Cook v. New Orleans Police Department et al

Filing 10

ORDER AND REASONS granting 7 Motion to Dismiss for Failure to State a Claim. Party New Orleans Police Department dismissed. Signed by Chief Judge Sarah S. Vance on 5/1/14. (jjs)

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
EASTERN DISTRICT OF LOUISIANA
JANE COOK

CIVIL ACTION

VERSUS

NO: 13-6324

NEW ORLEANS POLICE DEPARTMENT, ET
AL.

SECTION: R

ORDER AND REASONS
Defendant, the New Orleans Police Department ("NOPD"), has
filed a motion to dismiss plaintiff Jane Cook's claims against
the NOPD, arguing that it is not an entity capable of being sued.
The motion is unopposed. Because the NOPD is not a juridical
entity capable of being sued, the Court GRANTS defendant's motion
and dismisses plaintiff's claims against the NOPD with prejudice.

I.

LEGAL STANDARD
To survive a Rule 12 (b) (6) motion to dismiss, the

plaintiff must plead enough facts to “state a claim to relief
that is plausible on its face.” Ashcroft v. Iqbal, 556 U.S. 662,
678 (2009) (quoting Bell Atl. Corp. v. Twombly, 550 U.S. 544, 570
(2007)). A claim is facially plausible “when the plaintiff pleads
factual content that allows the court to draw the reasonable
inference that the defendant is liable for the misconduct
alleged.” Id. A court must accept all well-pleaded facts as true
and must draw all reasonable inferences in favor of the

plaintiff. Lormand v. U.S. Unwired, Inc., 565 F.3d 228, 239 (5th
Cir. 2009). But the Court is not bound to accept as true legal
conclusions couched as factual allegations. Iqbal, 556 U.S. at
678.
A legally sufficient complaint need not contain detailed
factual allegations, but it must go beyond labels, legal
conclusions, or formulaic recitations of the elements of a cause
of action. Id. In other words, the face of the complaint must
contain enough factual matter to raise a reasonable expectation
that discovery will reveal evidence of each element of the
plaintiff’s claim. Lormand, 565 F.3d at 257. If there are
insufficient factual allegations to raise a right to relief above
the speculative level, or if it is apparent from the face of the
complaint that there is an insuperable bar to relief, the claim
must be dismissed. Twombly, 550 U.S. at 555.
II.

DISCUSSION
Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 17(b) provides that the

"capacity to sue or be sued is determined . . . by the law of the
state where the court is located." In Louisiana, an entity must
qualify as a "juridical person" to possess the capacity to sue
and be sued. Dugas v. City of Breaux Bridge Police Dep't, 757
So.2d 741, 743 (La. Ct. App. 2000). Article 24 of the Louisiana
Civil Code defines a "juridical person" as an "entity to which
the law attributes personality." There is no law that attributes
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personality to the NOPD, and courts in this District consistently
have held that the NOPD lacks juridical capacity.

See, e.g.,

Winn v. New Orleans City, 919 F. Supp. 2d 743, 750 (E.D. La.
2013); Everson v. N.O.P.D. Officers (Names Unknown), CIV.A. 077027, 2009 WL 122759, at *2 (E.D. La. Jan. 15, 2009); Banks v.
United States, CIV.A. 05-6853, 2007 WL 1030326, at *11 (E.D. La.
Mar. 28, 2007); Manley v. Louisiana, CIV.A. 00-1939, 2001 WL
506175, at *2 (E.D. La. May 11, 2001).

Accordingly, plaintiff

fails to state a claim against the NOPD.

IV.

CONCLUSION
For the foregoing reasons, the Court GRANTS the NOPD's

motion and dismisses plaintiff's claims against the NOPD with
prejudice.

1st
New Orleans, Louisiana, this ___ day of May, 2014.
_____________________________________
SARAH S. VANCE
UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE

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