Daley v. Bratton et al

Filing 6

MEMORANDUM AND ORDER: Plaintiffs request to proceed in forma pauperis pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1915 is granted. For the foregoing reasons, the complaint is dismissed for failure to state a claim upon which relief may be granted pursuant to 28 U.S .C. § 1915A(b)(l). The Court certifies pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1915(a)(3) that any appeal from this order would not be taken in good faith and therefore in forma pauperis status is denied for purpose of an appeal. See Coppedge v. United States, 369 U.S. 438, 444-45 (1962). (See attachment for details). Ordered by Judge LaShann DeArcy Hall on 8/1/2016. (Basnight, Jasmine)

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
EASTERN DISTRICT OF NEW YORK

-----------------------------------------------------------"
CASSIUS DALEY,

MEMORANDUM AND ORDER
16 CV 3157 (LDH)

Plaintiff,
-against-

NYCNYPD COMMISSIONER WILLIAM
BRATTON; DETECTIVE REBECCA
ASMAN, l 13th Pct., #1356,

INflLED

US DISTR'ia~~UOFFICE

*

RTE.D.N.Y.

AUG 02 2016

*

BROOKLYN OFFICE

Defendants.

-----------------------------------------------------------"
LASHANN DEARCY HALL, United States District Judge:

Plaintiff Cassius Daley, who is currently incarcerated at the George R. Vierno Center
("GRVC") at Rikers Island, filed this prose action on June 10, 2016 requesting monetary
damages pursuant to 42 U .S.C. § 1983. Plaintiffs request to proceed in forma pauperis pursuant
to 28 U.S.C. § 1915 is granted. For the reasons stated below, the action is dismissed pursuant to
28 U.S.C. § 1915A(b)(l).

BACKGROUND
The following facts are derived from the complaint and are taken as true for the purpose
of this memorandum and order. Plaintiff alleges that on April 11, 2009, a murder was committed
and that Defendant Asman edited a video to make it appear that Plaintiff committed the crime.
(Compl. at pg. 4, ECF No. 1.) Plaintiff argues that, although the prosecutor was aware that there
were irregularities with the evidence in the criminal action, the prosecutor allowed Plaintiff to
plead guilty to the charges. (Id. at pg. 6). Plaintiff further alleges that William Bratton, the Police
Commissioner of the City of New York, failed to properly train defendant Asman. Plaintiff
seeks monetary damages. (Id. at pg. 7.)

STANDARD OF REVIEW
Under 28 U.S.C. § 1915A, a district court "shall review, before docketing, if feasible or,
in any event, as soon as practicable after docketing, a complaint in a civil action in which a
prisoner seeks redress from a governmental entity or employee of a governmental entity." 28
U.S.C. § 1915A. Upon review, a district court shall dismiss a prisoner complaint sua sponte if
the complaint is "frivolous, malicious, or fails to state a claim upon which relief may be granted;
or seeks monetary relief from a defendant who is immune from such relief." Id. § 1915A(b)(l)(2); Abbas v. Dixon, 480 F.3d 636, 639 (2d Cir. 2007) (discussing the dismissal provision in 15
U.S.C. § 1915A(b)); see also Liner v. Goord, 196 F.3d 132,134 & n.1 (2d Cir. 1999)(noting that
under Prison Litigation Reform Act, sua sponte dismissal of frivolous prisoner complaints is not
only permitted, but also mandatory).
At the pleadings stage of the proceeding, the Court must assume the truth of"all wellpleaded, nonconclusory factual allegations" in the complaint. Kiobel v. Royal Dutch Petroleum
Co., 621F.3d111, 123 (2d Cir. 2010) (citing Ashcroft v. Iqbal, 556 U.S. 662, 678 (2009)). A
complaint must plead sufficient facts to "state a claim to relief that is plausible on its face." Bell
At!. Corp. v. Twombly, 550 U.S. 544, 570 (2007).
It is axiomatic that pro se complaints are held to less stringent standards than pleadings

drafted by attorneys, and as such, the Court is required to read the Plaintiffs pro se complaint
liberally and interpret it as raising the strongest arguments it suggests. Erickson v. Pardus, 551
U.S. 89, 94 (2007) (describing liberal construction of prose pleadings); Hughes v. Rowe, 449
U.S. 5, 9 (1980) (same); Sealed Plaintiffv. Sealed Defendant #1, 537 F.3d 185, 191-93 (2d Cir.
2008) (same).
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Pursuant to Rule 8 of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, a plaintifr s complaint must
contain a "short and plain statement of the claim showing that the pleader is entitled to relief."
Fed. R. Civ. P. 8(a)(2). This rule "does not require 'detailed factual allegations,' but it demands
more than an unadorned, the-defendant-unlawfully-harmed-me accusation." Iqbal, 556 U.S. at
678 (quoting Twombly, 550 U.S. at 555). Pleadings are to give "fair notice" of a claim and "the
grounds upon which it rests" in order to enable the opposing party to answer and prepare for trial,
and to identify the nature of the case. Dura Pharmaceuticals, Inc. v. Broudo, 544 U.S. 336, 346
(2005) (citation omitted); Swierkiewicz v. Sorema, N.A., 534 U.S. 506, 512 (2002); see also

Simmons v. Abruzzo, 49 F .3d 83, 86 (2d Cir. 1995) (defining "fair notice" as "that which will
enable the adverse party to answer and prepare for trial, allow the application of res judicata, and
identify the nature of the case so that it may be assigned the proper form of trial") (internal
citations omitted).

DISCUSSION
I.

Plaintiffs§ 1983 Claims

Section 1983 itself creates does not create any substantive rights, but rather "provides
only a procedure for redress for the deprivation of rights established elsewhere." Sykes v. James,
13 F.3d 515, 519 (2d Cir. 1993) (citing City of Oklahoma City v. Tuttle, 471 U.S. 808, 816
(1985)). To maintain a § 1983 action, Plaintiff must first allege that ''the conduct complained of
must have been committed by a person acting under color of state law." Pitchell v. Callan, 13
F.3d 545, 547 (2d Cir. 1994); see also Filarksy v. Delia, 132 S. Ct. 1657, 1661, 182 L. Ed. 2d
662 (2012) ("Section 1983 provides a cause of action against any person who deprives an
individual of federally guaranteed rights 'under color' of state law."). Second, he must allege
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that "the conduct complained of must have deprived a person of rights, privileges or immunities
secured by the Constitution or laws of the United States." Pitchell, 13 F.3d at 547; Bailey v. City

ofNew York, 79 F. Supp. 3d 424, 440 (E.D.N.Y. 2015) (same). For the foregoing reasons,
Plaintiff has failed to state a plausible claim for relief against either Defendant.

II.

Claims Challenging Plaintiff's Conviction

Civil tort actions are not appropriate vehicles for challenging the validity of outstanding
criminal judgments. Heck v. Humphrey, 512 U.S. 477, 486 (1994). To recover damages for an
allegedly unconstitutional conviction, imprisonment, or other harm caused by unlawful actions
that would render a conviction or sentence invalid, "a§ 1983 plaintiff must prove that the
conviction or sentence has been reversed on direct appeal, expunged by executive order, declared
invalid by a state tribunal authorized to make such determination, or called into question by a
federal court's issuance of a writ of habeas corpus[.]" Id. at 486-87. Consequently, claims for
damages are not cognizable under § 1983 if the related conviction or sentence has not been
invalidated, a concept which has become known as the "favorable termination" rule. Foster v.

Diop, No. l l-CV-4731, 2013 WL 1339408, at *7 (E.D.N.Y. Mar. 31, 2013) (citing Peralta v.
Vasquez, 467 F.3d 98, 100 (2d Cir. 2006)).
Here, Plaintifr s allegations do not comport with the favorable termination rule. Plaintiff
acknowledges that he entered a plea of guilty to the charges against him, and he has not alleged
that the conviction has been overturned or otherwise invalidated. Accordingly, Plaintiffs§ 1983
claim relating to his underlying state criminal action is precluded under Heck and must be
dismissed. 28 U.S.C. § 1915A(b)(l) (providing that a court shall dismiss a complaint if it fails to
state a claim upon which relief may be granted).

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III.

Claims Against William Bratton

Personal involvement of defendants in alleged constitutional deprivations is a prerequisite
to an award of damages under§ 1983. Faridv. Ellen, 593 F.3d 233, 249 (2d Cir. 2010) (quoting

Farrell v. Burke, 449 F.3d 470, 484 (2d Cir. 2006)). Liability under§ 1983 cannot be generally
imposed on a supervisor solely based on his position because there is no respondeat superior or
vicarious liability under§ 1983. See, e.g., Iqbal, 556 U.S. at 676 ("Because vicarious liability is
inapplicable to Bivens and § 1983 suits, a plaintiff must plead that each Government-official
defendant, through the official's own individual actions, has violated the Constitution.") (citing

Monell v. New York City Dept. ofSocial Servs., 436 U.S. 658 (1978)); Hernandez v. Keane, 341
F.3d 137, 144 (2d Cir. 2003) ("[S]upervisor liability in a§ 1983 action depends on a showing of
some personal responsibility, and cannot rest on respondeat superior.").
"Personal involvement" may be established by evidence of direct participation by a
supervisor in the challenged conduct, or by evidence of a supervisory official's "(1) failure to
take corrective action after learning of a subordinate's unlawful conduct, (2) creation of a policy
or custom fostering the unlawful conduct, (3) gross negligence in supervising subordinates who
commit unlawful acts, or (4) deliberate indifference to the rights of others by failing to act on
information regarding the unlawful conduct of subordinates." Hayut v. State Univ. ofNew York,
352 F.3d 733, 753 (2d Cir. 2003). Here, plaintiff has not pleaded any facts to demonstrate
Commissioner Bratton's personal involvement in any of the violations asserted in his complaint.
Accordingly, Plaintifrs claims against Commissioner Bratton must be dismissed.

IV.

Statute of Limitations

Finally, Plaintifrs claim is barred by the statute of limitations. The applicable limitation
period for a § 1983 action is derived from the general or residual statute of limitations for personal

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injury actions under the laws of the forum state. Owens v. Okure, 488 U.S. 235, 249-50 (1989). In
New York, the statute of limitations for a§ 1983 action is three years. N.Y. C.P.L.R. § 214(5);

Milan v. Wertheimer, 808 F.3d 961, 963 (2d Cir. 2015) (applying New York's three-year statute
oflimitations); Cornado v. City ofNew York, No. 11-cv-5188, 2014 WL 4746137, at *3
(S.D.N.Y. Sept. 24, 2014) (same). A§ 1983 claim accrues when a plaintiff knows or has reason
to know of the injury which is the basis of his action. Milan, 808 F. 3d at 963; Bastien v. Samuels,
No. 14-cv-1561, 2014 WL 5306016, at *3 (E.D.N.Y. Oct. 15, 2014). Here, the incident that forms
the basis of this action occurred in 2009. Therefore, because the events giving rise to this claim
occurred more than three years before Plaintiff filed his complaint, his action is barred by the
statute of limitations.
The Court ordinarily would allow Plaintiff an opportunity to amend his complaint. See

Cruz v. Gomez, 202 F.3d 593, 597-98 (2d Cir. 2000) (noting that a prose plaintiff who is
proceeding in forma pauperis should be afforded the opportunity to amend his complaint unless
the court can rule out any possibility that an amended complaint would succeed in stating a
claim). The Court need not afford that opportunity here, however, where it is clear from Plaintiffs
submission that there is no viable basis for his claim and that any attempt to amend the complaint
would be futile. See Ashmore v. Prus, 510 Fed. Appx. 47, 49 (2d Cir. 2013) (leave to amend is
futile where "barriers to relief cannot be surmounted by reframing the complaint"); see also

Cuoco v. Moritsugu, 222 F.3d 99, 112 (2d Cir. 2000) (denying leave to amend a prose complaint
where better pleading would not cure the complaint's substantive deficiencies).

CONCLUSION
For the foregoing reasons, the complaint is dismissed for failure to state a claim upon

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which relief may be granted pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1915A(b)(l). The Court certifies pursuant to
28 U.S.C. § 1915(a)(3) that any appeal from this order would not be taken in good faith and
therefore in forma pauperis status is denied for purpose of an appeal. See Coppedge v. United

States, 369 U.S. 438, 444-45 (1962).

Dated: Brooklyn, New York
SO ORDERED

2016

LASHANN DEARCY HALL
United States District Judge

7

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
EASTERN DISTRICT OF NEW YORK

-----------------------------------------------------------x
CASSIUS DALEY,

CIVIL JUDGMENT
16 CV 3 157 (LDH)

Plaintiff,
-against-

NYCNYPD COMMISSIONER WILLIAM
BRATTON; DETECTIVE REBECCA
ASMAN, l 13th Pct., # 1356,
Defendants.

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Pursuant to the order issued
by the undersigned,
dismissing the complaint for fai lure to state a claim upon which relief may be granted pursuant to
28 U.S.C. § 19 15A(b)(l), it is

ORDERED, ADJUDGED AND DECREED: That the complaint is hereby dismissed.
The Court certifies pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1915(a)(3) that any appeal from the Court's order
would not be taken in good faith.

s/ LaShann DeArcy Hall

LAS
United States District Judge

Dated: Brooklyn, New York
2016