The opinion
IN THE DISTRICT COURT OF THE UNITED STATES FOR THE
MIDDLE DISTRICT OF ALABAMA, NORTHERN DIVISION
WILLIAM R. SMITH, as )
administrator of the estate )
of Michael J. Smith, )
)
Plaintiff, )
) CIVIL ACTION NO.
v. ) 2:21cv468-MHT
) (WO)
JUJUAN WHIGHAM, et al., )
)
Defendants. )
OPINION AND ORDER
This case comes before the court on defendant
Derek Simmons’s motion to stay proceedings in this
civil action. For the reasons that follow, the motion
will be denied.
Plaintiff William R. Smith, as the administrator of
the estate of Michael J. Smith, brought claims against
Simmons and defendants JuJuan Whigham, Dennis Brown,
and Dominic Whitley under 42 U.S.C. § 1983 and state
law for their alleged roles in the death of Michael
Smith while incarcerated at the Ventress Correctional
Facility. According to the complaint, on or about
November 30, 2019, Whigham and Simmons beat decedent
Smith, inflicting blunt force head trauma and traumatic
brain injury that resulted in his death. Complaint
(Doc. 1) at 3–7. Simmons now moves for a stay of this
civil action based on a criminal investigation into
Smith’s death that Simmons asserts is pending.
The court “has broad discretion to stay proceedings
as an incident to its power to control its own docket.”
, 520 U.S. 681, 706 (1997). In
exercising this discretion, the court “must assess and
balance the nature and substantiality of the injustices
claimed on either side.” , No.
3:12cv177-MHT, 2013 WL 842710, at *2 (M.D. Ala. 2013)
(Thompson, J.) (quoting ,
523 F. Supp. 2d 1, 3 (D.D.C. 2007) (Sullivan, J.)).
When a defendant in a civil action moves for a stay
pending a criminal prosecution, “it is the rule, rather
than the exception that the civil and criminal cases
proceed together.” , 2013 WL 842710, at *2
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(brackets omitted) (quoting
, 571 F. Supp. 2d
758, 761 (W.D. Tex. 2008) (Martinez, J.)). “[A] court
must stay a civil proceeding pending resolution of a
related criminal prosecution only when ‘special
circumstances’ so require in the ‘interests of
justice.’”
, 23 F.3d 359, 364 (11th Cir. 1994) (quoting
, 397 U.S. 1, 12 & n.27 (1970)).
Factors to be considered in this analysis include “(1)
the extent to which the issues in the criminal case
overlap with those presented in the civil case; (2) the
status of the case, including whether the defendants
have been indicted; (3) the private interests of the
plaintiffs in proceeding expeditiously weighed against
the prejudice to plaintiffs caused by the delay; (4)
the private interests of and burden on the defendants;
(5) the interests of the courts; and (6) the public
interest.” , 2013 WL 842710, at *3 (quoting
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, No. 1:09cv488-WHA,
2009 WL 2960387, at *1 (M.D. Ala. 2009) (Albritton,
J.)).
Simmons has not made a showing of special
circumstances sufficient to justify a stay of the
action at this time. No defendant has been indicted,
and the parties cannot concretely identify steps that
have been taken in the asserted criminal investigation
for most of the nearly two years since the alleged
incident. Counsel for Simmons represented that Simmons
was interviewed by the Alabama Department of
Corrections Investigations and Intelligence Division
twice within roughly one month of the alleged incident,
nearly two years ago. Simmons argues that even the
uncertain potential of a criminal case implicates his
Fifth Amendment privilege against self-incrimination.
But “a blanket assertion of the privilege is an
inadequate basis for the issuance of a stay.” ,
23 F.3d at 364. “The court may deny a stay so long as
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the privilege’s invocation does not compel an adverse
judgment against the claimant.” At this early
stage of proceedings and in light of the presently
available information as to any criminal investigation,
Simmons’s assertions of prejudice are inadequate to
outweigh the public interest and the interest of
plaintiff administrator William Smith in expeditious
resolution of this case. The court will revisit the
issue if later circumstances warrant such.
***
Accordingly, it is ORDERED that defendant Derek
Simmons’s motion to stay proceedings (Doc. 23) is
denied at this time.
DONE, this the 30th day of September, 2021.
/s/ Myron H. Thompson
UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE
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