Dotson v. Bravo

• Decision Date: 03 March 2003
• Docket Number: No. 01-3494.,01-3494.
• Citation: 321 F.3d 663
• Parties: Shaunte DOTSON, Plaintiff-Appellant, v. Jaimie BRAVO, Officer, Star # 4123, and City of Chicago, Defendants-Appellees.
• Court: U.S. Court of Appeals — Seventh Circuit

321 F.3d 663

Shaunte DOTSON, Plaintiff-Appellant, v. Jaimie BRAVO, Officer, Star # 4123, and City of Chicago, Defendants-Appellees.

No. 01-3494.

United States Court of Appeals, Seventh Circuit.

Argued December 9, 2002.

Decided March 3, 2003.

Thomas Peters (argued), Murphy, Peters & Davis, Chicago, IL, for Plaintiff-Appellant.

Mara S. Georges, Meera Werth (argued), Office of Corporation Counsel, Appeals Div., Chicago, IL, for Defendant-Appellee.

Before BAUER, RIPPLE, and KANNE, Circuit Judges.

BAUER, Circuit Judge.

"[T]here are species of misconduct that place too high a burden ... for a court to allow a case to continue." Barnhill v. United States, 11 F.3d 1360, 1368 (7th Cir.1993). The Plaintiff, whose real name is DeMarco Shaunte Sheppard,¹ filed this civil rights lawsuit under the name "Shaunte Dotson" after being twice convicted and once acquitted of aggravated discharge of a firearm in the Illinois courts under the name "Shaunte Dotson." During discovery proceedings in this case, the Defendants ("Bravo" or "the City") learned of Sheppard's true identity and filed a motion to dismiss and to impose sanctions against him. The district court granted the motion to dismiss with prejudice. Sheppard appeals that ruling, and we affirm.

BACKGROUND

Shortly after midnight on January 1, 1998, police responded to a call of shots fired in the 8500 block of South Saginaw in Chicago. While searching the area, Chicago Police Officer Jaimie Bravo proceeded down the gangway of the house adjacent to 8529 South Saginaw. The parties disagree as to what actually occurred next, but do not dispute that Bravo fired two shots into the backyard of 8529 South Saginaw, which struck Tamika Smith in the back of the leg. Bravo then proceeded into the backyard of 8529 South Saginaw, and by some accounts into the home itself, and arrested Sheppard, who identified himself as "Shaunte Dotson."²

Sheppard was charged with attempted first degree murder, aggravated discharge of a firearm at a police officer, and aggravated discharge of a firearm. Bravo testified at trial that Sheppard shot first on the night of January 1, 1998, and Sheppard was convicted only of aggravated discharge of a firearm at a police officer. A second trial took place following the discovery of exculpatory evidence not tendered to Sheppard's counsel during the first trial, and Bravo again gave unwavering testimony that Sheppard was the man who shot at him. Sheppard was convicted for a second time, but only of aggravated discharge of a firearm. He was then sentenced to four years' imprisonment and remanded to the Illinois correctional system.

Approximately one year after Sheppard was convicted the second time, Tamika Smith filed a § 1983 lawsuit against Bravo, alleging that she was alone and unarmed in the backyard when Bravo shot her. In March 2000, Sheppard gave a deposition in Smith's case from prison, at which time he continued to identify himself as "Shaunte Dotson," denied being known by any other name, and stated that his birthday was June 4, 1980; Sheppard's correct birthday is June 24, 1980. That same month, the City and Bravo turned over to Smith's attorneys audio tape recordings of police radio broadcasts from the early morning events on January 1, 1998. The tapes included a recording of a broadcast made at least half an hour after Bravo had arrested Sheppard at 8529 South Saginaw. During that broadcast, Bravo tells police units, responding to a call of shots fired a few blocks away on Marquette Street, that the shooter there may have been the person who shot at him on South Saginaw, contradicting his testimony in Sheppard's trials.

As a result of this recording, Sheppard was released immediately from prison and granted a third trial. Prior to the trial, Sheppard was arrested for threatening a security guard on August 23, 2000. This time, however, Sheppard gave police his real name. His third, criminal trial was held on November 16, 2000, and Sheppard was acquitted of all charges. All three of his criminal trials and his incarceration took place under the assumption that his name was "Shaunte Dotson."

Following his acquittal, Sheppard filed the instant civil rights suit, as "Shaunte Dotson," against Bravo and the City alleging malicious prosecution and other state law claims. The City sought discovery from third parties for records on "Shaunte Dotson" but soon learned that none existed. In February 2001, the City sent interrogatories to Sheppard, which specifically requested, among other things, information about each of his arrests.

Before responding to those interrogatories, Sheppard was arrested again on March 2, 2001, for assault and battery as well as on April 29, 2001, for felony weapons possession, fleeing an officer, and traffic violations. As with his August 2000 arrest, Sheppard gave police his real name on these occasions. On May 1, 2001, Sheppard sent unverified answers to the City's interrogatories, but failed to disclose his real name or the fact that he had recently been arrested three times under the name DeMarco Sheppard. Bravo then filed a motion to compel verified responses, which the district court granted. On May 22, 2001, Sheppard finally provided verified answers and, for the first time, disclosed his true name. He did not, however, provide the requested information on his three recent arrests nor correct his date of birth, which he maintained was June 4, 1980.

Three days later, the City deposed Sheppard and verified his correct identity. Sheppard stated that he gave police the name "Shaunte Dotson" in January 1998 because he was afraid that outstanding warrants existed under the name DeMarco Sheppard. He also admitted that his correct birth date is June 24, 1980. Based upon this information, the City filed a motion to dismiss the case and impose sanctions, which the district court granted in part by dismissing the case with prejudice. Sheppard now appeals, arguing that the district court abused its discretion. Specifically, Sheppard argues that the district court improperly considered his use of a false name prior to the filing of this lawsuit and that, in any event, the City and Bravo were not prejudiced by his use of a false name.

ANALYSIS

We review the district court's imposition of sanctions for discovery violations, including dismissal of the case with prejudice, for an abuse of discretion. Nat'l Hockey League v. Metro. Hockey Club, Inc., 427 U.S. 639, 642, 96 S.Ct. 2778, 49 L.Ed.2d 747 (1976) (per curiam); Godlove v. Bamberger, Foreman, Oswald, and Hahn, 903 F.2d 1145, 1148 (7th Cir.1990). Factual findings of the district court, however, are reviewed for clear error. Barnhill, 11 F.3d at 1367 n. 7.

It is appropriate to start our analysis with the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure and specifically with Rule 37, which address sanctions for discovery violations. Under Rule 37(a)(3), "an evasive or incomplete disclosure, answer, or response is to be treated as a failure to disclose, answer, or respond." FED. R. CIV. P. 37(a)(3) (2002). Rule 37(c)(1) establishes that a failure to disclose any information that is required to be disclosed under Rule 26(a) and (e)(1) can result in the imposition of various sanctions, which are listed in Rule 37(b)(2)(A)-(C).³ FED. R. CIV. P. 37(c)(1). Among the approved Rule 37(b) sanctions is "dismissing the action or proceeding or any part thereof." FED. R. CIV. P. 37(b)(2)(C); Halas v. Consumer Servs., Inc., 16 F.3d 161, 164 (7th Cir.1994).

We recognize that dismissal is a harsh sanction, but "the most severe in the spectrum of sanctions provided by statute or rule must be available ... not merely to penalize those whose conduct may be deemed to warrant such a sanction, but to deter those who might be tempted to such conduct in the absence of such a deterrent." Nat'l Hockey League, 427 U.S. at 643, 96 S.Ct. 2778. Further, it is axiomatic that the appropriateness of lesser sanctions need not be explored if the circumstances justify imposition of the ultimate penalty—dismissal with prejudice. Halas, 16 F.3d at 165. We have held that incomplete or evasive responses to interrogatories can support, in part, dismissal of the entire action under Rule 37(b). Roland v. Salem Contract Carriers, Inc., 811 F.2d 1175, 1180 (7th Cir.1987).

Beyond any rule-based justification, the court's inherent authority to rectify abuses to the judicial process also authorizes sanctions for certain violations. Chambers v. NASCO, Inc., 501 U.S. 32, 49, 111 S.Ct. 2123, 115 L.Ed.2d 27 (1991); Barnhill, 11 F.3d at 1367. This power is governed by the necessary control courts must have over their dockets. Barnhill, 11 F.3d at 1367. As with Rule 37(b) dismissals, use of the court's inherent power to dismiss for discovery violations is perceived as a "draconian" measure. Id. It should be employed sparingly and only when there is a record of delay, contumacious conduct, or when other, less drastic sanctions prove unavailing. In deciding what measure of sanctions to impose, the district court should consider "the egregiousness of the conduct in question in relation to all aspects of the judicial process." Id. at 1368 (emphasis added).

We have also noted that [m]isconduct may exhibit such flagrant contempt for the court and its processes that to allow the offending party to continue to invoke the judicial mechanism for its own benefit would raise concerns about the integrity and credibility of the civil justice system that transcend the interests of the parties immediately before the court.

Id. Filing a case under a false name deliberately, and without sufficient justification, certainly qualifies as flagrant contempt for the judicial process and amounts to behavior that...