12-621-cv
Zalaski v. City of Hartford

                                UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS

                                        FOR THE SECOND CIRCUIT

                                           August Term, 2012

                         (Argued: February 27, 2013          Decided: July 23, 2013)

                                          Docket No. 12-621-cv

                               LISA ZALASKI, ANIMAL RIGHTS FRONT, INC.,
                                           DEREK V. OATIS,

                                                           Plaintiffs-Appellants,
                                                      v.

                              CITY OF HARTFORD, SERGEANT DANIEL ALBERT,

                                                           Defendants-Appellees.*

Before:
                              CALABRESI, POOLER, and RAGGI, Circuit Judges.

           On appeal from a judgment of the United States District Court for the District of

Connecticut (Bryant, J.), after a bench trial, plaintiffs challenge the rejection of their claims

that defendant Albert violated their First, Fourth, and Fourteenth Amendment rights when

           *
               The Clerk of Court is directed to amend the official caption as shown above.
he arrested them at a public event during which they were protesting the treatment of circus

animals. Insofar as the challenged judgment is based both on a finding that plaintiffs’ arrests

were supported by probable cause and on qualified immunity, we affirm on the latter ground

without reaching the former. Nevertheless, we vacate the judgment to the limited extent

necessary to order remand for the district court to clarify whether plaintiffs are entitled to

costs as a discovery sanction.

       AFFIRMED IN PART, VACATED IN PART, and REMANDED.

              DEREK V. OATIS, Lobo & Novak, LLP, Manchester, Connecticut, for
                   Plaintiffs-Appellants.

              HEIDI L. HAMILTON, Crumbie Law Group, Hartford, Connecticut, for
                    Defendants-Appellees.

REENA RAGGI, Circuit Judge:

       In this action pursuant to 42 U.S.C. § 1983, plaintiffs, the Animal Rights Front, Inc.

(“ARF”) and two of its members, Lisa Zalaski and Derek V. Oatis, appeal from a judgment

of the United States District Court for the District of Connecticut (Vanessa L. Bryant, Judge),

entered after a bench trial in favor of defendant, Hartford Police Sergeant Daniel Albert, on

claims that Albert violated plaintiffs’ First, Fourth, and Fourteenth Amendment rights when

he arrested Zalaski and Oatis at the public site of a children’s foot race during which

plaintiffs were protesting the treatment of animals by race sponsor Ringling Brothers and

                                              2
Barnum & Bailey Circus (“Ringling Brothers”). See Zalaski v. City of Hartford, 838

F. Supp. 2d 13 (D. Conn. 2012).1 Specifically, plaintiffs contend that the district court erred

in finding that (1) the challenged arrests were supported by probable cause to think that

Zalaski and Oatis were engaged in disorderly conduct in violation of Conn. Gen. Stat.

§ 53a-182(a)(5)–(6), see id. at 50–55; and (2) even if probable cause were lacking, qualified

immunity shielded Albert from liability for damages, see id. at 55–57.2 We affirm on the

ground of qualified immunity without deciding the question of whether there was actual

probable cause to arrest Zalaski and Oatis for disorderly conduct under Connecticut law. See

Pearson v. Callahan, 555 U.S. 223, 241 (2009); Doninger v. Niehoff, 642 F.3d 334, 346–47

(2d Cir. 2011).

I.     Background

       The pertinent facts, detailed in the district court’s 80-page post-trial memorandum

decision, are largely undisputed. See Zalaski v. City of Hartford, 838 F. Supp. 2d 13. In any

event, after a bench trial, we would set aside those factual determinations only for clear error,

       1
         Although plaintiffs also pursued a municipal liability claim against the City of
Hartford, because they do not appeal the district court’s pretrial dismissal of that claim, see
Zalaski v. City of Hartford, 838 F. Supp. 2d at 23, we deem any such challenge abandoned
and do not discuss it further in this opinion, see Lore v. City of Syracuse, 670 F.3d 127, 149
(2d Cir. 2012) (holding claims not addressed in appellate brief abandoned).
       2
        Because plaintiffs do not appeal the district court’s rejection of their First
Amendment free expression or Fourteenth Amendment malicious prosecution claims on any
ground apart from the challenged probable cause and qualified immunity determinations, we
need not discuss these claims separately from those that plaintiffs base on the Fourth
Amendment right to be free from unreasonable seizure.

                                               3
which is not evident here. See Inwood Labs., Inc. v. Ives Labs., Inc., 456 U.S. 844, 855–56

(1982).

         A.    The “Red Nose Run”

         On April 23, 2006, Riverfront Plaza—a public park that the City of Hartford leased

to Riverfront Recapture, a private, not-for-profit company—was the site of the first annual

“Red Nose Run,” an event that invited children as young as age four to participate in five

non-competitive foot races ranging in length from 50 yards to a mile. Approximately 300

persons, the majority of them young children, were expected to attend the event, a fundraiser

for the Boys & Girls Club of Hartford. The Run’s co-sponsors were the Hartford Marathon

Association and Ringling Brothers. Indeed, the Run was scheduled to coincide with the

arrival in Hartford of the Ringling Brothers Circus.

         All Red Nose Run races began from the same point in Riverfront Plaza and progressed

down a curved walkway. As the walkway veers leftward toward the Connecticut River, it

is abutted on the right by a triangular patio platform, raised by three steps. The part of the

patio approached from the walkway by the steps is approximately 66 feet in length. As it

approaches the patio, the walkway is bordered on both sides by grassy knolls dotted with

trees.

         Red Nose Run organizers installed a temporary tent on the patio platform. There,

children and their parents could register for, and reunite after, the races. At that site, each

participating child also received a prize and complimentary refreshments were available.

                                              4
       B.     The Challenged Arrests

              1.     Plaintiffs’ Initial Refusal To Move from the Walkway

       Joining the children and parents attending the Red Nose Run were approximately 10

to 15 animal rights activists, there to protest Ringling Brothers’ treatment of animals. Four

of these activists, including plaintiffs Zalaski and Oatis, were members of ARF.3 Zalaski and

Oatis carried a 6-foot by 4-foot banner proclaiming, “Got Freedom? The Animals Don’t.”

The two other attending ARF members carried a 6-foot by 5-foot banner portraying a

moribund elephant and the phrase “The Saddest Show on Earth.”

       At least some of the protestors, among them Zalaski and Oatis, initially located

themselves on the walkway near the patio steps. A non-plaintiff ARF member testified that

this was an “ideal spot” because it faced the start of the races and, thus, children would have

to run directly at the protestors and their signs. Dec. 5, 2011 Tr. 46.

       A number of parents complained to race organizers about protestors “yelling at” and

       3
         Apparently, Zalaski has protested the treatment of circus animals at Ringling
Brothers performances in New Haven, Hartford, or Bridgeport each year from 1997 to 2007,
see Zalaski v. City of Hartford, 838 F. Supp. 2d at 29, and, on at least one prior occasion,
with Oatis as her attorney, sued public officials for limiting her protest, see Zalaski v. City
of Bridgeport Police Dep’t, 613 F.3d 336 (2d Cir. 2010) (vacating summary judgment award
to defendant on plaintiffs’ First Amendment challenge to 80-foot demonstration-free zone
outside Bridgeport arena, and remanding for determination as to whether plaza adjacent to
arena was public forum), dismissed on remand by Friends of Animals, Inc. v. City of
Bridgeport, 833 F. Supp. 2d 205, 217 (D. Conn. 2011) (holding that, even if plaza were
limited public forum, 80-foot buffer zone would constitute reasonable time, place, and
manner restriction), aff’d sub nom. Zalaski v. City of Bridgeport Police Dep’t, 475 F. App’x
805, 2012 WL 3765016 (2d Cir. 2012) (summary order).

                                              5
“frighten[ing]” children at the race site. Dec. 8, 2011 Tr. 28, 32. They requested that the

protestors be relocated away from the children. Organizers and a park ranger asked

protestors on the walkway to move to one of the bordering grassy knolls, where other

protestors had already situated themselves. ARF members, including Zalaski and Oatis,

refused to move, prompting a call to the Hartford Police Department.

              2.     Sergeant Albert’s Dealings with Zalaski and Oatis

        Defendant Sergeant Albert was one of the officers who responded to Riverfront

Plaza. Much of his interaction with plaintiffs leading to the challenged arrests is recorded

in a video that is part of the record on appeal. In the video, an event organizer is heard

asking protestors to “work with me,” Rec. 0:56, while Oatis tells Albert that the protestors

intend no harm to children participating in the races, Rec. 1:20 (“The last thing we are going

to do is have some kids trip on each other or have something bad happen.”). After surveying

the scene and learning that race organizers had a permit for the event, Sergeant Albert

requested that ARF protestors on the walkway move up onto the patio steps. The ARF

protestors, including Zalaski and Oatis, complied.

       On the steps, the protestors no longer obstructed the walkway where races would be

run, but, with their outstretched signs, they did partially block access to the

registration/refreshment area. Upon hearing complaints to this effect, Sergeant Albert asked

the ARF protestors on the steps to join the other protestors on the grassy knoll. At trial,

Albert explained that he made the request because he expected the problem of free passage

                                              6
on the steps to worsen as more races were run and more people sought access to the platform.

See Dec. 8, 2011 Tr. 93 (“[T]he platform was filling up, the obstructing I thought had

increased because there w[ere] more people that had to, you know, work their way around

this banner. There were more runs to come, more waves of runs to come. There would be

more people wanting to use the platform.”). Albert testified that he viewed his directive as

a “reasonable compromise” between the protestors and other race attendees. Id. at 80. If the

protestors on the steps moved to the nearby grassy knoll, where other protestors were already

located, then “[t]he platform would not be obstructed. They [i.e., the protestors] would have

the right to demonstrate, and the marathon people, the [Ringling] people, would have their

right to their private property and have their event and continue to, you know, give out the

food and the prizes.” Id. at 79–80.

       Two ARF members complied with Sergeant Albert’s request. Zalaski and Oatis,

however, refused, whereupon Albert arrested them for criminal trespass and misdemeanor

obstruction of free passage. Plaintiffs were formally charged with the latter offense, see

Conn. Gen. Stat. § 53a-182a, but that charge was dismissed a week later and no further

prosecution was pursued.

       C.     The Instant Action

       On April 21, 2008, ARF, Zalaski, and Oatis—together represented by attorney

Oatis—filed this § 1983 action against Sergeant Albert and the City of Hartford for false

arrest, malicious prosecution, and interference with free expression. On January 18, 2012,

                                             7
following a two-day bench trial, the district court rejected plaintiffs’ claims and directed the

entry of judgment in favor of Albert. See Zalaski v. City of Hartford, 838 F. Supp. 2d at 58.

       Specifically, the district court ruled that Albert did not violate plaintiffs’ First

Amendment rights by directing them to move from the patio steps to the grassy knoll

because, although plaintiffs’ protest raised a matter of public concern and Riverfront Plaza

qualified as a public forum, Albert’s direction was content-neutral and a reasonable time,

place, and manner restriction. See id. at 29–46. In any event, the district court concluded

that, even if Albert’s conduct did violate the First Amendment, he would be shielded by

qualified immunity because a reasonable police officer would not have understood the

“complex and nuanced contours” of First Amendment jurisprudence as applied to the

circumstances presented. Id. at 47.

       The district court further rejected plaintiffs’ false arrest and malicious prosecution

claims, finding that, irrespective of the particular offenses informing Sergeant Albert’s

decision to arrest or the formal filed charge, probable cause supported arresting Zalaski and

Oatis for disorderly conduct. See id. at 50–55 (citing Conn. Gen. Stat. § 53a-182(a)(5)–(6)

and reasoning that plaintiffs’ hindering parents’ and children’s access to the registration area

provided probable cause to think they were obstructing pedestrian traffic). The district court

concluded that Albert was, in any event, shielded by qualified immunity on these claims as

well because, if actual probable cause did not support Zalaski’s and Oatis’s arrests, there was

at least “arguable probable cause” to support a reasonable officer’s decision to take them into

                                               8
custody. See id. at 56–57. The district court concluded that qualified immunity was further

warranted because, insofar as Albert had sought to achieve a balance among the protestors’

right to expression, the organizers’ permit rights, and the government’s interest in public

safety, a reasonable officer in his position could have thought that his relocation directive

was lawful. See id. at 57.

       This timely appeal followed.

II.    Discussion

       A.     Probable Cause Challenge

              1.      Qualified Immunity Review

       In evaluating a challenge to a judgment entered after a bench trial, we review the

district court’s findings of fact for clear error and its legal conclusions de novo. See

Bessemer Trust Co., N.A. v. Branin, 675 F.3d 130, 135 (2d Cir. 2012). Among the

conclusions of law that we review de novo is a decision affording a defendant qualified

immunity. See Walczyk v. Rio, 496 F.3d 139, 153 (2d Cir. 2007).

       Qualified immunity shields law enforcement officers from § 1983 claims for money

damages provided that their conduct does not violate clearly established constitutional rights

of which a reasonable person would have been aware. See, e.g., Ashcroft v. al-Kidd, 131

S. Ct. 2074, 2080 (2011); Harlow v. Fitzgerald, 457 U.S. 800, 818 (1982). Two questions

inform qualified immunity analysis. First, do the facts show that the officer’s conduct

violated plaintiff’s constitutional rights? If the answer to this question is no, further inquiry

                                               9
is unnecessary because where there is no viable constitutional claim, defendants have no

need of an immunity shield. But if the answer is yes, or at least not definitively no, a second

question arises: was the right clearly established at the time of defendant’s actions? See

Ashcroft v. al-Kidd, 131 S. Ct. at 2080; Walczyk v. Rio, 496 F.3d at 154.

       Courts are no longer required to answer these questions in sequence. See Pearson v.

Callahan, 555 U.S. at 227, overruling in part Saucier v. Katz, 533 U.S. 194 (2001).

Addressing the latter question first is particularly appropriate where the former turns on

difficult or novel questions of constitutional or statutory interpretation, but it is nevertheless

clear that the challenged conduct “was not objectively unreasonable in light of existing law.”

Coollick v. Hughes, 699 F.3d 211, 219–20 (2d Cir. 2012); see also Ashcroft v. al-Kidd, 131

S. Ct. at 2080.

       In making the latter determination, the inquiry is not how courts or lawyers might

have understood the state of the law at the time of the challenged conduct. Rather, “[t]he

relevant, dispositive inquiry in determining whether a right is clearly established is whether

it would be clear to a reasonable officer that his conduct was unlawful in the situation he

confronted.” Saucier v. Katz, 533 U.S. at 202 (emphasis added); accord Winfield v. Trottier,

710 F.3d 49, 56–57 (2d Cir. 2013). If the illegality of the conduct would not be so apparent,

the officer is entitled to qualified immunity. See Walczyk v. Rio, 496 F.3d at 154. Thus,

even if a right is clearly established in certain respects, qualified immunity will still shield

an officer from liability if “officers of reasonable competence could disagree” on the legality

                                               10
of the action at issue in its particular factual context. Malley v. Briggs, 475 U.S. 335, 341

(1986). In short, if at least some reasonable officers in the defendant’s position “could have

believed that [the challenged conduct] was within the bounds of appropriate police

responses,” the defendant officer is entitled to qualified immunity. Saucier v. Katz, 533 U.S.

at 208; accord Walczyk v. Rio, 496 F.3d at 154.

       As these precedents make clear, qualified immunity provides a broad shield. It does

so to ensure “that those who serve the government do so with the decisiveness and the

judgment required by the public good.” Filarsky v. Delia, 132 S. Ct. 1657, 1665 (2012)

(internal quotation marks omitted). Toward that end, it affords officials “breathing room to

make reasonable but mistaken judgments” without fear of potentially disabling liability.

Messerschmidt v. Millender, 132 S. Ct. 1235, 1244 (2012) (internal quotation marks

omitted). In sum, qualified immunity employs a deliberately “forgiving” standard of review,

Amore v. Novarro, 624 F.3d 522, 530 (2d Cir. 2010) (internal quotation marks omitted), that

“provides ample protection to all but the plainly incompetent or those who knowingly violate

the law,” Malley v. Briggs, 475 U.S. at 341; accord Ashcroft v. al-Kidd, 131 S. Ct. at 2085.

              2.      Probable Cause Standard

       Plaintiffs submit that the district court erred in finding that Albert’s arrests of Zalaski

and Oatis were supported by probable cause—or even arguable probable cause—to think that

these two ARF members were engaged in any violation of Connecticut law. In evaluating

this argument, we are mindful not only that qualified immunity is a forgiving standard but

                                               11
also that probable cause is a “fluid” one that does not demand “hard certainties,” Illinois v.

Gates, 462 U.S. 213, 231–32 (1983), or “mechanistic inquiries,” Florida v. Harris, 133 S. Ct.

1050, 1055 (2013) (describing probable cause as “practical,” “common-sensical,” “all-things-

considered” standard for assessing probabilities in particular factual context).

       Under both federal and Connecticut law, “probable cause to arrest exists when police

officers have knowledge or reasonably trustworthy information of facts and circumstances

that are sufficient to warrant a person of reasonable caution in the belief that the person to

be arrested has committed or is committing a crime.” Walczyk v. Rio, 496 F.3d at 156

(internal quotation marks omitted); see State v. James, 261 Conn. 395, 415 (2002). Thus,

probable cause does not demand that an officer’s good-faith belief that a suspect has

committed or is committing a crime be “correct or more likely true than false.” Texas v.

Brown, 460 U.S. 730, 742 (1983). It requires only facts sufficient to establish the sort “of

‘fair probability’ on which ‘reasonable and prudent [people,] not legal technicians, act.’”

Florida v. Harris, 133 S. Ct. at 1055 (alteration in original) (quoting Illinois v. Gates, 462

U.S. at 231, 238).

       Even where a reviewing court, applying these principles, concludes that probable

cause to arrest was lacking in a given case, an officer “will still be entitled to qualified

immunity . . . if he can establish that there was ‘arguable probable cause’ to arrest.” Escalera

v. Lunn, 361 F.3d 737, 743 (2d Cir. 2004). “Arguable probable cause exists if either (a) it

was objectively reasonable for the officer to believe that probable cause existed, or

                                              12
(b) officers of reasonable competence could disagree on whether the probable cause test was

met.” Id. (internal quotation marks omitted); accord Walczyk v. Rio, 496 F.3d at 163. Here,

we need not, and do not, decide whether there was actual probable cause to arrest Zalaski and

Oatis for disorderly conduct under Connecticut law because we conclude, in any event, that

there was arguable probable cause to support the arrests.

              3.      Connecticut’s Disorderly Conduct Statute

       Because even an assessment of arguable probable cause requires some consideration

of Connecticut’s prohibition of disorderly conduct, we begin with the relevant statutory text:

       A person is guilty of disorderly conduct when, with intent to cause
       inconvenience, annoyance or alarm, or recklessly creating a risk thereof, such
       person: . . . (5) obstructs vehicular or pedestrian traffic; or (6) congregates with
       other persons in a public place and refuses to comply with a reasonable official
       request or order to disperse.

Conn. Gen. Stat. § 53a-182(a).4

       4
         Plaintiffs do not—and cannot—argue that Albert’s reliance on other Connecticut
crimes in arresting or charging Zalaski and Oatis precluded the district court or this court
from analyzing probable cause by reference to the state’s disorderly conduct statute. See
Devenpeck v. Alford, 543 U.S. 146, 153 (2004) (stating that arresting officer’s “subjective
reason for making the arrest need not be the criminal offense as to which the known facts
provide probable cause”); Jaegly v. Couch, 439 F.3d 149, 154 (2d Cir. 2006) (articulating
relevant inquiry as “whether probable cause existed to arrest” and stating that “it is not
relevant whether probable cause existed with respect to each individual charge, or, indeed,
any charge actually invoked by the arresting officer at the time of arrest”). Nor would such
a conclusion follow from Albert’s deposition testimony that he did not think there was
probable cause to arrest Zalaski and Oatis for disorderly conduct. See United States v.
Gagnon, 373 F.3d 230, 239 (2d Cir. 2004) (stating that “law enforcement officer’s mistaken
belief that probable cause did not exist” at time of arrest “is irrelevant to a court’s later
determination of whether probable cause existed”).

                                               13
       Connecticut’s Supreme Court has construed this misdemeanor’s “intent” element to

mean “predominant intent.” State v. Indrisano, 228 Conn. 795, 809 (1994). Thus, “to

support a conviction for disorderly conduct [under § 53a-182(a)], the defendant’s

predominant intent must be to cause inconvenience, annoyance or alarm, rather than to

exercise his constitutional rights.” Id. at 809.5 The predominant intent requirement appears

to derive from Colten v. Commonwealth, 467 S.W.2d 374 (Ky. 1971), in which the Kentucky

Court of Appeals, construing a similarly worded statute, stated that “[p]redominance can be

determined either (1) from the fact that no bona fide intent to exercise a constitutional right

appears to have existed or (2) from the fact that the interest to be advanced by the particular

exercise of a constitutional right is insignificant in comparison with the inconvenience,

annoyance or alarm caused by the exercise,” id. at 377, quoted in State v. Indrisano, 228

Conn. at 807.

       Albert argues that a reasonable officer should not be expected to know of Indrisano’s

gloss on the intent requirement of § 53a-182(a) in making a probable cause determination.

In support, he cites Amore v. Novarro, 624 F.3d 522, a case in which this court recognized

the general rule that we “impute knowledge of the case law to public officials,” id. at 535,

but found a limited exception in the “unusual case” in order to advance the broader goals of

       5
        Connecticut’s statutory prohibition on the closely related crime of “obstructing free
passage” requires no such judicial gloss, as it specifically exempts from criminal liability “a
person [who] is engaging in any activity which is expressive of rights guaranteed under the
Constitution of the United States.” Conn. Gen. Stat. § 53a-182a.

                                              14
qualified immunity, id. at 534–35. We deemed Amore an unusual case because the arresting

officer there actually reviewed penal law text at the time he placed defendant under arrest,

unaware that the section he consulted had been declared unconstitutional some 15 years

earlier. See id. at 526–27. Here Sergeant Albert did not review the text of § 53a-182(a)

before placing Zalaski and Oatis under arrest; indeed, he did not even arrest them for

disorderly conduct. These circumstances locate this case a considerable distance from

Amore. In any event, we do not here decide what constitutes an “unusual case” falling

within Amore’s exception because we conclude that a reasonable officer in the circumstances

presented by this case, even when charged with knowledge of Indrisano, would have had

arguable probable cause to believe Zalaski and Oatis were violating Conn. Gen. Stat. § 53a-

182(a). Thus, our ensuing analysis does not—and need not—afford Albert the benefit of any

Amore exception.

              4.     Arguable Probable Cause To Think Plaintiffs Engaged in Disorderly
                     Conduct

       Plaintiffs submit that no reasonable officer could have thought probable cause existed

to arrest them for disorderly conduct in violation of § 53a-182(a)(5) because (a) their conduct

did not completely impede pedestrian traffic, as they argue is required to “obstruct” that

traffic; and (b) there was no basis to conclude that their “predominant intent” was “to cause

inconvenience, annoyance or alarm, rather than to exercise [their] constitutional rights” to

                                              15
free speech. State v. Indrisano, 228 Conn. at 809.6 Neither argument is convincing.7

              a.     Obstruction

       Because the word “obstructs,” as used in Conn. Gen. Stat. § 53a-182(a)(5) (providing

that anyone who “obstructs vehicular or pedestrian traffic” with requisite intent is guilty of

disorderly conduct), is not defined by statute, it is properly given its common meaning. See

Conn. Gen. Stat. § 1-2z. The common meaning of “obstruct,” as the district court observed

by reference to the dictionary, is “‘(1) to block or close up by an obstacle; (2) to hinder

passage, action or operation; (3) to cut off from sight.’” Zalaski v. City of Hartford,

838   F.   Supp.     2d   at   52   (quoting       Merriam-Webster     Online     Dictionary,

http://www.merriamwebster.com/dictionary/obstruct (visited Jan. 17, 2012)). The district

court concluded that obstruction was evident in this case from the fact that the plaintiffs, by

       6
         As plaintiffs correctly observe, the district court did not address Indrisano’s
construction of the mens rea requirement for disorderly conduct. The district court’s
awareness of the requirement might nevertheless be inferred from its quotation of Indrisano
in denying defendants’ summary judgment motion, see Zalaski v. City of Hartford, 704 F.
Supp. 2d 159, 171 (D. Conn. 2010), and its discussion of State v. Muckle, 108 Conn. App.
146 (Ct. App. 2008), a case that reviewed disorderly conduct convictions in light of
Indrisano. We need not conclusively decide whether the district court correctly applied
Indrisano because our own qualified immunity review is de novo. See Walzcyk v. Rio, 496
F.3d at 153; see also Duane Reade, Inc. v. St. Paul Fire & Marine Ins. Co., 411 F.3d 384, 398
(2d Cir. 2005) (noting that we may affirm judgment after bench trial on any ground with
record support, even if “basis for the district court’s holding is not apparent”).
       7
        Because we identify arguable probable cause to support Zalaski’s and Oatis’s arrests
under § 53a-182(a)(5) (obstructing pedestrian traffic), we need not consider the same
question as it applies to § 53a-182(a)(6) (refusing to obey a reasonable order to disperse).
See State v. Anonymous, 33 Conn. Supp. 93, 99 (C.P. 1976) (suggesting that imminent or
reasonably likely breach of peace is required to order dispersal under subsection (a)(6)).

                                              16
holding a large sign on the steps leading to the platform, “hindered the passage of

participants into the registration tent.” Id.

           Plaintiffs do not dispute this finding of hindrance. Rather, they contend that a

hindrance is not enough to constitute the proscribed obstruction. Relying on the first

dictionary definition of “obstruct,” plaintiffs submit that § 53a-182(a)(5) prohibits only

actions that fully block or impede pedestrian traffic, which their actions on the steps at issue

did not.

       Plaintiffs point us to no Connecticut precedent clearly limiting the term “obstruct” in

§ 53a-182(a)(5) to a complete blockage of pedestrian traffic. To be sure, in State v. Muckle,

108 Conn. App. 146 (Ct. App. 2008), which upheld the convictions of abortion protestors

under § 53a-182(a)(5), evidence indicated that signs and baby carriages that the protestors

positioned on a sidewalk leading to an abortion clinic effectively blocked that walkway,

forcing pedestrians to step off the sidewalk to negotiate around the obstructions and to get

to the clinic, see id. at 153–54. But in noting these circumstances, the Muckle court did not

state that only the complete blockage of a sidewalk could demonstrate obstruction amounting

to disorderly conduct. Nor would such a conclusion be obvious to a reasonable police officer

given that, in other criminal contexts, Connecticut appears to have construed the word

“obstruct” to prohibit hindrance short of total impediment. See, e.g., State v. Biller, 5 Conn.

App. 616, 621 (Ct. App. 1985) (consulting dictionary definition of “obstruct,” which

included “hinder,” in holding that defendant who “merely delayed” post-arrest search of his

                                                17
person could be found guilty of interfering with police officer under Conn. Gen Stat. § 53a-

167a); State v. Beck, 5 Conn. Cir. Ct. 587, 589 (App. Div. 1969) (adopting definition of

“obstruct” as “to interpose obstacles or impediments, to hinder, impede, or in any manner

intrude or prevent” in holding that individual who boarded police wagon and demanded to

be taken to station with arrestees could be convicted of obstructing justice in violation of

then-extant Conn. Gen Stat. § 53a-165 (internal quotation marks omitted)); State v.

Neubauer, 2 Conn. Cir. Ct. 169, 174 (App. Div. 1963) (requiring only that conduct, to

obstruct officer, “in some manner, hinder the officer or make his job difficult”).

       On qualified immunity review, we need not here conclusively decide the scope of

obstruction proscribed by Connecticut’s disorderly conduct statute. We need only conclude,

as we now do, that Connecticut has not so clearly limited obstruction to the condition of fully

blocking pedestrian traffic as to foreclose a reasonable officer from making an arguably

correct finding of probable obstruction based on plaintiffs’ actions in blocking part of the

steps at the Red Nose Run. This is not to suggest that an officer would have arguable

probable cause to arrest an individual for disorderly conduct under the Connecticut statute

based simply upon the person’s presence in a location being utilized by others. We conclude

only that the facts known to the police in this case–namely, that individuals were holding a

large banner, positioned partially in front of a clearly visible point of ingress and egress to

be used predominantly by young children–permitted reasonable officers to think that

probable cause existed to support arrests for disorderly conduct.

                                              18
              b.      Predominant Intent

       Plaintiffs contend that, even if a reasonable officer could have had probable cause to

think that plaintiffs were obstructing pedestrian traffic at the Red Nose Run, the officer could

not reasonably have thought that their predominant intent was to cause inconvenience,

annoyance, or harm rather than to exercise their constitutional rights. We disagree.

       An assessment of intent frequently depends on circumstantial evidence. See, e.g.,

United States v. MacPherson, 424 F.3d 183, 189–90 (2d Cir. 2005) (collecting cases

recognizing that mens rea elements of knowledge and intent are often proved through

circumstantial evidence). But unlike at trial, where circumstantial evidence must support a

finding of culpable intent beyond a reasonable doubt, a probable cause determination, and

thus an arguable probable cause determination, can be made on “substantially less” evidence.

State v. Clark, 255 Conn. at 292–93; see Illinois v. Gates, 462 U.S. at 235 (“‘[T]he term

“probable cause,” according to its usual acceptation, means less than evidence which would

justify condemnation.’” (quoting Locke v. United States, 7 Cranch. 339, 348 (1813)

(Marshall, C.J.))). Moreover, because “the practical restraints on police in the field are

greater with respect to ascertaining intent . . . , the latitude accorded to officers considering

the probable cause issue in the context of mens rea crimes must be correspondingly great.”

Cox v. Hainey, 391 F.3d 25, 34 (1st Cir. 2004); see Paff v. Kaltenbach, 204 F.3d 425, 437

(3d Cir. 2000) (recognizing that arresting officers must make judgment calls in determining

suspect’s state of mind); see also Conner v. Heiman, 672 F.3d 1126, 1132 (9th Cir. 2012)

                                               19
(observing that whether inference of innocent intent “was also reasonable, or even more

reasonable, does not matter so long as the [culpable intent] conclusion was itself

reasonable”).

       With these principles in mind, we consider the totality of the circumstances at the time

of the challenged arrests. At the outset, we recognize—as Sergeant Albert himself appears

to have recognized—that plaintiffs’ protests about Ringling Brothers’ treatment of animals

qualify as protected speech. The record demonstrates that Sergeant Albert never attempted

to silence or delay that speech. Rather, he sought to relocate it by a modest distance of

approximately 20 feet, from a set of steps where protesters were hindering pedestrian traffic

to a nearby grassy knoll where other like-minded protestors were already situated and

exercising their First Amendment rights.

       In requesting relocation, Albert knew that organizers of the Red Nose Run had a

permit for their activities. He knew that numerous young children would be participating in

the Run and that those children, some by themselves, others with attending adults, would

have to use the steps in moving between the walkway where races were to occur and the

platform where a tent was set up for registration, prizes, and refreshments. Albert knew that

some people had already complained that the protestors holding large banners were hindering

pedestrian traffic on or near the steps. He anticipated that these concerns would only

increase as more races were run. See Dec. 8, 2011 Tr. 93 (“There were more runs to come,

                                              20
more waves of runs to come. There would be more people wanting to use the platform.”).8

He also knew that there had been earlier complaints of children being frightened by

protestors shouting at them. While Oatis assured Albert that the protestors did not wish any

harm to befall the children, Albert was entitled—indeed obliged—to assess for himself the

risks presented from the totality of the circumstances in attempting to accommodate the

interests of all concerned. See Paff v. Kaltenbach, 204 F.3d at 437 (identifying nothing in

probable cause jurisprudence requiring officer to accept suspect’s assertion of innocence at

face value); cf. Marcavage v. City of New York, 689 F.3d 98, 107 (2d Cir. 2012)

(recognizing that if two defendants could claim exemption from demonstration-free zone,

others would be entitled to demand same, creating larger threat to security and order). In that

regard, nothing in the record indicates that plaintiffs’ protests would not have been fully

visible and audible to their intended audience from the proposed relocation area. As already

noted, most persons protesting Ringling Brothers’ treatment of animals at the Red Nose Run

had agreed to do so from the grassy knoll.

       From these circumstances, a reasonable officer could have concluded that the only

thing plaintiffs would lose by moving from the steps to the grassy knoll was the ability to

       8
         Evidence that the registration area did not, in fact, become appreciably more
crowded following later races does not compel the conclusion that Albert’s concerns were
unreasonable at the time they prompted him to request relocation. Much less does such
evidence render unreasonable an inference of predominant intent from plaintiffs’ refusal to
relocate. See Florida v. Harris, 133 S. Ct. at 1059 (“[W]e do not evaluate probable cause in
hindsight . . . .”).

                                              21
hinder the movement of children and other race attendees as they traveled from the walkway

to the patio platform. And therefrom, at least some reasonable officers could have inferred

from plaintiffs’ refusal to relocate to a site where their right to protest would be

undiminished, but their ability to obstruct would be lost, that their predominant intent in

insisting on staying on the steps was to obstruct pedestrian traffic. See State v. Indrisano,

228 Conn. at 807 (allowing finding of predominant intent where circumstances demonstrate

that expressive intent is “insignificant in comparison with the inconvenience, annoyance or

alarm caused by the exercise” (internal quotation marks omitted)).

       Because there was arguable probable cause for a reasonable officer to think that

plaintiffs were engaged in the sort of disorderly conduct proscribed by Conn. Gen. Stat.

§ 52a-182(a)(5), the district court properly awarded judgment to Sergeant Albert on the

ground of qualified immunity.

       B.     Discovery Sanctions

       Rule 26(g)(1) of the Rules of Civil Procedure provides that all discovery responses

“must be signed by” an attorney of record, or by the party personally, if unrepresented, which

signature certifies the accuracy of any disclosed information “to the best of the person’s

knowledge, information, and belief.” Rule 26(g)(3) provides the enforcement mechanism

for this requirement:

       Sanction for Improper Certification. If a certification violates this rule without
       substantial justification, the court, on motion or on its own, must impose an
       appropriate sanction on the signer, the party on whose behalf the signer was

                                              22
       acting, or both. The sanction may include an order to pay the reasonable
       expenses, including attorney’s fees, caused by the violation.

Fed. R. Civ. P. 26(g)(3); see Chambers v. NASCO, Inc., 501 U.S. 32, 51 (1991) (stating that

26(g)(3) mandate “extends only to whether a court must impose sanctions, not to which

sanction it must impose” (emphasis in original)); Chase Manhattan Bank, N.A. v. Turner &

Newall, PLC, 964 F.2d 159, 165 (2d Cir. 1992) (observing that Rule 26(g) “empowers a

district court to impose a variety of sanctions for improper” conduct).

       The district court sanctioned defendants for violating Rule 26(g) in this case by

striking Sergeant Albert’s interrogatory responses, but it denied plaintiffs’ request for costs

and fees, stating as follows: “Defendants note that the Plaintiffs’ counsel [i.e., Oatis] is pro

se and cite authority indicating that his status as pro se counsel is a bar to such recovery. As

the Plaintiffs have not addressed this argument, the Plaintiffs’ fee request is denied.” Order,

No. 08-cv-601 (D. Conn.), ECF No. 60.

       Plaintiffs now argue that the district court’s ruling rests on an error of law because the

general rule that a pro se attorney cannot recover attorney’s fees does not apply to a pro se

attorney who represents one or more plaintiffs in addition to himself. See Schneider v.

Colegio de Abogados de Puerto Rico, 187 F.3d 30, 32 (1st Cir. 1999) (awarding fees under

42 U.S.C. § 1988 to prevailing attorney-plaintiff who represented another plaintiff in addition

to himself).

                                               23
       This court has not addressed whether a pro se attorney who represents plaintiffs in

addition to himself may be awarded fees. We will not do so in the context of this discovery

dispute because plaintiffs failed to raise the argument in the district court, thereby forfeiting

it on appeal. See Katel Ltd. Liab. Co. v. AT&T Corp., 607 F.3d 60, 68 (2d Cir. 2010).

Accordingly, we affirm the denial of attorney’s fees as a discovery sanction.

       We note, however, that the district court did not specifically deny plaintiffs’ request

for costs by reference to counsel’s pro se status. Rather, its order is silent on that point.

Defendants did not argue in the district court and Albert does not contend on appeal that a

pro se plaintiff cannot be awarded costs pursuant to Rule 26(g)(3). See Carter v. Veterans

Admin., 780 F.2d 1479, 1481 (9th Cir. 1986) (“An award of costs to a pro se

litigant . . . presents a different question [from that of attorney’s fees] because it would

represent funds actually expended.”). Accordingly, we vacate the judgment only in order to

remand this case for the limited purpose of having the district court clarify whether it awards

plaintiffs the costs incurred as a result of defendants’ discovery certification violation.

III.   Conclusion

       To summarize, we conclude as follows:

       1. Because the trial record admits arguable probable cause to think that plaintiffs

engaged in disorderly conduct with the predominant intent required by Conn. Gen. Stat.

§ 53a-182(a)(5), the district court properly entered judgment in favor of defendant Albert on

the basis of qualified immunity.

                                               24
       2. Plaintiffs’ argument that they are entitled to attorney’s fees as a discovery sanction

on the ground that one plaintiff, despite appearing pro se, acted as counsel to the remaining

plaintiffs is forfeited on appeal by their failure to raise it below. Nevertheless, because

defendant does not dispute plaintiffs’ ability to recover costs, and because the district court

failed specifically to rule on that application, we remand for clarification as to whether the

district court awards costs pursuant to Fed. R. Civ. P. 26(g)(3).

       The judgment of the district court is AFFIRMED in part and VACATED in part, and

the case is REMANDED for further proceedings consistent with this opinion.

                                              25


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The metal walkway creaks underneath your knees as you pull yourself up from it. The light from above continues to illuminate only a scarce section of the twisted column that you’re stuck in. The grated path that spirals up only offers three paths: towards the light, back the way you came, and down into darkness. With heavy breaths each step feels heavier than the last and even the first flight of steel steps has your knees knocking together. The adrenaline pumping through your system was wearing off and fatigue began setting in and setting in fast. After that final step your body hits the cold, unyielding steel of the second platform and your eyes close for what feels like the briefest of moments.

Your eyes flutter open and the blackness that surrounded you has been replaced with a dull red glow. Your nose is hit with the horrendous smell of rot. The light above still shines bright but the area around you has drastically changed. The walls, once blackened with steel, show wet, pulsating muscles covered in blood. It drips onto the walkway and through the holes in the grate. You scramble to your feet and press your back against the now warmed steel. The wall in front of you starts to undulate with slow pulses and push more blood out from the wall. The pace of the pulsating tumor on the wall continues until it explodes in a spray of blood, nearly blinding you as a hand penetrates through and reaches out to pull you into the writhing mass by your shirt.

Your body jerks and your hands punch at the bloody appendage. After several strikes of your fist against that wet, squishy arm a piece of your shirt rips away and the force sends you stumbling towards the railing. You catch yourself and turn to run. The metal underneath your feet shakes and squeaks with every landing your feet make with the surface and as you bound up the stairs the wall grows more and more of those nasty tumors and hands jut out from every one trying to grab onto anything they can.

One hand almost catches your ankle but swiped just against your foot. It wasn’t that offsetting of a swipe but it was enough to slow you down. Regardless you’re able to avoid getting snagged again but a new sound catches your attention as you make that desperate attempt to climb higher.

The ringing and grating sound of steel mashing together fills the entire metal hallway. The gnashing and grinding is coming from below and you steal a glance downwards and you nearly freeze in terror. Rows upon rows of teeth as thick as your arm slam shut and open from below, devouring everything above it. It scrapes the lining of the wall and something wailed all around you, crying out in pain as the teeth continued to move up towards where you were running.

That light looked impossible at this point but your legs still pumped. The momentary freezing had faded and while still dodging those bloody arms bursting from the disgusting walls you come closer and closer to that blinding light. You can even feel the subtle heat from whatever is above hitting your flesh as the dull, red room turns pink in the glowing light. You’re almost there.

The massive maw speeds its pursuit. It tears away every single piece of platform from the wall you’ve been running on up until the point you feel your own area shaking from the devouring beast below. You stumble a bit but catch yourself on the railing and use your arms to pull yourself back to that sprinting pace you’ve been keeping up for what feels like forever. Foot after foot, yard after yard you continue to climb with that maw gaining on you but that light is so bright and so close. You can feel the heat even more.

Your head pops over the ridge and you feel a hot breeze hit against your forehead. You throw the last of your energy into diving into the light and outside of the column you were in right as the teeth gnash in the light. It doesn’t come through and you’re on your stomach on concrete. The concrete is warm, too warm, and the summer day above beats down on your back. Whimpering you roll over onto your side and see those nasty teeth still chomping, but unable to move further out. After a few moments the teeth descended back into the darkness of the square hole you popped out of.

Tired, yet again, you poke your head up and look around. The wind blew hot and there was not another soul in sight. Trees and bushes surrounded the concrete slab you currently lay on but the clearing around it was sizable. How you ended up there is still a mystery; one you’re unsure if you want to solve or not. You push yourself up from that slab with aching muscles and start to shamble into the woods.

The massive bang shook you to the core. Your hands slipped from untying that knot for the slightest moment as another room shaking slam rattled the floor. Your fingers pry at the last bit of rope around your ankles and quiver at the mere idea of what could be causing such a racket behind the steel door that kept you inside of that god forsaken room. The idea of whatever is behind that door trying to break in, however, is far more frightening than the blood-soaked sacks and black goo that decorates the confines of that dank, dark room. The flames in the middle of the room illuminate just enough to show the steel door becoming more and more bent and splintered with every harsh slam from the outside.

The steel door splintered and burst open with the metal screeching against the floor. A dull light poured into the room but the shadow cast against the ground came from a beast of unimaginable horror. The black ichor on the ground skid towards the monster that knocked the metal door to the ground and became a part of the hulking mass of black muscle and sinew. The creature, in its hunched state, had no skin to it what-so-ever and jutting out from various parts of its body were sharp fragments of a reflective material which made the beast appear as though it was on fire from the pit in the middle shining off from that unique material.

The beast lunged. It’s claws and maw ripped into the nearest bloody sack that hung from the ceiling. It crashed, sack and all, near the fire where the black ichor crawled away from its skin. You watch from above, dangling from the very same rope and hook after the quick decision to climb up that bloody sack and up to the ropes above. That rusted hook threatens to break away at any moment if any more of your body weight is placed on it while you hang on for dear life.

You witness the creature tear into that bloody bag. Flesh and crimson are torn from the sack and no screams are offered. The body inside had been dead for days and the new smell overloads every sense. Even the sounds of its teeth gnashing on the broken and ripped flesh is enough to make your head spin. There are only two choices to make and staying put may just involve you passing out from the smell and sounds from below.

Carefully you lower your body down from the rope above. The creature is in front of you munching away without a care in the world. For a moment you can see yourself in the reflected shards in its muscular body and freeze. The realization that it is not the creature’s eyes sinks in and you lower yourself to the ground. The muscles in your arms strain against the rusted hook while you try to land without making a sound.

Unfortunately your heels make a splash in the blackness that feared the fire.

The creature’s head immediately spun from its meal. The hollow sockets where eyes would rest starred blank at your body. Your throat closes and your chest seizes before your legs kick back out of reflex and your body turns violently to the right, shifting around in one hundred and eighty degrees before your once silent endeavor becomes nothing more than thundering stomps to escape from that terrible, terrible room. The sticky ichor gripped your shoes and ankles, yanking back against your attempts to escape but did not impede your progress in getting out from that deathtrap. Your shoes tear through the blackness and your body lunges through the door. Your shoulder smacks painfully against the hallway wall on the other side and your head whips to the left and to the right. There is only one option, to your left, as there sat a single door almost an impossible distance away. Light bulbs attached to simple wires dangle from the dark ceiling above and lit the path to the windowed door nearly half a football field away.

A roar and snarl, powerful enough to be felt, echoed from the room you were just in. Your legs start pumping and your body is fueled with pure adrenaline as you dash to the door at the end of the hallway. There is a loud crash behind you but you don’t turn to look knowing that the creature could be right there inches away. Your legs cycle faster, each step feeling lighter than the last as your mind goes blank. All you feel is the sweat and the heat of breath on the back of your neck as you run faster than you’ve ever ran before.

You crash through the doorway and find nothing but blackness in front of you, but your waist hits something hard. You cry out as your body flips over a railing and your hands slip from the top of it. You grasp for dear life on the iron rods that hold the railing up when that black, muscular animal crashes over your head through the gate. Screams fill your ears again as you fall but your flailing leg wraps around another iron railing, twisting around in it and swinging your body back. Pain shoots from your back as your spine smacks against the steel platform. You’re upside down once again, dangling and watching that creature fall into the darkness below. Though it is not all darkness. You can see that the iron rail your leg is tangle in is attached to a spiraling walkway that leads down into nothing but emptiness. Above, however, is almost blinding. Actual light poured from the top of the spiral walkway. Your muscles burn and your stomach cries out in pain as you pull yourself up from being upside down again and fall to the walkway below. As you lay there breathing hard you know that the light above is the only way out.

The first sensation you feel is the taste of the acrid, thick humidity around you. With every deep breath taken with parted lips the lingering taste of something metallic becomes more and more pronounced against the buds in your lips. Moments later the second sensation fires up through your nostrils. Something rotten lays close by. The strength of the smell is enough to make your stomach churn but the sudden, yet dull throb in the back of your head distracts from the bile building up inside. You reach up to feel but your limbs feel heavier. In fact everything feels heavier.

Finally your eyes open and the blurred environment around you looks wrong. A fire in the distance burns upside down and the smoke from the fire appears to be floating down towards the ground. The flames reach a few feet down and your mind struggles to comprehend what you are looking at. Though that is when you feel the sweat drip up from your lips and chin to your nostrils and over your eyes. Your hair stands on end and the pressure inside of your skull finally smashes all the clues together.

You are the only thing upside down.

Your blurred vision finally focuses and the fire in the room illuminates just enough space to show that the floor is tiled and covered in black pools in various areas. Finally the sensation of panic grips your chest, hugging tighter than any embrace of a loved one. You squirm in the air and you muster the strength to flex your abs and hips to bend upwards and see your feet bound by rope and hanging by a rusted metal hook before your muscles give out and you fall back and swing back and forth.

The momentum of your body swinging back and forth pushes your back into something hard, yet squishy at the same time. Something rubs against your back and sticks to your shirt before it peels away. With a grunt and a shift your body twists on that hook and you get a momentary glimpse of what you bumped against.

If it wasn’t for your parched, dehydrated throat you could have screamed. Nothing escapes but a whimper after your eyes captured the sight of a very bloody burlap sack that was on its own hook behind you. Fresh blood trickled from the bottom of the bag and dripped onto the ground. The sudden realization of what must be in the bag was enough to send your stomach over the edge. Craning your head the best you can nothing came from the dry heaves that overtook you. The force of your episode was enough to bump your body against that sack a few more times. Despite a million thoughts and fears racing through your head, instinct and survival smash through the rest. Your body rocks back and your hips turn again.

Your hand lash out and grip onto the bloody, slick sack and you pull upwards with all your might. You keep a tight, almost nail breaking grip on the sack with one hand and wrap your arm around the disgusting object and hug it tighter than ever before. Your muscles and lungs burn with the exertion and exhaustion of the activity but the goal is just within reach. Climbing slowly up that nasty bag your body is forming almost a perfect V and one arm stretches upwards, gripping onto the slick hook that held the bag. With every burning fiber of your being your other hand leaves the bag, stretching out to the hook that your feet are roped to. Slippery fingers fumble around the rusted hook but latch on, never letting go.

With a grunt and cry your hips arch and your knees contract. You fling your legs upwards and extend your knees and suddenly gravity becomes your worst enemy. Your hip and elbow cushions the fall to the ground but the pain is immense. Nothing is broken, thankfully, but the wind certainly was knocked out during that seven foot fall. Your hands slide against the black goo that the flames had shown earlier and nearly stick to the ground because of it.

Keeping them on the ground for a few moments longer you are finally able to climb to your knees and finally your feet. You place them near the fire to see what it was that had covered your hands and undoubtedly your front side. The black, ichorous substance felt like glue but when exposed to the fire it…ran. The blackness peeled itself away from your clothing and hands and slid back against the floor. There was a perfect circle around the fire where the blackness just ceased to venture any further. The ooze retreated into the shadows of the room that the fire did not dare to venture. That is also when you realize, in your shaking nerves, that your feet are still tied together by that rope which was long enough to allow you small steps to that fire in the first place.

As you kneel down to try and undo the knot something bangs in the darkness. The sound of flesh meeting steel echos through the room and it is clear that the nightmare has just begun.

Hey there. Can you hear me? I might not be as loud as some but I hope you can still make out what I have to say to you. I know your chest is tight and the edges of your eyes are moistened but I am telling you it is okay. You can relax. You’re stronger than this. Clear your throat and stand up. You’re not done yet and it’s because you’ve never been done. You are still alive and still breathing and if you have even an ounce of breath left in your body you are stronger than you could ever realize.

You can feel it now can’t you? I’m right here with you. I’ve always been with you. Your heart is slowing down and your legs feel a bit stronger now don’t they? They are wrong. Everyone has been introduced to that pain at some point in their life but they have had to been introduced to you. I have always been here. I have been here since the day your heart started to beat and I remember every single moment since then even if you can’t. When you scraped your knee and felt that pain for the very first time we were there together. We got through it together because I helped you back to your feet. I take that back. You got back on your feet by your own.

I know how much it hurt to have someone laugh in your face, to ignore you, and to feel like you were nothing. I was with you that day they walked away but we both knew that wasn’t the end. That was on them, not on you. They lost out. You gained. The fact of the matter is for them to cast you away like that wasn’t them throwing you away, that was them losing the opportunity for something special. Something that was right in front of them that they could have needed in their life but perhaps their own darkness had control. Perhaps they were the ones too afraid to take you on. To have some happiness in their own life. The other side is powerful, there is no doubting that, but it is not all encompassing. You choked that day but eventually you were able to swallow it down, to move on.

You carried it with you but you still lived your life. That new kind of pain was terrible but in the end you are still alive. Still breathing. Still laughing. Still crying. That is what matters. I was with you and you didn’t even know it. I lent myself to you not because you needed me, but because that is what you are. You survive.

Everyone is struggling just the same as you are but take comfort in that. Take comfort in the fact that you are not alone. You have never been alone. You care. They care. Everyone cares. We just believe sometimes we are strong enough to shoulder the burden on our own. I am telling you it is okay to rely on others. It is okay to cry on a shoulder every now and then and let everything wash away. That isn’t giving up, that is fighting back and there are others who will help you fight back.

I know things only get harder in life. As you get older those insecurities of your childhood and of your adolescence echo in your ear like a taunting jester who has its royal highness strapped into their very own throne. Every now and then a bad choice is made and terrible feelings are felt. You may feel like you are wasted and that no one would or should ever love you but they do. People do love you. Even if you can’t see it at the time and drive yourself deeper and deeper there are still those out there that want nothing more than to take your hand and pull you back to the surface and they will feel honored for doing so.

Even if you cannot see the hands that wish to raise you from the darkness you’ve descended into that is fine. Those hands are never judging and always forgiving regardless of whether or not you take them. Though you don’t really need to take those hands do you? You’ve been here before. You’ve skinned your knees, you’ve fallen down, and you cannot imagine anything worse than what it is you’re going through. You’ve been here before. How did that turn out?

You rose. You pushed yourself up from that pain and pressed on. You’ve done it thousands of times in the past and you’ll do it a thousand times before. You’ll finally see that you can be happy. That you deserve to be happy. You’ll finally understand that it takes something special to allow yourself to be happy. With anyone or anything. You will shine brighter than ever before and you’ll shine someday soon.

I can say this because we’ve been a team ever since your heart first beat. It’s always been you and me.

Hush. Do you hear that? The little knocking in the back of your head? That gripping tightness around your heart? That bile that rises just enough in the back of your throat that you can taste it but never expel it? That’s me.

I’m what causes your arms to seize up. I’m what causes that rubbery feeling in your knees whenever you stand toe-to-toe with me. I find it amusing how much control I have over your life now that you’re an adult. I never thought I’d have any control when you were a child, no, you were much too stubborn for that.

But that was until you scraped your knee one day. You could have fallen from a bike. You could have got it by tripping over yourself as you ran, laughed, and played with other kids. They didn’t know me either. You do now. That pain is what introduced us. It made us best friends. Sure as a child you shrugged me off after a good cry but I was always there. I watched you grow and develop and with it I grew stronger.

I was with you that day you stood in front of that special someone, the person that causes your chest to tighten whenever you see them. I was there as you opened your mouth to say something but nothing came. They laugh at your cheeks turning red. That’s when you knew that I was there for keeps. That paralyzing force that turns a once wet mouth into ash. That feeling of needing to swallow but that lump just chokes and chokes and chokes any hope out of you. What makes it even worse is that somewhere along the lines of the skinned knees and elbows someone put a thought into your head. A hurtful thought that just allowed me to grow exponentially up until this point.

They walk off. Tears brim your eyes. I just only grow stronger. Oh but I overestimated you. Yes I did. No longer are you the child that would sometimes avoid the jungle gym with memories of those skinned knees haunting you . . . no . . . You don’t care about the skinned knees anymore. You’ve learned that emotional pain is much greater than a broken arm or even a dreaded paper-cut. Those heal. The pain fades. The memories remain but that pain is fleeting.

You’ll carry this pain with you. All because I get to take in the pleasure of knocking at the back of your skull. I get to twist and dig my fingernails into your chest whenever you feel anything for anyone. You’re never good enough. I own you. People don’t notice though. People don’t care. They never care. It’s a strange thing from my perspective because I am in every one of them as well. Knocking and knocking and gripping and tearing. They are all just like you. Too stubborn to know any better. Too stubborn to admit they have no control over their lives. Too proud to admit they are a slave.

By the time you’re old enough to make your own life choices I am strapped in. I twist you in every terrible direction I can because I know I can. What does it do to you? Do you feel worthless now? Do you drift through life just praying and hoping someone comes along to save you? Never going to happen. I won’t allow it to happen. I. Always. Win.

I like to see you suffer though. I like it when you have hope. Every day you smile and enjoy your life I relish in it because I know it will only be a matter of time before that hope and that joy you feel will be crushed by me when you least expect it.

Though you’re special. You can’t really get rid of me. You can try but I will never fully go away. Your hope. Your salvation could be a few feet in front of you reaching out for you to grab its hand and you will pull away because you have grown so used to me being in the back of your mind like some ichorous cancer that cannot be cut out. You pull away from that hope because you think in the long run I will just destroy it like I have so many other things. That’s how I feed and you taste so very, very good.

That’s when you finally shut down. Physical pain and emotional pain are one in the same. You grow numb. You don’t even need me anymore to ruin everything that was good or ever will be good in your life. I win. You drift and that is all you ever do. You partake in fleeting pleasures that mean absolutely nothing and that just feeds my gluttonous ego even more. You give into your anger. You give into your jealousy. You give into your laziness. You give into lust. You topple.

You can’t understand what anyone will ever see in you. You’re as far as you can go and trying is no longer an option. You’re too weak. You start asking “what if?” like it even matters. There are so many things in the past you wish you could have changed and it all started with that one shitty day you scraped your pitiful little knee and felt that pain for the very first time.

The evening had been quiet and that wasn’t an unusual occurrence in the small town of Bast. When I was first transferred from the police department in the cities to the smaller town I had my hesitations; I didn’t want to be that kind of officer of the law that would uphold justice by tossing the town drunk in confinement every night. I wasn’t a fan of the Andy Griffith show to begin with and reenacting it for my career was not in my best interests. Lo and behold the job didn’t turn out that bad. It was boring, sure, but the town drunk only went on a rampage about once a month.

What won me over the most was how clean the air is in this town. There are a few factories around but they are so far off from the city limits that their pollution doesn’t matter. There is never an odd smell carried over like there was in the city. It felt as though my nostrils were put through a desperately needed intervention. This is the kind of place that a person could settle down and make a decent life for not only himself but a family as well. Most of the land is flat, prairie and farmland status, and the town itself has about five thousand people living in it and a good chunk of the population lives a rural life. At any given time there are only four officers on duty if that. It stays quiet.

The first call came in at around ten at night and I was the second cop around the area where the call came from. Dispatch informed us that it was a four-one-five coming from 615 Timber Avenue Even though I wasn’t the closet officer in that area I knew that 615 Timber Avenue calling in for a disturbance didn’t sit right.

615 Timber Avenue belonged to Gregory Heimsworth and he was the only one in the town who had enough money to afford a security system. In fact he owned a pretty large home in the middle of no where.

We knew who the home was registered to but no one on the force, or really anyone around town, knew who Gregory Heimsworth was. All they knew was he had money and he was a paranoid fellow. Which made sense considering his home security system was not needed in the least, as the disturbance call was made from his cell phone. Dispatch explained the situation to myself and Officer Flemming, an older cop on the force but all around a good guy, which involved a garbled phone call and the sound of objects breaking in the background. Flemming was about ten minutes from the scene and I was fifteen minutes out. I flipped on the sirens, turned on my lights, and felt some sort of semblance of shock that there was an emergency.

When I pulled up in front of the house Flemming was parked and out of his vehicle. He was a heavier set man with rough skin and eyes. His trademark mustache, salt and peppered like his short hair, had recently been trimmed.

“What’s the deal? I didn’t think we actually had anything like this happen here; that’s why they send the near retirement folk like yourself out here.” I said as I got out of my own vehicle after killing the siren.

Flemming huffed and crossed his arms, “I got ten years before retirement asshole. Regardless I am glad you were in the area because this place is too big for one person to go in alone. That and I don’t hear the security alarm system going off in any way,” he began and pointed to the large house, “That and there isn’t a light on in the place.”

I looked up at the two story home and couldn’t deny that the imposing home looked that much more intimidating without any lights on. “I was going to call you a chicken shit, Flemming, but I have to admit you made the right call not going in. I haven’t heard anything back from dispatch either.”

“About that . . .” he paused, took his cap off, and scratched a balding head, “. . .The radio is dead in this area. At least to dispatch. That’s another reason I held off going in there by myself. I didn’t have a clue whether or not I could get back-up.”

I reached up and clicked my own radio, “Test. Test two-three-four.” I was greeted with the sound of my own voice coming from his radio during my test. I let go of the transmit button and reached for my gun, “Well our radios work and that’s what matters right now. Let’s get in there and figure out what is going on.” I suggested as my hand unclasped the harness to my holster. “It sounded like something was going on during the call.”

Flemming nodded and the two of us ventured up the cement walkway towards the large home. From the front we could see that there were at least five windows we could look in to the first floor rooms and three on top. The second story of the house was more narrow and held only two windows at the top of the triangle shaped roof. The front door wasn’t kicked in and I reached to the knob to see if it was unlocked. My hand turned and the door creaked open.

“Great. We both know Heimsworth is a hermit. He wouldn’t open his door to anyone.” I said as my other hand went for the Mag-lite on my belt. Flemming drew his weapon and flashlight as well since we were greeted with a darkened hallway. It was quiet inside of the home and our lights bounced off some gaudy pin-striped wallpaper. The floor shined with freshly waxed tile and the sound of a grandfather clock’s pendulum swinging back and forth was the only noise offered while we crept through the first floor.

The first room was to my left and I peeked my head around the corner and then pivoted my body, scanning my flashlight quickly across every part of the room, “Clear,” I whispered and stayed by Flemming’s side.

We checked every room on the first floor in pairs and found nothing. No signs of Heimsworth and no signs of forced entry or a struggle. The two of us made our way to the staircase that led either up to the second floor or down into the basement of the home. We both looked at each other and back to the staircases.

“Alright should we stick together or rock, paper, scissors this?” Flemming asked.

I shook my head, “We should stick together. There isn’t any sign of Heimsworth and we don’t know what he was calling for. Hell the crazy old fuck could have finally went off his rocker entirely.” I muttered while we stood at the two paths. “Regardless we should check the basement first. If there was someone in the house I would imagine he would hide down there rather than go upstairs.” I suggested.

Flemming nodded and flicked his flashlight up and down a bit, “I’ll cover you.”

I rolled my eyes and opened the door that led down to the basement.

A blast of cold air shot out through the door after I had opened it up. It hit against my exposed arms and formed goosebumps across my skin, “Holy shit!” I shouted and shivered, “The fuck is down there that would cause that?” I knew Flemming had felt it too. The breeze kept up for a few moments before it died down, or I got used to it, I didn’t know. When we were comfortable I lead the two of us down into the darkness of the basement. I reached for the nearest light switch my flashlight had caught and gave it a few flicks.

“Should I be surprised right now?” I asked when no lights came on at all. The creaking sounds of the staircase echoed through the basement as we made our way down to solid ground. When we got to the bottom we knew something wasn’t right.

Flemming sneered as the palpable humidity in the basement made our skin crawl, “This isn’t right. It’s gotta be eighty degrees down here. That isn’t possible,” he said with sweat starting to run down the sides of his head. He had to wipe his forehead with the sleeve of his uniform and we had only been down there only a few minutes.

“Maybe his water heater blew and he didn’t know who else to call?” I suggested but even then there was no fog or smoke to suggest that there was overheated water down in the basement. The cobblestone foundation around us looked sticky and grimy. With every step the air got thicker, choking the both of us with no signs of fire or any distress to the building.

Flemming stopped and placed his hand on the wall, “Fuck this. There has to be a gas leak or something down here. That’s not our problem anymore,” he said, coughing hard into the crook of his arm.

That’s when we first heard it. It was a ticking noise much like the clock that was upstairs but this was coming from the walls itself. Despite the thick air in the basement we heard it clearly and from all around us. It came in waves of three. Three ticks, silence, and then three more ticks. The both of us scanned our flashlights towards where we thought the sound was coming from but found nothing. The walls, however, appeared even stickier and slicker while we were down there.

The ticking came faster as the moments passed. The silent breaks between the three ticks drew short until there was nothing around us but the sound of something ticking. The hair on the back of my neck stood on end and my attention shifted to Flemming when his hand went to the back of his neck.

He rubbed the back of his neck and brought his fingers to the flashlight. I caught a glimmer of what was on his fingers and it looked white and bubbly. “What the hell?” He asked and both of us took our flashlights to ceiling.

As soon as our flashlights hit the ceiling we both screamed. Above us was a ceiling of moving flesh, limbs, and faces. The ticking sound had come from the sewn up mouths of whatever it was above us. Drool had hit the back of Flemming’s neck. Bodies were fused together above us, melted to one another and kept alive in ways my mind couldn’t comprehend. I stumbled backwards and onto the hardened basement ground and my flashlight bounced from the ceiling back towards the staircase we had come down from.

The light captured a mass of limbs and teeth gnashing up and down. The eviscerated remains of Gregory Heimsworth bounced up and down in the maw of the twisted creation. It was the size of a recliner and the many teeth that made up a large portion of its mass were as long as my hand. It was an enigma of human body parts and faces like the ceiling above us, but only this one used its mangled arms and legs to shuffle down the stairs onto the floor of the basement.

“F-F-Flemming . . .” I choked out in barely a whimper. My mind was staring at something it could not logically figure out. Even with my arm extended and shaking my muscles couldn’t perform the necessary actions to pull the trigger of my weapon.

It took my senior officer a few moments to draw his attention to where I had my gun pointed. His instinct was much keener than mine and he wasted no time drawing his weapon at the thing at the foot of the stairs.

A moment later his upper body was gone.

Blood splattered the walls and most of my body when the creature launched itself from the place it was sitting and turned itself sideways in the air. It’s giant mouth wrapped around Flemming’s torso all the way up to his head and with one powerful snap of its jaws bisected the older cop in two. It flew past me in its lunge and took its meal with it; leaving Flemming’s lower body to seizure and spasm before falling to the ground.

I was frozen in my tracks for only a moment but it felt like an eternity. Arms stretched from above, pawing at my hat and my shoulders. The clammy feel of a finger brushing against my ear broke me out of my spell and I screamed. I kept a firm hand on my gun but knocked the arms away from my body the best I could while I scrambled on shaky legs towards the stairway. The ticking wouldn’t stop and the sound of flesh and bone tearing and crushing was added to the unholy symphony around me.

My lungs burned. I hadn’t heard myself screaming but my throat burned in a way that only a forced sound could make. My hand reached the railing of the stairs and I turned my body just enough to see the beast finishing Flemming’s off and turn its attention towards me. I blindly fired several rounds towards it as I did my best to run up the stairs. The door above was shut.

I slammed my shoulder into it and turned the knob several times with shaky hands. I growled when it wouldn’t open and slammed my shoulder into it a few more times. I used my bad aiming hand to point my gun back at the creature that turned into the staircase and fired three more shots at it. The bullets appeared to knock it back a few times for each shot and it gave me enough time to power through the door. I scrambled through the door frame and my heart sank.

The walls, floor, and ceiling were nothing but the same mass of flesh that was down below. Ticking mouths shouted at me in gibberish while grasping hands tried to get a firm hold on me. I ran as hard and as fast as I could for the exit to the home while avoiding those grabbing hand. My legs were on fire and I knew I had lost most of my equipment thanks to those hands. My gun had been knocked away as well as my flashlight and the clinking of my keys in my pocket were the only thing keeping me going.

Two hands wrapped around my ankle as I neared the door. The vice like grip made me scream as I felt my ankle crack. I grit my teeth and launched myself off the ground with my other foot, yanking my other leg up as well. My body went crashing through Heimsworth’s front door and onto the hard pavement itself. What I wasn’t prepared for was what was on the other side.

I had hit my head on the ground hard when I exploded out of the house. I rolled onto my back and all I could see was bright lights and shadows and the muffled sounds of shouting. There was perhaps gunfire as well, I couldn’t tell. All I could hear beyond the muffled sounds was tick . . . tick . . . tick . . .


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I feel like Matthews is more than athletic enough to play LT, but he's better in the run game and nastier than Joeckel (who is a better pass protector). Lewan has to be the consensus #2 tackle in the class, especially after his performance against Clowney in the bowl game. I'm not big on Eric Fisher. Impressive physical specimen, but you have to be wary of his competition. Pre-draft drills are gonna be big for him

I feel like Matthews is more than athletic enough to play LT, but he's better in the run game and nastier than Joeckel (who is a better pass protector). Lewan has to be the consensus #2 tackle in the class, especially after his performance against Clowney in the bowl game. I'm not big on Eric Fisher. Impressive physical specimen, but you have to be wary of his competition. Pre-draft drills are gonna be big for him

I don't know. When I've watched Matthews in pass game he seems to hold his ground pretty well. Maybe it's because of the Florida game but I have Matthews as a slightly better pass blocker than Joeckel. Not that either are bad. Matthews played really well against Mingo from LSU when he faced him. I felt it was pretty impressive considering how much hype Mingo is getting.


Tag Archives: Trichomoniasis

Today I’m going to share with you some trichomoniasis treatment involving herbal remedies. Do you know what the most common STD or sexually transmitted disease is? The answer is trichomoniasis or “trich” for short, which is a nasty parasite. The reason you don’t want this evil bug inside your body is because it can bring… Read More »


Q:

Split CSV file using Python shows not all data in Excel

I am trying to dump the values in my Django database to a csv, then write the contents of the csv to an Excel spreadsheet which looks like a table (one value per cell), so that my users can export a spreadsheet of all records in the database from Django admin. Right now when I export the file, I get this (only one random value out of many and not formatted correctly):

What am I doing wrong? Not sure if I am using list comprehensions wrong, reading the file incorrectly, or if there is something wrong with my for loop. Please help!
def dump_table_to_csv(db_table, io):
    with connection.cursor() as cursor:
        cursor.execute("SELECT * FROM %s" % db_table, [])
        row = cursor.fetchall()
        writer = csv.writer(io)
        writer.writerow([i[0] for i in cursor.description])
        writer.writerow(row)

    with open('/Users/nicoletorek/emarshal/myfile.csv', 'w') as f:
        dump_table_to_csv(Attorney._meta.db_table, f)

with open('/Users/nicoletorek/emarshal/myfile.csv', 'r') as f:
    db_list = f.read()
    split_db_list = db_list.split(',')

    output = BytesIO()
    workbook = xlsxwriter.Workbook(output)
    worksheet_s = workbook.add_worksheet("Summary")

    header = workbook.add_format({
        'bg_color': '#F7F7F7',
        'color': 'black',
        'align': 'center',
        'valign': 'top',
        'border': 1
    })

    row = 0
    col = 0

    for x in split_db_list:
        worksheet_s.write(row + 1, col + 1, x, header)

A:

The immediate problem with your sample code, as Jean-Francois points out, is that you aren't incrementing your counters in the loop. Also you may also find it more readable to use xlsxwriter.write_row() instead of xlsxwriter.write(). At the moment a secondary complication is you aren't preserving row information when you read in your data from the CSV.
If your data looks like this:
row_data = [[r1c1, r1c2], [r2c1, r2c2], ... ]

You can then use:
for index, row in enumerate(row_data):
    worksheet_s.write_row(index, 0, row)

That said, I assume you are interested in the .xlsx because you want control over formatting. If the goal is to just to generate the .xlsx and there is no need for the intermediate .csv, why not just create the .xlsx file directly? This can be accomplished nicely in a view:
import io
from django.http import HttpResponse

def dump_attorneys_to_xlsx(request):

    output = io.BytesIO()
    workbook = xlsxwriter.Workbook(output, {'in_memory': True})
    worksheet = workbook.add_worksheet('Summary')

    attorneys = Attorney.objects.all().values()

    # Write header
    worksheet.write_row(0, 0, attorneys[0].keys())

    # Write data
    for row_index, row_dict in enumerate(attorneys, start=1):
        worksheet.write_row(row_index, 0, row_dict.values())
    workbook.close()

    output.seek(0)

    response = HttpResponse(output.read(), content_type='application/vnd.openxmlformats-officedocument.spreadsheetml.sheet')
    response['Content-Disposition'] = 'attachment; filename=summary.xlsx'

    return response


AHS Technology

by Brad Anderson

“The Times They Are a-Changin’” sang Bob Dylan in his popular song of the same title in 1964. The saying still rings true today, especially in the UTHSC College of Allied Health Sciences (CAHS). Technological advancements are continually evolving and changing the landscape of education in the college. You may be surprised to know that in today’s classroom, a “blackboard” doesn’t involve chalk … or even a physical space. Imagine waking up with your morning cup of coffee, reading the newspaper, and then attending a live class … from your living room. The face of cytotechnology, the microscope, may soon be extinct as newer tools of technology with mind-numbing precision are replacing older ones.

Currently, students from more than a dozen states are enrolled in online programs in the college. “We are moving more and more to having less face-to-face contact with students, to more online,” explained Richard Kasser, PhD, PT, associate professor in the Department of Physical Therapy (PT). This evolution began in the early 1990s as Internet access began to expand into homes and campuses with the advent of a consumer-based browser, Netscape, and an infrastructure of dial-up protocol addresses (IP/TCP) to easily connect to the Web. The “information age” was accelerated through wide-scale access to technology combined with a user-friendly browser. This has had a profound effect on education – from learning to teaching.

Today, nearly every program in the College of Allied Health Sciences utilizes some form of online course work. In fact, the Department of Health Informatics and Information Management (HIIM) program is administered completely online with no on-campus component. Online instruction is accomplished through a variety of ways including video conferencing and a Web-based electronic course management system called Blackboard.

In the Department of Occupational Therapy (OT), the use of video technology and Blackboard allows courses to be administered online to the program’s two campuses in Memphis and Chattanooga. Students from both locations attend live lectures simultaneously from their respective classrooms equipped with video screens, microphones and a view of the instructor’s presentation and slides. Post lecture, instructors provide course materials, discussion boards, online quizzes and other academic resources made accessible through Blackboard. Instructors can also record and post video and audio “podcasts” of their lectures and techniques from which students can then download to their computer or portable devices.

Leonard Bloom, MPH, associate professor in the Department of Clinical Laboratory Sciences (CLS), is the online instructor of a multidisciplinary course that includes doctoral and master’s level students from CLS, HIIM and PT. Bloom and his students interact live in a virtual classroom through the use of software titled Adobe Connect. Unlike Blackboard, which is designed to complement face-to-face teaching, Adobe Connect allows real-time, long-distance, two-way communication through chatting features, microphones and Web cameras. HIIM Department also uses Adobe Connect to interact with their students in a number of other courses and also provides advising through the Adobe Connect technology.

The virtual lab prepares students for clinical experiences by giving them an idea of what they will see at the clinical sites and allowing them to practice those skills in a virtual setting first. -HIIM Professor Beth Bowman

For Bloom, the experience has been a positive one. “The use of online technology enables the student to feel that they are in a classroom and offers them the opportunity for immediate feedback.” He continued, “It also provides immediate feedback to the instructor to ensure that students comprehend key concepts. Overall, it has been a valuable experience, which will help further the reach of our programs.”

The ability for the college to expand its reach online has played a very important role in the OT program. “The distance teaching initiative allowed UT to return OT education to East Tennessee,” noted Lawrence Faulkner, PhD, OT/L, associate professor and interim chair. “We are one program, in two locations,” he added. For students, especially those at the master’s level, distance learning is especially beneficial. “Many of the students working on master’s have to be a certain health care worker. The online programs help them achieve the balance of work and school,” explained HIIM Professor Beth Bowman.

Chattanooga Occupational Therapy students participate in a class administered from the Memphis campus through video conferencing technology.

Even traditional textbooks are not immune to this technological shift. The Department of Dental Hygiene will implement an electronic textbook system during the summer. Textbooks will be available for purchase as software through which students can make notes and highlight sections of the text, all on computer. Through an instant purchase and download, students can now avoid heavy backpacks and the race to the bookstore in hopes of finding many of those elusive titles.

This shift to online coursing and electronic information is not just about convenience, but rather out of the necessity to adequately prepare and familiarize CAHS students for today’s technology-driven, health care setting. For example, HIIM students are training in a virtual lab that provides the same software systems used by the majority of hospitals. It includes electronic health records and additional software that they will use in the workplace as health information professionals. “The virtual lab prepares students for clinical experiences by giving them an idea of what they will see at the clinical sites and allowing them to practice those skills in a virtual setting first,” stated Bowman.

Technology has adapted to create equipment that can produce and deliver images in infinite clarity at break-neck speeds to a multitude of both portable and stationary devices. Simply put, UT CAHS students are training on today’s most cutting-edge technology.

In cytotechnology, students rely upon microscopes to diagnose disease processes. Recent technology such as the Aperio Scanscope XT scans an entire glass slide and converts it into a digital format to be evaluated via the computer. By converting glass slides into digital slides, professors can teach students how to spot patterns and trends, by viewing an entire slide in the lecture room. The technology allows instructors to show multiple slides side-by-side, and make slide annotations – all of which is viewable on large flat screen monitors and easily archived and transmitted to a virtual audience.

“Although, we continue to teach via the traditional manner, the microscope, we concede that the future of microscopy and cytotechnology is in the virtual realm. By digitizing our glass slides, we hope to preserve them for future generations and avoid the costly nature of replacing faded glass slides. Our hope is to have a multifaceted educational approach based in light microscopy but supplemented by virtual microscopy,” stated Bloom.
The physical therapy program also utilizes electronic tools that precisely measure upper and lower extremities for evaluation and progress, then exports the data to a computer for statistical analysis that can also be archived and shared. These are just a few examples of how these future allied health professionals are learning to do things never thought possible before.

While the notion exists that technology may be taking away from the human element, and even replacing jobs, many experts in the college have a different view. Diane Wyatt, retired assistant dean and faculty member of the CAHS, believes that there is nothing to fear. “What I have learned in my 43 years of observation is that automation never replaces anyone in the long term. What it does is allow us to be able to do more things faster, therefore the expectation increases.”

Linda Ross, MS, MLS (ASCP), chairman and associate professor in CLS, agrees with Wyatt’s assessment and added, “It takes the human mind, eye and expertise to determine what is normal, abnormal and what abnormality is. Instruments alone cannot do that.” She further elaborated, “You have to have problem-solving skills and critical thinking to interpret the data being generated.”

As we continue to move forward in the digital age, the teaching methods, learning and delivery of information are constantly changing and evolving … however the spirit and desire of students who choose a career of caring for others as allied health professionals remain the same. After all, the biggest beneficiaries of technological advances in education may be the patients who they will serve.