National Rifle Association of America, Inc. et al v. Village of Oak Park et al

Filing 21

MEMORANDUM Order Signed by the Honorable Milton I. Shadur on 9/19/2008:Mailed notice(srn, )

IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE NORTHERN DISTRICT OF ILLINOIS EASTERN DIVISION NATIONAL RIFLE ASSOCIATION OF AMERICA, INC., et al., Plaintiffs, v. VILLAGE OF OAK PARK, et al., Defendants. ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) )

No.

08 C 3696

MEMORANDUM ORDER Oak Park Mayor David Pope ("Pope") has moved for his dismissal as a codefendant in this action brought by National Rifle Association of America, Inc. and two of its members against Pope and the Village of Oak Park itself. Plaintiffs have in turn

just filed a document captioned "Response of Non-Opposition to Defendants' Motion To Dismiss Plaintiffs' Claims Against David Pope." This brief memorandum order is issued to dispel a

misapprehension on the part of plaintiffs or their counsel or both, as reflected in that Response. Asserting judicial economy as the basis for non-opposition, plaintiffs say that they "will agree to dismissal of David Pope from these proceedings without prejudice, each party to bear its own costs and fees with respect to said partial dismissal." But

of course the terms of dismissal, if legally appropriate, are set by this Court and not by the opposing party. And in this

instance Complaint ¶6 (emphasis added) could not be more clear as to the only predicate for naming Pope as a codefendant:

Defendant, David Pope ("Pope"), is the President of the Village of Oak Park, which is his principal place of business. He is being sued in his official capacity. Nearly a quarter century has elapsed since the seminal and definitive opinion in Kentucky v. Graham, 473 U.S. 159 (1985) taught that no useful purpose is served by the needless inclusion of an individual defendant in a 42 U.S.C. §1983 lawsuit in which the municipality itself is targeted as a defendant. Plaintiffs

are represented by experienced counsel who should have known better. Pope's motion is granted--he is dismissed as a defendant

with prejudice and without the imposition of any conditions.1

________________________________________ Milton I. Shadur Senior United States District Judge Date: September 19, 2008

In that last respect, this memorandum order expresses no view as to the accuracy or lack of accuracy in the Response's statement that "each party [is] to bear its own costs and fees." 2

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