Opinion

Brown

Court
District Court, W.D. Oklahoma
Filed
Feb 10, 2026
Cited by
0 cases
Authority
More cited than 38.5%

The opinion

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

WESTERN DISTRICT OF OKLAHOMA

KEVIN MAURICE BROWN, )

)

Plaintiff, )

)

v. ) No. CIV-24-706-R

)

FNU COLE, et al., )

)

Defendants. )

ORDER

Plaintiff, a state prisoner proceeding pro se,1 brought this civil rights action under

42 U.S.C. § 1983. The matter was referred to United States Magistrate Judge Shon T. Erwin

for initial proceedings in accordance with 28 U.S.C. § 636(b)(1)(B) and (C). Several claims

were previously dismissed upon screening and the only remaining claim is against Dr.

Michael Boger for deliberate indifference to serious medical needs in violation of the

Eighth Amendment.

Now before the Court is Judge Erwin’s Report and Recommendation [Doc. No. 71]

recommending that Dr. Boger’s Motion to Dismiss be granted and the claim dismissed for

failure to state a claim. Plaintiff filed a timely Objection [Doc. No. 72] which gives rise to

the Court’s obligation to make a de novo determination of those portions of the Report to

which a specific objection is made. 28 U.S.C. § 636(b)(1); Fed R. Civ. P. 72(b)(3).

1 Because Petitioner is proceeding pro se, the Court affords his materials a liberal

construction but does not act as his advocate. Hall v. Bellmon, 935 F.2d 1106, 1110 (10th

Cir. 1991).

Plaintiff alleges that Dr. Boger denied him medical care because he did not provide

him with a walking cane for several months even though he knew Plaintiff needed one

because he is blind. To succeed on this claim, Plaintiff must show that the defendant acted

with deliberate indifference to his serious medical needs, a standard that includes both an

objective and a subjective component. Lucas v. Turn Key Health Clinics, LLC, 58 F.4th

1127, 1136 (10th Cir. 2023). Judge Erwin’s Report found that Plaintiff failed to allege the

subjective component because he had not included facts plausibly showing that Dr. Boger

was subjectively aware that Plaintiff faced a substantial risk of serious harm by not having

a walking stick.

Plaintiff’s Objection does not substantively engage with the analysis and

conclusions reached in the Report. Because Plaintiff has not raised a specific objection to

the Report, he has waived further review of the issues contained therein. See United States

v. 2121 E. 30th St., 73 F.3d 1057, 1060 (10th Cir. 1996). In any event, upon review of

relevant filings, the Court concurs with Judge Erwin that Plaintiff has not plausibly alleged

that Dr. Boger acted with deliberate indifference to his serious medical needs. The facts

are not sufficient to plausibly show that Dr. Boger, even if he had knowledge of Plaintiff’s

blindness, knew of and disregarded a substantial risk of serious harm by not providing a

walking stick. At most, Plaintiff indicates a disagreement with Dr. Boger’s treatment

decisions, which is not sufficient to state a constitutional violation.

Accordingly, the Court ADOPTS the Report and Recommendation [Doc. No. 71].

Dr. Boger’s Motion to Dismiss [Doc. No. 61] is GRANTED and Plaintiff’s Motion for

Permanent Injunction [Doc. No. 59] is DENIED as moot. This action is dismissed without

prejudice.

IT IS SO ORDERED this 10“ day of February, 2026.

DAVID L. RUSSELL

UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE

This is a copy of a public record, reproduced as it was published. It is not legal advice, and it may not be the version a court would rely on. Check the official source before you cite it.

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