring, retention, training, and supervision of Aleshire, and an official policy or custom of ignoring complaints against its employees and of performing no investigation or grossly defective investigation of such complaints; against Sheriff Strain, individually and in his official capacity, under vicarious liability for the acts of Aleshire, negligent hiring, retention, training, and supervision of Aleshire, and deliberate indifference to all of these acts coneerriing Aleshire; against the St. Tammany Parish School Board (“STPSB”) for negligent hiring, retention, training, and supervision of Aleshire, Vi-trano, and its other employees, an official policy or custom of ignoring complaints against its employees and of performing no investigation or grossly defective investigations of such complaints, and its official policy or custom of prohibiting the mere possession of cell phones by students; against Gayle Sloan, individually and in her official capacity as Superintendent of the St. Tammany Parish School Board, under vicarious liability for the acts of Aleshire, the negligent hiring, retention, training and supervision of Aleshire, Vitra-no, and other school personnel, and deliberate indifference to all of those acts concerning Aleshire; and the same claims against Johnny Vitrano, individually and in his official capacity as Principal of Fontain-ebleau High School.

Both April Curran as well as Colleen Curran seek a variety of damages, including those related to physical needs, emotional suffering, consortium and related claims, and punitive damages.

As several of these claims overlap, the Court will address the motions by nature of the claim. The Court will specify where appropriate which motion, claim, and defendant it is addressing and the corresponding specific rulings. It will conclude with a summary of these rulings.

II. Discussion

Summary judgment is appropriate only if “the pleadings, depositions, answers to interrogatories, and admissions on file, together with the affidavits, if any,” when viewed in the light most favorable to the non-movant, “show that there is no genuine issue as to any material fact.” TIG Ins. Co. v. Sedgwick James, 276 F.3d 754, 759 (5th Cir.2002) (citing Anderson v. Liberty Lobby, Inc., 477 U.S. 242, 249-50, 106 S.Ct. 2505, 91 L.Ed.2d 202 (1986)). A dispute about a material fact is “genuine” if the evidence is such that a reasonable jury could return a verdict for the non-moving party. Id. (citing Anderson, All U.S. at 248, 106 S.Ct. 2505). The court must draw all justifiable inferences in favor of the non-moving party. Id. (citing Anderson, All U.S. at 255, 106 S.Ct. 2505). Once the moving party has initially shown “that there is an absence of evidence to support the non-moving party’s cause,” Celotex Corp. v. Catrett, 477 U.S. 317, 325, 106 S.Ct. 2548, 91 L.Ed.2d 265 (1986), the non-movant must come forward with “specific facts” showing a genuine factual issue for trial. Id. (citing Fed.R.Civ.P. 56(e); Matsushita Elec. Indus. Co. v. Zenith Radio, 475 U.S. 574, 587, 106 S.Ct. 1348, 89 L.Ed.2d 538 (1986)). Conclusional allegations and denials, speculation, improbable inferences, unsubstantiated assertions, and legalistic argumentation do not adequately substitute for specific facts showing a genuine issue for trial. Id. (citing SEC v. Recile, 10 F.3d 1093, 1097 (5th Cir.1993)).

a. Claims against Aleshire

Defendant Aleshire moves for summary judgment as to Plaintiffs claims of battery, assault, unlawful search and seizure, cruel treatment, malicious prosecution, false arrest, and false imprisonment. Aleshire first raises the argument that the claims under federal law (via § 1983) are barred by the Heck doctrine.

The Heck doctrine bars the Court from entertaining a suit for damages under § 1983 where such claims would necessarily undermine the validity of the state court criminal conviction. See Buckenberger v. Reed, 342 Fed.Appx. 58, 61 (5th Cir.2009) (citing Heck v. Humphrey, 512 U.S. 477, 486-87, 114 S.Ct. 2364, 129 L.Ed.2d 383 (1994)). Thus, Aleshire asserts that allowing these claims to go forward would undermine the validity of April’s adjudication for battery of an officer. The Court will address the claims individually, noting the effect of its findings on the claim both under federal law, and, where applicable, state law.

i. Unlawful Search and Seizure

The Court addresses the unlawful search and seizure claim as a separate claim intended to attack the arrest of April Curran for battery of a police officer.

It is true that “a claim of unlawful arrest, standing alone, does not necessarily implicate the validity of a criminal prosecution following the arrest.” Mackey v. Dickson, 47 F.3d 744, 746 (5th Cir.1995)(emphásis in original) (citations omitted). However, even if April had been able to point to a genuine issue of a disputed material fact in this case, her only arguments regarding the circumstances of her arrest that could give rise to a claim of unlawful search and seizure are insinuations that the battery never took place (fi.g., references in the Opposition to the “alleged battery” or “supposedly [Plaintiff] April [Curran] having knocked [Defendant Officer] Aleshire’s glasses and radio off’). (Rec. Doc. 48, at 10,16.) Thus, a claim of unlawful arrest in this context would necessarily implicate the validity of the criminal conviction and would therefore be barred by Heck.

Therefore, the motion for summary judgment as to April’s independent unlawful search and seizure claim against Defendant Aleshire (Rec. Doc. 44) is GRANTED.

ii. Excessive Force, Battery, Assault, Cruel Treatment, and Unlawful Search and Seizure

Defendant Aleshire also moves for summary judgment as to April’s excessive force claims under 42 U.S.C. § 1983. Although April does not mention such a claim by name in her Complaint, she does list claims of “battery,” “assault,” “cruel treatment,” and “unlawful search and seizure.” (Rec. Doc. 1, at 7-8). In her Opposition to the motion for summary judgment however, Plaintiff clarifies her claim as one of “excessive force.” E.g., (Rec. Doc. 48, at 1) (“This case arises out of Philip Ale-shire’s use of excessive force against April Curran on September 24, 2008.”).

Aleshire raises three arguments in his motion for summary judgment as to the excessive force claim. First, he argues that any such claims should be barred by the Heck doctrine. Second, he argues that even if the Heck doctrine does not apply, any injuries arising from the incident are dé minimis and thus do not implicate the Fourth Amendment. Third, Aleshire argues that, regardless of the previous arguments, he is entitled to qualified immunity because his actions were • objectively reasonable.

Plaintiff responds to the Heck argument by claiming that the action giving rise to the conviction for battery of an officer and the action giving rise to the excessive force claim are conceptually distinct and therefore can “coexist.” Plaintiff also argues that the sufficiency of the injury for Fourth Amendment purposes is not only contextual but can also be purely psychological. Plaintiff thus argues that the injury here crosses the de minimis threshold of the Fourth Amendment and points to treatment for psychological issues arising from the incident. Finally, Plaintiff argues that Officer Aleshire’s actions were clearly unreasonable, as Plaintiff was not resisting or fleeing from arrest, and therefore Defendant is not entitled to qualified immunity.

Addressing the first argument, the Comb finds it helpful to revisit the sequence of factual events. As judicially established, April battered Aleshire outside the school auditorium. In response, Aleshire spun Plaintiff against the wall and placed handcuffs on her. Then, while escorting Plaintiff to room 402, Aleshire at one point allegedly spun and pushed Plaintiff against the wall in a hallway.

In support of his argument that Heck should bar the excessive force claims, Ale-shire relies on an overly broad application of the holding in Hudson in arguing that a claim of excessive force is barred any time one is subsequently convicted for battery of an officer. However, the facts of Hudson make clear the proper scope of the operation of Heck in such a case. The facts giving rise to the conviction in Hudson took place in a simultaneous struggle between the officer and the perpetrator during the arrest. Hudson v. Hughes, 98 F.3d 868, 873 (5th Cir.1996). The court explained its holding as follows: “[Heck applies] because the question whether the police applied reasonable force in arresting him depends in part on the degree of his resistance, which in turn will place in issue whether his resistance (the basis of his conviction for assaulting a police officer) was justified.... ” Id. (emphasis added).

Contrast this to the sequence of events in the case before the Court, in which the action giving rise to the conviction was a swing at the officer which was followed by the events giving rise to the claims of excessive force. Considering this timing, the Court finds that there exists a disputed issue of material fact as to whether the events were conceptually distinct, and whether a successful excessive force claim “would necessarily imply the invalidity of [her] conviction.” Hudson, 98 F.3d at 872; see, e.g., Bush v. Strain, 513 F.3d 492, 498 (5th Cir.2008) (explaining that a claim “would not be barred by Heck, if the factual basis for the conviction is temporally and conceptually distinct from the excessive forcé claim”).

For example, in Ballard v. Burton, the Fifth Circuit considered the application of Heck to an excessive force claim where the plaintiff had been previously convicted in state court of simple assault on a law enforcement officer. 444 F.3d 391, 393-94 (5th Cir.2006). The Fifth Circuit noted the distinction to be “[i]f it is possible for [Plaintiff] Ballard to have assaulted Boling and for Burton’s shooting of Ballard to have been objectively unreasonable, then Heck does not bar Ballard’s claim.”' Id. at 398. Because the satisfaction of the elements of a simple assault occurred distinct from the alleged use of unreasonable force, the Fifth Circuit found that the facts did not implicate Heck. Id. at 400; see, e.g., Pratt v. Giroir, no. 07-1529, 2008 WL 975052, at *6 (E.D.La. April 8, 2008) (“Since the Court cannot rule out the possibility that excessive force was used after Pratt’s battery on the officers had been completed and when she was no longer resisting them, Defendants’ motion to dismiss is denied.”); Bramlett v. Buell, no. Civ.A.04-518, 2004 WL 2988486, at *4 (E.D.La. Dec. 9, 2004) (“Because the battery upon [Officer] Major was completed before the officers shot Bramlett to protect the bystanders, a finding in this case that the officers stepped over the line in shooting Bramlett would do nothing to undermine the conviction for aggravated battery.”); Howard v. Del Castillo, no. Civ. A.00-3466, 2001 WL 1090797, at *4 (E.D.La. Sept. 17, 2001) (denying a motion for summary judgment because “[a] section 1983 claim that the police used excessive force after Howard’s arrest does not necessarily imply the invalidity of Howard’s battery conviction because this beating may have occurred after the battery [on the officers] was over.”) (emphasis in original).

This case is no different. Two incidents giving rise to the claims of excessive force allegedly occurred after the completion of the battery of Aleshire.

Aleshire finally attempts to invoke Heck by claiming that Plaintiff argues against her conviction itself and therefore concedes all parts of the interaction were part of a cohesive whole. (Rec. Doc. 60, at 7). The Fifth Circuit applied this rationale in DeLeon v. City of Corpus Christi to find a claim barred under Heck. 488 F.3d 649 (5th Cir.2007). Accepting the plaintiffs version of events in that case, a struggle broke out between the plaintiff and the police officer after the officer pepper-sprayed the plaintiff. Id. at 651. After apparently regaining control of the situation, the officer shot the plaintiff several times. Id. Nonetheless, the Fifth Circuit found that Heck applied to bar the excessive force claim. Critical to the court’s decision was a finding that the plaintiff did “not allege that his claims of excessive force are separable from his aggravated assault on the officer,” and “[t]here is no alternative pleading or theory of recovery that would allow this claim for excessive force to proceed without interfering with the Texas proceeding....” Id. at 656. As the claims directly challenged the underlying “conviction,” the court found that Heck applied. Id. at 657; see, e.g., Arnold v. Slaughter, 100 Fed.Appx. 321 (5th Cir. 2004) (similar claims and finding); Daigre v. City of Waveland, 549 Fed.Appx. 283 (5th Cir.2013) (same).

At the very least, April provides an alternative argument that the incidents constituting the excessive force claim took place after the battery. For instance, counsel for Plaintiff states, “There is no evidence ... that April was attempting to flee, evade arrest by flight, or resist arrest. Nor was she ever charged with any crime other than battery of a police officer, an event that was over at the time of Aleshire’s use of force made subject of this suit.” (Rec. Doc. 48, at 17). By arguing that the events are conceptually distinct, April provides a theory of that alternative pleading which the Fifth Circuit found lacking in DeLeon and upon which this Court finds a disputed issue of material fact.

Thus, the Court finds Heck inapplicable to the excessive force claims of April and turns to Aleshire’s next arguments — that the injury at issue here is insufficient to invoke protections of the Fourth Amendment and, asserting the defense of qualified immunity, that Aleshire’s use of force was not objectively unreasonable.

The defense of qualified immunity shields government officials performing discretionary functions from liability for civil damages if “their conduct does not violate clearly established statutory or constitutional rights of which a reasonable person would have known.” Harlow v. Fitzgerald, 457 U.S. 800, 818, 102 S.Ct. 2727, 73 L.Ed.2d 396 (1982). The qualified immunity defense does not apply if the defendant violates the plaintiffs constitutional right, and the plaintiffs constitutional right clearly was established at the time of the violation. Manis v. Lawson, 585 F.3d 839, 843 (5th Cir.2009). However, even if the defendant violates a clearly established constitutional right, the defendant is entitled to qualified immunity if the defendant’s actions were objectively reasonable as measured by the -law existing when the conduct occurred. Collins v. Ainsworth, 382 F.3d 529, 537 (5th Cir.2004). Once a defendant raises a qualified immunity defense in a motion for summary judgment, the burden then shifts to the plaintiff to rebut the defense by establishing that a genuine issue of material fact exists as to whether the official’s allegedly wrongful conduct violated established law (although inferences are still drawn in favor of the plaintiff). Tolan v. Cotton, — U.S. -, 134 S.Ct. 1861, 1865-66, 188 L.Ed.2d 895 (2014); Michalik v. Hermann, 422 F.3d 252, 262 (5th Cir.2005).

Turning to the alleged constitutional right at issue, the Fourth Amendment grants individuals the right to be free from unreasonable search and seizure, including the right to be free from the use of excessive force by law enforcement. Ikerd v. Blair, 101 F.3d 430, 433-34 (5th Cir.1996). In order to state a claim for excessive force in violation of the Constitution, the plaintiff must prove “(1) an injury, which (2) resulted directly and solely from the use of force that was clearly excessive to the need and the excessiveness of which was (3) objectively unreasonable.” Id. The injury need' not be “significant,” but it must be more than de minimis. Tarver v. City of Edna, 410 F.3d 745, 752 (5th Cir.2005) (citations omitted). If a defendant’s use of force was reasonable under the circumstances, then there is no violation of the Fourth Amendment. Estate of Shaw v. Sierra, 366 Fed.Appx. 522, 523 (5th Cir.2010). In evaluating whether the force used by officers is excessive, a court must balance the facts and circumstances of each case, “including the severity of the crime at issue, whether the suspect poses an immediate threat to the safety of the officers or others, and whether he is actively resisting arrest or attempting to evade arrest by flight.” Graham v. Connor, 490 U.S. 386, 396, 109 S.Ct. 1865, 104 L.Ed.2d 443 (1989).

First, the Court considers Ale-shire’s argument that April’s injury was de minimis. Plaintiff alleges that she suffered a head contusion, forearm abrasions, and psychological injuries as a result of the force used against her by Aleshire in the two incidents. (Rec. Doc. 48-6, at 3; Rec. Doc. 44-5, at 4). She contends that these injuries manifested as headaches, bruises, her arm in a splint for three days, and psychological injuries. (Rec. Doc. 48-6, at 3). It is undisputed that April went to the hospital following her encounters with Ale-shire. Plaintiff has also provided records from her' psychiatrist which attest to “associated depressive symptoms and symptoms of social anxiety disorder” that the psychiatrist notes as developing following the incidents with Aleshire. (Rec. Doc. 48-7, at 2).

The extent of the alleged injuries and their visible manifestation, supported by depositions and medical records, contrasts with cases in which the injuries consisted only of those from “too tightly handcuffing,” psychological injuries with no substantiation, or injuries with no visible manifestation or other causal evidence. E.g., Tarver, 410 F.3d at 752 (finding handcuffing injuries and unsupported claims of psychological injuries to be de minimis); Freeman v. Gore, 483 F.3d 404, 417 (5th Cir.2007) (finding an injury limited to “bruising on her wrists and arms because the handcuffs were applied too tightly when she was arrested” to be de minimis after denying the defendants’ motion for summary judgment on the related wrongful arrest claim); Clark v. Watson, no. 12-1976, 2013 WL 3984218, at *3-4 (E.D.La. July 31, 2013) (finding a lack of injury where there were “no visible signs of the injury” and the only complaints related to preexisting conditions).

Although the Court finds this a close call, it finds sufficient evidence in the record to create an issue of fact as to an injury that is more than de minimis.

The third element, whether the use of force was objectively unreasonable, requires more insight into the particular context, which in turn sheds more light on the Court’s determination on the issue of sufficient injury. Williams v. Bramer, 180 F.3d 699, 704 (5th Cir.1999) (“What constitutes an injury in an excessive force claim is therefore subjective — it is defined entirely by the context in which the injury arises.”). In this case, the question of Whether the conduct was objectively unreasonable cannot be resolved without being presented to the trier of fact.

The allegations are that after April struck Aleshire, Aleshire spun and slammed her head against the wall and forced her arms behind her back to put on handcuffs — events during which April did not resist. The affidavits of both April and an eyewitness, Clenia Dimanche, support this sequence of events.. (Rec. Doc. 48-6; Rec. Doc. 48-5). While walking April to the principal’s office, Aleshire also “slammed” her against a locker or hallway wall at one point as well, contributing to the bruising and psychological injuries— the occurrence of which statements from both parties (although differing as to how much force was used) and video evidence suggest. (Rec. Doc. 44-6; Rec. Doc. 48-6; Rec. Doc. 48-4).

Looking to the first of the Graham factors, the severity of the crime, the Court finds battery of an officer to be a serious offense. However, the second and third factors from Graham, the threat posed and the degree of resistance or flight, must be considered. Drawing inferences in the light most favorable to the non-movant, April posed a minimal threat to Aleshire or to others. Her single strike made contact with Aleshire, but Aleshire reports no pain, injury, or further threat that he experienced. (Rec. Doc. 44-6). Aleshire even goes on to note that his concern in using force against April was out of concern for others, not himself. Id. This per-" ceived threat to others remains unclear. Aleshire and a witness, Leonard Abram, both claim that April continued to “thrash around” and thus was threatening others. (Rec. Doc. 44-4; Rec. Doc. 44-6). The affidavit of witness Clenia Dimanche directly contradicts this, stating that April did not resist at all. (Rec. Doc. 48-5). This also goes to the third factor, the degree of resistance or attempt at escape. Whether April’s action against Aleshire was limited to the one strike or if it included resistance is a core dispute between the parties. If the defendants’ version of the facts was undisputed, the Court would have little trouble in finding the initial use of force by Aleshire, drawing all other inferences in favor of the Plaintiff, to be a reasonable use of force. See, e.g., Bush, 513 F.3d at 502 (focusing on the degree of resistance as a critically-disputed fact in determining whether throwing plaintiff against the car was unreasonable); Deville v. Marcantel, 567 F.3d 156, 167 (5th Cir.2009) (same as to whether a rough extraction from a car to effect an arrest was excessive). April points to the deposition of an eye witness which supports her claim that she did not resist, which would imply a lack of threat to others. Finally, the “slamming” of April into the lockers while walking to room 402 presents the issue of whether she was trying to escape or otherwise resist, as is claimed by Aleshire, or if it was an arbitrary use of force, as is claimed by April. Both point to video and still picture evidence to support their respective positions, but that evidence is inconclusive and better left to the trier of fact.

Turning to the question of whether this incident constituted a violation of a clearly established right at the time, it is a clearly established right that an individual has the right to be free from the use of excessive force during a detainment. More specifically, the law was clearly established, and thus Aleshire should have known, that when one is not resisting arrest, attempting to escape, or otherwise posing a threat at the time of the alleged use of force, “slamming” one into walls and thereby causing injuries constitutes an excessive use of force. See, e.g., Bush, 513 F.3d at 502 (finding the plaintiffs version of events that “she was not resisting arrest or attempting to flee when [the officer] forcefully slammed her face into a nearby vehicle during her arrest” to indicate a violation of a clearly established right). April has presented evidence to support that she was not resisting, threatening others, or attempting to escape at both times Aleshire applied force. Aleshire also gave no indication that he felt threatened. Inferring these factual disputes in favor of April, summary judgment on the issue of qualified immunity is denied. Goodson v. City of Corpus Christi, 202 F.3d 730, 739 (5th Cir.2000) (denying qualified immunity on summary judgment “because ‘a genuine dispute as to the material and operative facts of this case exists, ... [s]ummary judgment is inappropriate unless plaintiffs version of the violations does not implicate clearly established law”’) (quoting Johnston v. City of Houston, 14 F.3d 1056 (5th Cir.1994)). Defendants’ version of events — that April was thrashing around during the initial detainment and only a minimal amount of force was used while April was trying to free herself in the second incident — present scenarios in which Aleshire’s use of force would likely be objectively reasonable. While such a determination might be made, and thus Officer Aleshire would be entitled to qualified immunity, the determination on these factual issues is a matter for the trier of fact.

For the same reasons that summary judgment is denied as to the excessive force claims under 42 U.S.C. § 1983, it is also denied as to the parallel state law claims (excessive force / battery and assault). Deville, 567 F.3d at 173 (finding “Louisiana’s excessive force tort mirrors its federal constitutional counterpart”). Thus, the motion for summary judgment filed by Aleshire (Rec. Doc. 44) as to the federal and state law claims for excessive force, assault, and battery, including the defense of qualified immunity, is DENIED.

iii. False Arrest, False Imprisonment, and Malicious Prosecution

Aleshire also, moves for summary judgment as to April’s claims of false arrest, false imprisonment, and malicious prosecution. Aleshire notes that, in addition to the lack of any factual support for these claims offered by Plaintiff, the chain of events at issue led to April’s adjudication as delinquent for battery of a police officer, thereby implicating the Heck doctrine.

Defendant has satisfied his burden of showing there is no disputed issue of material fact as to the claims of false arrest, false imprisonment, or malicious prosecution. Other than the enumerated list of claims in the Complaint, at no point does April expand upon these allegations. In her Opposition to the motion for summary judgment, Plaintiff failed to “identify specific evidence in the record [ ] and to articulate the ‘precise manner’ in which that evidence support[s] their claim.” Forsyth v. Barr, 19 F.3d 1527, 1537 (5th Cir.1994). In fact, April offered no opposition to the motion for summary judgment as to these claims at all, except for a broad statement that Heck should not apply to “all of plaintiffs claims.” (Rec. Doc. 48, at 11).

These claims would in fact be barred by application of the Heck doctrine. A ruling as to false arrest, false imprisonment, or malicious prosecution in this case would directly implicate the invalidity of the underlying conviction and as such is not permissible. See Heck, 512 U.S. at 486-87, 114 S.Ct. 2364. The Court also notes Plaintiffs failure to meet her burden in opposing the motion for summary judgment as to these claims.

Therefore, Aleshire’s motion for summary judgment (Rec. Doc. 44) as to Plaintiffs federal and state law claims for false arrest, false imprisonment, and malicious prosecution is GRANTED.

iv. Negligent and/or Intentional Infliction of Emotional Distress

Plaintiff also brings state law claims for intentional infliction of emotional distress and negligent infliction of emotional distress. In White v. Monsanto, the Louisiana Supreme Court explained that for a claim of intentional infliction of emotional distress a. plaintiff must establish “(1) that the conduct of the defendant was extreme and outrageous; (2) that the emotional distress suffered by the plaintiff was severe; and (3) that the defendant desired to inflict severe emotional distress or knew that severe emotional distress would be certain or substantially certain to result from his conduct.” 585 So.2d 1205, 1209 (La.1991).

Reading the pleadings broadly, Plaintiff cites the first incident of being thrown against the auditorium wall and handcuffed and the second incident of being thrown against the lockers as the extreme and outrageous conduct that gave rise to her severe emotional distress, evidenced by her subsequent treatments with psychiatrist Dr. Rene Duffourc, III for depression and anxiety. However, the Court cannot find in the allegations or the record any claim or evidence that Aleshire “desired to inflict severe emotional distress or knew that severe emotional distress would be certain or substantially certain to result from his conduct.” • Even assuming that there is an issue of material fact as to the other factors, the motion for summary judgment filed by Aleshire (Rec. Doc. 44) as to the claims of intentional infliction of emotional distress and an independent claim for negligent infliction of emotional distress is GRANTED.,

v. Punitive damages

Punitive damages may be awarded when the “defendant’s conduct involves reckless or callous indifference to the federally protected rights of others.” Smith v. Wade, 461 U.S. 30, 56, 103 S.Ct. 1625, 75 L.Ed.2d 632 (1983). The disputed facts as to the excessive force claim against Ale-shire also create a disputed issue of material fact as to the possible applicability of punitive damages in this case.

As a version of these events could lead to the conclusion that Aleshire acted with reckless indifference to the right of April to be free from the use of excessive force, the Court DENIES the motion for summary judgment filed by Aleshire (Rec. Doc. 44) as to this claim.

b. Claims applicable to several defendants

Below the Court will address several claims that were brought against nearly all of the defendants. In some cases, the Court will address the claim as applies to all, and in other cases, the Court will address the claim as it applies to a particular defendant for the sake of clarity but then briefly explain how the analysis also applies to the others.

i. Failure of Sheriff Strain, in his individual and official capacities, for the Hiring, Retention, Training, and Supervision of Aleshire under Federal Law

Although the pleadings are not exactly clear, the Court reads the Complaint to state a claim against Sheriff Strain in his official and individual capacities for his failure in hiring, retention, training and supervision .of Aleshire via § 1983.

Plaintiff points to the following evidence to support these claims: alleged inaction in the face of three lawsuits against Aleshire alleging use of. excessive force arising from traffic stops twenty years prior to the incident when employed by a different police department, another lawsuit alleging excessive force in a taser-related death in 2006 while employed by the St. Tammany Parish Sheriffs Department, an employee evaluation report which mentions that Ale-shire can be cool, reserved, and needs more instruction than average, and disciplinary actions against Aleshire for insubordination and running into a parked car on two different occasions. April also alleges that she complained to the police department following the incident in question but no further action was taken. None of the complaints in the civil lawsuits contain any showing of final disposition, any related criminal proceeding, or any showing that parallel complaints were filed with the relevant police department. There is also nothing in the record to suggest that the three complaints arising out of traffic stops were known to this sheriff at the time of hiring or institutionally to the municipality. There is no allegation, much less evidence, to show that a record of these lawsuits appears in an employment application or any other background check of which Sheriff Strain might have had access.

Officials in their personal or official capacities cannot be held liable for a subordinate’s actions via § 1983 on the basis of respondeat superior. Valle v. City of Houston, 613 F.3d 536, 541 (5th Cir.2010); Estate of Davis ex rel. McCully v. City of North Richland Hills, 406 F.3d 375, 381 (5th Cir.2005). So strongly have the courts sought to avoid this possibility that they require a showing of deliberate indifference attributable to the official or municipality before allowing a claim to proceed. Bd. of Cnty. Comm’rs of Bryan County v. Brown, 520 U.S. 397, 407, 117 S.Ct. 1382, 137 L.Ed.2d 626 (1997). The institution of this standard then explicitly forecloses the ability to rest merely on a showing of negligence (or even gross negligence). Estate of Davis, 406 F.3d at 381. Putting this standard into the sequence necessary for a plaintiff to properly plead his claim and create a triable issue of fact, the question then is if the official undertook or adopted a policy or custom for which he can be said to be deliberately indifferent to the right of the plaintiff to be free from the use of excessive force and that specific policy decision caused (was the “moving force of’) that constitutional injury. Brown v. Bryan County, OK, 219 F.3d 450, 457 (5th Cir.2000).

Evidence of a policy decision arises from identification of an “officially adopted and promulgated” decision by those with policymaking authority or a “persistent, ■widespread practice of city officials or employees, which, although not authorized by officially adopted and promulgated policy, is so common and well settled as to constitute a custom that fairly represents municipal policy.” Valle, 613 F.3d at 542 (citing Burge v. St. Tammany Parish, 336 F.3d 363, 369 (5th Cir.2003)); Brown, 219 F.3d at 457 (quoting Bennett v. City of Slidell, 735 F.2d 861, 862 (5th Cir.1984)). However, even if no official policy in the formal sense is identified and a plaintiff has not presented any evidence of a persistent, widespread practice, liability can still be founded in, rare cases on a single decision by a policymaker — the so-called “single incident exception.”

Recognizing that the single incident exception provides a possible avenue for circumvention of § 1983’s bulwark against respondeat superior theories of liability, the courts have plugged this possible hole with an additional obstacle. To establish deliberate indifference under this theory requires proof “that the highly predictable consequence of a failure to train would result in the specific injury suffered, and that the failure to train represented the moving force behind the constitutional violation.” Hobart v. Estrada, 582 Fed.Appx. 348 (5th Cir.2014) (quoting Valle, 613 F.3d at 547).

Plaintiff does not identify or allege an official policy in the formal sense or a persistent practice in the police department related to the claims at issue here. Thus, Plaintiffs claims against Sheriff Strain must be considered under the single incident exception.

A. Personal Capacity

April does not allege that Sheriff Strain was personally involved in the incidents at issue but instead seeks to place blame on the Sheriff as supervisor of Officer Ale-shire. Supervisors cannot be held liable under § 1983 for the actions of their subordinates under a theory of vicarious liability. City of Canton v. Harris, 489 U.S. 378, 385, 109 S.Ct. 1197, 103 L.Ed.2d 412 (1989). To establish a showing of failure to train or supervise, plaintiffs “‘must show that: _ (1) the supervisor either failed to supervise or train the subordinate official; (2) a causal link exists between the failure to train or supervise.and the violation of the plaintiffs rights; and (3) the failure to train or supervise amounts to deliberate indifference.’ ” Estate of Davis, 406 F.3d at 381 (citing Smith v. Brenoettsy, 158 F.3d 908, 911-12 (5th Cir.1998)).

The Sheriff can also benefit from qualified immunity as to the claim against him in his personal capacity. This familiar affirmative defense “protects government officials from ‘liability for civil damages insofar as their conduct does not violate clearly established statutory or constitutional rights of which a reasonable person would have known.’ ” Pearson v. Callahan, 555 U.S. 223, 231, 129 S.Ct. 808, 172 L.Ed.2d 565 (2009) (quoting Harlow v. Fitzgerald, 457 U.S. 800, 818, 102 S.Ct. 2727, 73 L.Ed.2d 396 (1982)).

To establish disputed facts for this claim, “ ‘the focus must be on the adequacy of the training program in relation to the tasks the particular officers must perform.’ ” Roberts v. City of Shreveport, 397 F.3d 287, 293 (5th Cir.2005) (quoting City of Canton, 489 U.S. at 390-91, 109 S.Ct. 1197). The “plaintiff must allege with specificity how a particular training program is defective.” Id. at 293 (citing Benavides v. Cnty. of Wilson, 955 F.2d 968, 973 (5th Cir.1992)). To establish deliberate indifference on the part of the official, “[he] must both be aware of facts from which the inference could be drawn that a substantial risk of serious harm exists, and he must also draw the inference.” Estate of Davis, 406 F.3d at 381 (quoting Brenoettsy, 158 F.3d at 912). Further, -“[a] plaintiff seeking recovery under a failure to train or supervise rationale must prove that the police chief failed to control an officer’s ‘known propensity for the improper use of force.’ ” Roberts, 397 F.3d at 292 (citing Sims v. Adams, 537 F.2d 829, 832 (5th Cir.1976); Chestnut v. City of Quincy, 513 F.2d 91, 92 (5th Cir.1975)). In sum, a plaintiff must “show that the failure to train reflects a ‘deliberate’ or ‘conscious’ choice to endanger constitutional rights.” Estate of Davis, 406 F.3d at 383. It is clear that this showing must extend to both the knowledge of the' decisionmaker and the subsequent reaction to that knowledge.

The Sheriff points out that no evidence of such a decision has been presented which can be properly attributed to the decisionmaker.

The Court has listed above the evidence which Plaintiff cites as indication of Aleshire’s propensity for violence. To establish knowledge on part of the Sheriff, Plaintiff argues that the lawsuits arising twenty years earlier when employed by a different police department are matters of public record, and thus this past “was or should have been known to Strain.” (Ree.' Doc. 48, at 20). The Court assumes that Plaintiff would argue the Sheriff had knowledge of the evaluation report and the 2006 incident since those arose while Ale-shire was under the auspices of the St. Tammany Parish Sheriffs Department. As to the supervisory or policy decision, it appears that Plaintiff alleges that not requiring greater than average instruction or training, retaining Aleshire on the force, and placing him in the role as school resource officer constitutes deliberate indifference to her constitutional rights to be free from excessive force.

While on the surface these claims might seem to have merit, a close examination of the facts in light of Fifth Circuit ease law must be considered as it relates to Sheriff Strain.

No facts appear in the Complaint or elsewhere in the record to show a specific inadequacy in a training or supervision program. Plaintiffs Opposition is limited to a statement that “[although the Sheriff knew that Aleshire ‘[Requires more than average instructions and explanations’ [quoting Aleshire’s evaluation report], he never required Aleshire to undergo greater than average instruction and training and subjected Aleshire to greater supervision and control.” (Rec. Doc. 48, at 4). The law in this area, cited above, clearly shows that a plaintiff must point with some specificity to an inadequacy in the training or supervision decisions.

A failure to train or supervise can also be established by a showing that there was no training or supervision program required of the particular individual at all. Brown, 219 F.3d at 458. However, there can be no dispute that training was provided to Aleshire, as the record clearly indicates. In addition to his general training at the Police Officer Standards and Training Academy and ongoing training mandated by the St. Tammany Parish Sheriffs Office, Aleshire has undergone numerous training programs related to his school assignment. He completed both the basic and advanced “SRO” (school resource officer) courses at the Police Officer Standards and Training Academy, trained with the “DARE” program and with the School Safety Council, and has attended the National Association of School Resource Officers Conference. (Rec. Doc. 44-6, ¶¶ 4-5). Plaintiff does not point to particular deficiencies in any of these programs (nor, in fact, even mentions them). The Court also notes that typically the defect in training must be causally linked to the alleged constitutional violation (e.g., excessive, lethal use of force and no training provided on adjusting use of force for severity of the situation). Hobart, 582 Fed.Appx. at 356-58. However, as Plaintiff made no such specific allegation, the Court mentions the training record to show the overall absence of any issue as to the lack of training as well.

The Court assumes the claim must be that with more or different training this incident would not have occurred. However, even if Plaintiff could show that more training or supervision would have prevented the incident, an argument relying only on “but-for” causation based on a sole, conclusory allegation fails to create an issue as to the required elements. See Roberts, 397 F.3d at 293 (finding that even “mere proof that the injury could have been prevented if the officer had received better or additional training cannot, without more, support liability”). Here, Ale-shire had been a police officer for twenty-six years and a school resource officer for three years prior to the incident. There are no other issues cited to the Court that arose in his position as a school resource officer. His extensive training is outlined above. Equally problematic is the lack of a genuine issue of fact as to the knowledge of the Sheriff.

Deliberate indifference in the context of a § 1983 claim relates to a measure of intent rather than one of negligence. Whitley v. Hanna, 726 F.3d 631, 641 (5th Cir.2013) (citations omitted). .As a result, not only must there be some specificity as to the decision giving rise to the constitutional violation, but that decision must be made in the face of knowledge that would dictate a decision to the contrary. See Valle, 613 F.3d at 547 (noting that this standard thus requires evidence that the “municipal actor disregarded a known or obvious consequence of his action”). This Court has found only one Fifth Circuit case which upholds liability (albeit municipal) on the “single incident exception.”

In Brown v. Bryan Cnty., OK, the court upheld a finding of municipal liability based on one decision by the sheriff— deciding to not train or supervise a particular deputy who thereafter used excessive force against a citizen. 219 F.3d 450 (5th Cir.2000). That decision contains three underpinnings essential to this Court’s evaluation. First, the court found that the sheriff provided no training or supervision (at least not formally) to the offend-. ing officer. Id. at 458, 462. Second, the court observed the background of the officer at issue, which included the following: no prior experience or education in law enforcement; twenty-one years of age; arrests for assault and battery, resisting arrest, public drunkenness, driving while intoxicated, possession of false identification, driving with a suspended license, nine moving traffic violations, an outstanding arrest warrant; and, an “excessive number of takedown arrests” in his few weeks on the job similar to but preceding the central incident in that case. Id. at 454-55. ' Third, and critical for present purposes, the court explained why it upheld a finding that the sheriff had notice of the officer’s background. Id. at 458, 462 (“[T]he jury could have reasonably concluded that Moore knew of Burns’s immature background.”). It came to this conclusion on the basis of the family relationship between the sheriff and the officer, the small size of the police department, the arrests that the sheriff had authorized the officer to make, and the sheriffs recent review of the officer’s background file made available to him containing the information regarding his arrests. Id. This provides a stark contrast to the factual setting of the case currently before this Court.

Again, Plaintiff identifies no specific failure in a training or supervision policy; nor does she allege its complete absence. Even if Plaintiff did provide some claim as to such a lack of policy, there is no evidence establishing knowledge on the part of the Sheriff as to any proclivity for violence on the part of Aleshire.

The three lawsuits alleging excessive force arising out of traffic stops twenty years prior to the incident while employed by a different police department do not appear in any report or communication to the Sheriff that has been provided to the Court. Instead, Plaintiff has attached the complaints in those cases to her Complaint and notes only that they are “in the public record.” Critically, nothing indicates that the Sheriff or St. Tammany Parish had any knowledge of these events. The Court has found no case where knowledge has been imputed on so little, and thus finds no triable issue of fact here. In attributing knowledge to the sheriff in Brown, the court noted that not- only did the sheriff have a report highlighting the incidents in the officer’s past but also that he had recently reviewed the report and was related to the officer. Brown, 219 F.3d at 462. In Estate of Davis, the Fifth Circuit found that there was no issue of knowledge oh the part of an officer’s supervisors where the plaintiff presented a department’s background investigation report but did no more to show the supervisors’ awareness of that report. Estate of Davis, 406 F.3d at 385. These holdings are not based on unique factual settings but, rather, they are manifestations of the elements of deliberate indifference. Since there is no issue of fact concerning knowledge of these past events, the Court goes no further in analyzing the nature of those past incidents.

The Court is also constrained from imputing knowledge of the evaluation report and disciplinary actions to the Sheriff based only on the showing that they occurred during Aleshire’s employment with the St. Tammany Parish Sheriffs Department. Id. The Court also notes the lack of relevance of the evaluation report and the disciplinary actions as to Plaintiffs claim of deliberate indifference to be free from an excessive use of force. Id. at 383-84 (disregarding specific instances of poor conduct for lack of connection to the alleged violation of a constitutional right); see also Gros v. City of Grand Prairie, 209 F.3d 431, 435-36 (5th Cir.2000) (using a similar analysis for past instances of poor conduct under a failure in hiring claim).

None of the instances cited in Aleshire’s disciplinary file show any proclivity to violence under even the most liberal reading. In brief, the four incidents cited during his nine years at that point with the St. Tammany Parish Sheriffs Department consisted of two car accidents, a failure to follow instructions relating to computer use, and a failure to help an individual report a stolen truck. These disciplinary events resulted in punishments ranging from reprimands to suspension without pay and extended probation. The evaluation report is even less helpful to Plaintiffs case, as it seems to also provide some positive light on Aleshire. Although the evaluation report does note that Aleshire “[r]equires more than average instructions and explanations,” is “very distant and aloof,” and has a “personality questionable for the job,” it also finds that Aleshire is “usually accurate [and] makes only average number of mistakes,” is “moderately informed [and] can answer most questions,” and “has average tolerance for crises [and] usually remains calm.” (Rec. Doc. 48-3). Regardless of how these qualities might tip the scale one way or another in a job performance review, one thing is clear— they indicate nothing that would suggest deliberate indifference to an individual’s right to be free from excessive use of force.

This leaves the Court with the 2006 incident, which was attached to Plaintiffs Complaint. No evidence appears that this instance was substantiated in any way — by a finding of judicial liability, by a parallel disciplinary record with the sheriffs department, or by a parallel criminal proceeding. Fifth Circuit precedent routinely disregards such unsupported evidence to find a proclivity for the use of excessive force. See, e.g., Aguillard v. McGowen, 207 F.3d 226, 230 (5th Cir.2000) (finding that a report of an officer assaulting and pistol-whipping a teenage boy did not show the officer “likely to use excessive force in general” where there was no subsequent arrest or conviction); Gros, 209 F.3d at 435 (choosing not to consider a complaint where the complaint was not sustained); Brooks v. Scheib, 813 F.2d 1191, 1193 (11th Cir.1987); see Estate of Davis, 406 F.3d at 384, n. 45 (explaining this Circuit’s skepticism of unsubstantiated complaints). The Court also notes even if this did create an issue of fact as to Aleshire’s proclivity for violence and that the Sheriff did have notice, the Sheriff had instituted significant and ongoing additional training for Ale-shire around this same time specifically for his role as a school resource officer.

Plaintiff seeks to have it both ways. In the absence of showing a propensity on the part of Aleshire to use excessive force, she relies on overly broad claims of deficient training and supervision. In the absence of alleging with any specificity the defect in the training or supervision programs, she relies on alleging the allegations in a complaint filed in a single lawsuit about which no further information is present regarding substantiation, findings of liability, or parallel, criminal proceedings. Defendant has pointed out the additional training that Aleshire had undergone for his role as a school resource officer and noted the lack of showing as to any policy decision (or conscious omission) on the part of the Sheriff. Plaintiff has not created an issue of fact in response. Perhaps some additional step or variation in training or supervision could have been helpful, but the Court finds at most such a broad allegation in the face of specific training programs would amount to negligence at most.

Turning to the claims of failure in hiring or retention, the Court recognizes that such claims should ordinarily be addressed separately from claims for failure in training or supervision. Bd. of Cnty. Comm’rs, 520 U.S. at 409, 117 S.Ct. 1382. However, the Court also recognizes that many of the elements for these claims, and their analy-ses, mirror each other.

As the claims before the Court fail on those elements shared in common with the claims addressed immediately above, the Court notes that such a claim fails for the same reasons. First, no specific policy is identified. Second, the lack of evidence as to notice remains the same. Third, the Court reemphasizes the lack of showing of any substantiation as to the 2006 complaint. Bd. of Cnty. Comm’rs of Bryan County v. Brown, this time the Supreme Court’s 1997 opinion addressing a claim for failure in hiring, is again instructive. In that case, among several other incidents noted in the officer’s background file, the Supreme Court focused on a prior conviction for assault and battery. Id. at 413-14, 117 S.Ct. 1382. The Supreme Court went on to find though that even with this knowledge and even assuming that liability could be imposed based upon the sheriffs single decision to hire .this candidate, it could not be shown that the sheriff was deliberately indifferent to the plaintiffs right to be free from the use of excessive force. Id. at 412, 414, 117 S.Ct. 1382. Justice O’Connor appeared to focus in part on the fact that this evidence was limited to a single prior incident. Id. at 413, n. 2, 117 S.Ct. 1382.

Since there is no issue of fact to establish deliberate indifference in hiring or retaining Aleshire based on an unsubstantiated single prior incident of which there has been any showing of any notice to the Sheriff, the claim for supervisory liability as to failure in hiring or retention also fails.

B. Official Capacity

With the exception of the application of qualified immunity, the analyses for these claims are largely'the same whether being brought against an official in his personal or in his official capacity. See, e.g., Goodman v. Harris Cnty., 571 F.3d 388, 396 (5th Cir.2009) (“Largely the same analysis and conclusions follow [for the claim against the municipality] as outlined above with respect to Goodman’s § 1983 claim against Hickman [in his personal capacity].”). A showing as to some policy decision, notice, and the deliberate indifference standard are all required. Burge v. St. Tammany Parish, 336 F.3d 363, 370 (5th Cir.2003). Thus, for overlapping parts of the analyses, courts routinely cite precedent regardless of the capacity in which the individual is being sued. See, e.g., Estate of Davis, 406 F.3d at 383-86 (citing to cases brought against officials in their official capacity while addressing a claim brought against supervisors in their personal capacity); Roberts, 397 F.3d 287 (same). Thus, the Court comes to the same conclusions regarding these claims.

The motion for summary judgment filed by Sheriff Strain (Rec. Doc. 44) as to the claims for failure in hiring, retention, training, and supervision filed against him in his official and personal capacity under federal law is GRANTED.

ii. Ratification / Official Policy or Custom of Ignoring Complaints

The Plaintiff also argues that the Sheriff “ratified” or “approved” Aleshire’s actions when he did not discipline Aleshire. As the Court does not discern a distinction in Plaintiffs pleading as to the difference between this claim and the claim of an “official policy or custom of ignoring complaints and of performing no investigation or grossly defective investigations of such complaints [to the extent this would not be addressed by the claims reviewed above],” it treats them together.

The Fifth Circuit has limited such a claim to extreme factual scenarios. Peterson v. City of Fort Worth, TX., 588 F.3d 838, 848 (5th Cir.2009). This reflects the legal reality that the standard approach of showing liability through ratification or “tacit authorization” is via a pattern of violations. A pattern does not exist in this case. The extreme factual scenario of Grandstajf also does not exist here. Id. (“Compare Grandstaff v. City of Borger, 767 F.2d 161 (5th Cir.1985) (finding ratification in [a] case in which officers ‘poured’ gunfire onto a truck and killed an innocent occupant), with Snyder [v. Trepagnier ], 142 F.3d [791] at 798 [(5th Cir.1998)] (refusing to find ratification in a case in which an officer shot the fleeing suspect in the back)”). The Court also notes the inadequacy of a showing of “ ‘a mere failure to investigate the basis of a subordinate’s discretionary decisions [to] amount to such a delegation” to give rise to municipal liability. Milam v. City of San Antonio, 113 Fed.Appx. 622, 626-27 (5th Cir.2004) (quoting City of St. Louis v. Praprotnik, 485 U.S. 112, 130, 108 S.Ct. 915, 99 L.Ed.2d 107 (1988)); Fraire v. City of Arlington, 957 F.2d 1268, 1278-79 (5th Cir.1992) (holding that a policy of encouraging “misconduct ‘cannot be inferred from a municipality’s isolated decision not to discipline a single officer for a single incident of illegality’ ”) (citations omitted); see also Hobart v. City of Stafford, 916 F.Supp.2d 783, 799 (S.D.Tex.2013) (finding that no such claim exists under supervisory liability).

The only elaboration on these claims contained in April’s pleadings is a claim that the Sheriff did not discipline Aleshire after the incidents at issue in this case. Therefore, the motion for summary judgment filed by Sheriff Strain (Rec. Doc. 44) as to the claims under federal law for ratification or an official policy or custom of ignoring complaints is GRANTED.

iii. Failure of the St. Tammany Parish School Board, Gayle Sloan in her individual and official capacities as Superintendent of the St. Tammany Parish School Board, and Johnny Vitrano in his individual and official capacities as Principal of Fontainebleau High School, for the Hiring, Retention, Training, and Supervision of Ale-shire under Federal Law; Ratification / Official Policy or Custom of Ignoring Complaints

As an initial matter, Defendants Gayle Sloan and Johnny Vitrano seek summary judgment on the claims against them in their official capacity. They argue that such claims are duplicative as the same claims are stated against the St. Tammany Parish School Board.

The Court has reviewed the claims and found them to be the same. As claims against Vitrano and Sl