# Rowell v. Muskogee County Board of County Commissioners

> District Court, E.D. Oklahoma · October 22, 2019

URL: https://www.frixlaw.com/law-library/cases/10384886

## Case

- **Court:** District Court, E.D. Oklahoma
- **Decided:** October 22, 2019
- **Opinion:** 100trialcourt
- **Cited by:** 0 later opinions in the Frix Law Library

## Citator (automated)

- No negative treatment found by the automated citator. That is not the same as a confirmation that the case is good law; read the citing cases.
- Full citator and citing cases: https://www.frixlaw.com/law-library/cases/10384886

## Opinion text

IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE
EASTERN DISTRICT OF OKLAHOMA

ZACHARY ROWELL, as Special )
Administrator in the matter of the estate )
of Marvin A. Rowell, and individually, )
)
Plaintiff, )
)
v. ) Case No. CIV-18-125-RAW
)
BOARD OF COUNTY )
COMMISSIONERS OF MUSKOGEE )
COUNTY, OKLAHOMA, et al., )
)
)
)
)
)
Defendants. )
ORDER
Before the court is the motion of defendant Rob Frazier for summary judgment. In
a companion order, the court described the factual record and granted the motion for
summary judgment of defendant Dakota West. The court found that, even viewing the record
in the light most favorable to the plaintiff, West did not commit a constitutional violation.
Accordingly, the §1983 claim against movant (the Sheriff of Muskogee County, sued in his
official capacity) necessarily fails.
An official capacity claim is the same as a suit against the entity (here, the County)
and proceeds under a theory of “municipal liability.” See Lopez v. LeMaster, 172 F.3d 756,
762 (10th Cir.1999); see also Monell v. Dep’t of Soc. Servs. of N.Y.C., 436 U.S. 658, 707-08
(1978). Such liability requires an underlying constitutional violation. See Olsen v. Layton
Hills Mall, 312 F.3d 1304-1317-18 (10th Cir.2002). Likewise, without a constitutional

violation, a claim of failure to train and supervise fails. Graves v. Thomas, 450 F.3d 1215,
1218 (10th Cir.2006).
It is the order of the court that the motion for summary judgment of defendant Rob
Frazier (#86) is hereby granted.

IT IS SO ORDERED this 22nd day of OCTOBER, 2019.

_________________________________
RONALD A. WHITE
UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE

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Source: Frix Law Library, https://www.frixlaw.com/law-library/cases/10384886. Public record. Not legal advice.