Drummond v. Ohio Dept. of Rehab. & Corr.

Inmate Assault, Rape, Negligence, Damages, Stipulation. Defendant stipulated that its employees breached their duty of care towards plaintiff after eight inmates entered plaintiff's cell, then assaulted and raped plaintiff for approximately 90 minutes before staff intervention. A trial was held on the issue of damages. The magistrate found that the testimony of plaintiff's treating physician, who also served as defendant's medical expert, was credible in that plaintiff's hip injuries were consistent with normal wear and tear, not an acute injury from the attack. The magistrate further found that plaintiff had proven pain and suffering damages from the attack and recommended an award of $175,000.00 in compensatory damages.

The Court of Claims of Ohio did not err in granting appellee's Civ.R. 12(B)(1) motion to dismiss for lack of subject-matter jurisdiction. The collective bargaining agreement between the parties provides for final and binding arbitration, and all three of appellant's claims relate to employment matters covered by the collective bargaining agreement. Thus, pursuant to R.C. 4117.10(A), arbitration was appellant's exclusive remedy, and the Court of Claims lacked subject-matter jurisdiction to hear her claims. Judgment affirmed.

Objections Civ.R. 53(D) Disability Discrimination Reasonable Accommodation Assault Battery Ratification. After trial, plaintiff filed objections to the magistrate's decision. The court overruled plaintiff's objections on her disability discrimination claims, finding that plaintiff's requests for transfer to two other facilities were not reasonable accommodations. However, the court sustained plaintiff's objection on her assault and battery claims, finding defendant ratified its employee's assault and battery upon plaintiff. Therefore, the court modified the magistrate's decision, rendered judgment in favor of plaintiff on her assault and battery claims, and referred the case to the magistrate for a determination of damages on the assault and battery claims.