Derek J. Burton v. Derek Hagen

United States Court of Appeals
For the Seventh Circuit
Chicago, Illinois 60604
Submitted August 18, 2026*
Decided August 20, 2026
Before
MICHAEL B. BRENNAN, Chief Judge
AMY J. ST. EVE, Circuit Judge
JOHN Z. LEE, Circuit Judge
No. 24-2862
DEREK J. BURTON,
Plaintiff-Appellant,
v.
DEREK HAGEN, et al.,
Defendants-Appellees.
Appeal from the United States District
Court for the Central District of Illinois.
No. 21-2238
Sara Darrow,
Judge.
O R D E R
Derek Burton, a former pretrial detainee at the Iroquois County Jail in Watseka,
Illinois, sued jail officers and medical staff, alleging that a delay in treatment for his
fractured hand violated his rights under the Fourteenth Amendment. See 42 U.S.C. §
* We have agreed to decide the case without oral argument because the briefs and
record adequately present the facts and legal arguments, and oral argument would not
significantly aid the court. F ED. R. A PP . P. 34(a)(2)(C).
NONPRECEDENTIAL DISPOSITION
To be cited only in accordance with F ED. R. APP . P. 32.1

-- 1 of 3 --

No. 24-2862 Page 2
1983. The district court granted summary judgment for the defendants, concluding that
the delay was not unreasonable and that it did not exacerbate Burton’s condition. We
affirm.
On June 8, 2020, while awaiting transfer to the Iroquois County Jail from Hill
Correctional Center in Galesburg, Illinois, Burton punched either a door or a bedframe
and injured his hand. Sheriff Derek Hagen arrived to transfer Burton to the jail, and
Burton told Hagen that he injured his hand and needed treatment. Hagen responded
that Burton could receive care at the jail. Upon arrival at the jail, Officers Matthew
Pulley and Jessie Kochenberger completed Burton’s booking process, and Burton told
them that the pain and swelling in his hand required medical attention. Neither the
inmate questionnaire nor the “Officer’s Visual Observations Form” completed during
his booking process reflected that Burton needed emergency or immediate medical care.
The forms stated that Burton arrived at the jail with over-the-counter pain medication.
At Iroquois, pre-scheduled medical visits from contracted physicians or nurse
practitioners happen once every other week, and to be seen, detainees must fill out an
inmate request form and provide all necessary information. Iroquois’s policy also
promises detainees a free medical screening within 14 days of admission.
Burton put in a medical request on June 15 regarding his hand injury. Officer Joe
Jaskula told Burton that he would be placed on the list to see a medical provider at the
next available opportunity. Three days later, on June 18, Burton was seen by a nurse,
and the next day, June 19, he was seen by Nurse Practitioner Rebecca Koerner, who
ordered an x-ray of his hand. On June 29, Investigator Eric Starkey transferred Burton to
his x-ray appointment. The x-ray revealed “evidence for an acute fracture” and signs of
a previous healed fracture in his hand. According to Burton, the x-ray technician told
Starkey that Burton broke his hand in two spots. Based on these results, Koerner
referred Burton to an orthopedic specialist.
On July 10, 2020, Burton visited the orthopedic specialist. The specialist noted
that Burton’s fracture was healing well and determined that ice, pain medication, and
one round of physical therapy was the proper course of treatment. Burton had a
follow-up appointment in August where the specialist observed that Burton was able to
make a full fist and seemed to have minimal discomfort. The specialist took another
x-ray, which revealed that Burton’s fracture was healing in good alignment. Because of
these positive signs, the specialist determined further treatment was not necessary.

-- 2 of 3 --

No. 24-2862 Page 3
Burton sued Koerner, Hagen, Kochenberger, Pulley, Jaskula, and Starkey under
42 U.S.C. § 1983, alleging they acted unreasonably in treating his injured hand. The
defendants moved for summary judgment, arguing that the record could not support a
finding that any of the defendants were objectively unreasonable in responding to
Burton’s injury. The district court granted the motion, concluding that the defendants
had acted diligently in obtaining care for Burton’s hand, and that Burton had not shown
that any treatment delay exacerbated his condition or caused harm.
On appeal, Burton first argues that a reasonable jury could conclude that the 11-
day delay in receiving treatment from a nurse practitioner caused harm. We disagree.
To succeed on his claim that the defendants acted unreasonably by delaying his care,
Burton had to present “‘verifying medical evidence that the delay’ in medical care
‘caused some degree of harm.’” Miranda v. Cnty. of Lake, 900 F.3d 335, 347 (7th Cir. 2018)
(quoting Williams v. Liefer, 491 F.3d 710, 715 (7th Cir. 2007)). But the medical evidence
here points to the opposite. The orthopedic specialist determined that Burton’s hand
was healing appropriately with minimal intervention. There is no suggestion in the
record that the 11-day wait to see Koerner exacerbated Burton’s injury. Moreover, while
“[a] delay in the provision of medical treatment for painful conditions—even non-life-
threatening conditions—can support” liability, Grieveson v. Anderson, 538 F.3d 763, 779
(7th Cir. 2008), “the length of delay that is tolerable depends on the seriousness of the
condition and the ease of providing treatment,” McGowan v. Hulick, 612 F.3d 636, 640
(7th Cir. 2010). No reasonable jury could conclude that Burton suffered an intolerable
delay. To be sure, Burton’s hand was painful and swollen. But he waited seven days to
put in a medical request and was seen by a nurse practitioner within four days of his
request. Moreover, Burton had access to over-the-counter pain medication during this
period.
Burton also argues that the district court erred in resolving factual disputes in
favor of the defendants. Specifically, he points to the district court’s statement that
Burton was seen at the “first available visit,” on June 19. But Burton arrived at the jail
on June 8, and the defendants testified that the next bi-weekly visit from a nurse
practitioner occurred on June 19. Burton has not presented any evidence that a medical
provider was available to evaluate him before this date.
AFFRIMED

-- 3 of 3 --