McCurdy v. Dodd

• Decision Date: 17 December 2003
• Docket Number: No. 02-2708.,02-2708.
• Citation: 352 F.3d 820
• Parties: Bobby MCCURDY, Appellant, v. Kirk DODD, Badge No. 1762 Individually and as a police officer for the Philadelphia Police Department; Christopher DiPasquale, Badge No. 4971 Individually and as a police officer for the Philadelphia Police Department; John Mouzon, Badge No. 5293 Individually and as a police officer for the Philadelphia Police Department; Dave Thomas, Badge No. 1762 Individually and as a police officer for the Philadelphia Police Department; Scott Wallace, Badge No. 3434 Individually and as a police officer for the Philadelphia Police Department; City of Philadelphia, Appellees. City of Harrisburg; City of Pittsburgh; City of Newark; City of Camden, Amici-Appellees.
• Court: U.S. Court of Appeals — Third Circuit

352 F.3d 820

Bobby MCCURDY, Appellant, v. Kirk DODD, Badge No. 1762 Individually and as a police officer for the Philadelphia Police Department; Christopher DiPasquale, Badge No. 4971 Individually and as a police officer for the Philadelphia Police Department; John Mouzon, Badge No. 5293 Individually and as a police officer for the Philadelphia Police Department; Dave Thomas, Badge No. 1762 Individually and as a police officer for the Philadelphia Police Department; Scott Wallace, Badge No. 3434 Individually and as a police officer for the Philadelphia Police Department; City of Philadelphia, Appellees City of Harrisburg; City of Pittsburgh; City of Newark; City of Camden, Amici-Appellees.

No. 02-2708.

United States Court of Appeals, Third Circuit.

Argued July 23, 2003.

Filed December 17, 2003.

Richard A. McDaniel (argued), Philadelphia, PA, for Appellant.

Jane L. Istvan (argued), City of Philadelphia, Law Department, Philadelphia, PA, for Appellees Kirk Dodd, John Mouzon, Dave Thomas, Scott Wallace and the City of Philadelphia.

Richard G. Tuttle (argued), Kolansky, Tuttle, & Rocco, Philadelphia, PA, for Appellee Christopher DiPasquale.

Sarah E. Ricks, Rutgers University School of Law, Camden, NJ, for Amici-Appellees.

Before ALITO, FUENTES, and BECKER, Circuit Judges.

OPINION OF THE COURT

FUENTES, Circuit Judge.

This controversy arises out of the tragic and fatal shooting of Donta Dawson ("Dawson" or the "decedent") in an encounter with officers of the Philadelphia Police Department. Dawson's biological father, Bobby McCurdy ("McCurdy"), appeals the grant of summary judgment in favor of the defendants as to McCurdy's sole remaining claim from an action brought pursuant to 42 U.S.C. § 1983. McCurdy invoked the Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment and asserted that defendants had violated his parental liberty interest in the companionship of his independent adult son.

The District Court granted summary judgment on the ground that McCurdy was precluded from bringing his § 1983 action after he had entered into an agreement with Dawson's mother to share the proceeds from her settlement of a prior civil action against the same defendants here. We find, however, that there is a controlling, threshold issue which obviates the need to address preclusion: that is, whether McCurdy has adequately asserted the violation of a cognizable constitutional right. Because the Due Process Clause does not protect the interest of a parent in the companionship of his or her independent adult child, we will affirm the judgment of the District Court.

I.

A.

On the night of October 1, 1998, Donta Dawson was sitting alone in a parked car, with the engine running, on 12th Street near Glenwood Avenue in Philadelphia. The headlights and interior lights were on, and the radio was audible. Philadelphia Police officers Kirk Dodd and Christopher DiPasquale spotted Dawson's vehicle and pulled up alongside it. Officer Dodd inquired why Dawson was parked on the street and whether he needed any assistance. According to the officers, Dawson looked at them and then looked away without responding.

Officer Dodd exited the patrol car and approached Dawson on the driver's side of the car. He asked Dawson again whether he needed help. Dawson looked at Officer Dodd, shrugged his shoulders, and turned away. The encounter rapidly escalated from there. The officers demanded that Dawson raise his hands, at times yelling obscenities to emphasize their point. Dawson did not respond. Officer DiPasquale drew his weapon and positioned himself by the hood of the patrol car.

While holding down Dawson's left arm, officer Dodd reached in and removed the key from the ignition. He then drew his weapon and pointed it directly at Dawson. Repeated demands to show his hands were met with Dawson's silence. Officer Dodd then attempted to pull Dawson's left arm up without success. As he retreated, he told officer DiPasquale that Dawson had a gun.

After further demands that he raise his hands, Dawson finally began to move his left arm. Officer DiPasquale then fired his weapon, fatally shooting Dawson in the head. A subsequent investigation revealed that Dawson was unarmed.

Although the familial relationships between the decedent and his parents are important to this case, the factual record is disturbingly incomplete in material respects.¹ Dawson was the son of Cynthia Dawson and Bobby McCurdy. McCurdy and Cynthia Dawson apparently never married. It also appears as if Ms. Dawson raised her son as a single mother. McCurdy did not provide any meaningful financial support to the decedent.² The defendants' assertion that McCurdy never listed his son as a dependent on his income tax returns was not contested. It is unclear whether McCurdy ever resided with his biological son and whether he performed any parental duties during Dawson's youth.

Some aspects of the familial relationships, however, are undisputed. In the years before his death, Dawson had minimal contact with his father because McCurdy had been incarcerated since 1996. At the time of the shooting, Dawson was nineteen years old. App. at 11. There is no dispute that Dawson was an independent adult, single and without any children of his own.

B.

Prior to the District Court's summary judgment disposition, there were a number of other proceedings that relate to the present appeal. Approximately six months after Dawson's fatal encounter with the police, Cynthia Dawson, on her own behalf and as administratrix of her son's estate, filed a civil action in state court against the City of Philadelphia and several officers of the Philadelphia Police Department, including officers Dodd and DiPasquale. She asserted six causes of action. The first three alleged violations of Dawson's civil rights. The fifth and sixth causes of action, also on behalf of Dawson, were brought pursuant to the Pennsylvania survival and wrongful death statutes, respectively. See 42 Pa. Cons.Stat. Ann. §§ 8301, 8302. Her fourth cause of action, however, asserted the violation of her own constitutional rights for the loss of companionship of her son. At the outset, McCurdy was not a party to this action.

The defendants removed Ms. Dawson's action to federal court. Upon the filing of answers, the defendants settled the matter for a total of $712,500. On July 28, 1999, Ms. Dawson executed an agreement, releasing the defendants from all claims arising out of the death of her son. Ms. Dawson then filed a petition for leave to settle the action and requested an order approving her proposed distribution of the settlement proceeds.³ The District Court granted Ms. Dawson's petition in part, permitted the settlement of the action and the payment of attorneys' fees and costs, but denied her request to determine an appropriate distribution of the settlement proceeds. The denial of the distribution plan was entered without prejudice to the filing of an application in state court for approval of the plan.

Ms. Dawson filed a petition for approval of the distribution plan in state court in August 1999. In her petition and supporting memorandum, Ms. Dawson contended that McCurdy had forfeited any right or interest in the settlement proceeds because, among other things, he failed to perform any parental functions or to provide any financial support. Shortly thereafter, McCurdy filed an unsigned objection to Ms. Dawson's petition and a similarly unsigned memorandum of law in support of his objections.

While the distribution of the settlement proceeds was pending, McCurdy filed his own separate action in state court, which commenced the proceedings at issue in this appeal. McCurdy's complaint, filed on October 26, 1999, was substantially similar to Ms. Dawson's complaint. The first three causes of action alleged violations of Dawson's civil rights. His fourth cause of action was almost identical to Ms. Dawson's, except that it asserted a violation of McCurdy's own constitutional rights for the loss of companionship of his son.

The defendants removed McCurdy's action to the District Court on November 18, 1999 and promptly filed motions to dismiss. The District Court granted the motions to dismiss the first three causes of action. The Court held that Ms. Dawson, as administratrix of her son's estate, was the only proper party to bring claims on behalf of the decedent. See McCurdy v. Dodd, No. 99-CV-5742, 2000 WL 250223 (E.D.Pa. Feb.28, 2000), at *2. The Court denied, however, the motion to dismiss the fourth cause of action for the deprivation of McCurdy's constitutional rights. In pertinent part, the Court held that "[o]ur Court of Appeals has held that a parent whose child has died as a result of unlawful state action may, in certain circumstances, maintain an action under section 1983 for the deprivation of his liberty interest in parenthood." Id. (citing Estate of Bailey by Oare v. York County, 768 F.2d 503, 509 n. 7 (3d Cir.1985) (hereinafter "Bailey")). Having determined that McCurdy could continue with his Due Process claim based on the loss of companionship of his adult child, the Court directed the parties to proceed with discovery as to McCurdy's sole remaining claim.

Meanwhile, the Court of Common Pleas of Philadelphia, Orphan's Court Division, scheduled a hearing with regard to Ms. Dawson's petition to approve her distribution plan. After the hearing, Ms. Dawson and McCurdy agreed to settle their dispute as to the proper allocation of the settlement proceeds arising out of Ms. Dawson's civil action. Therefore, on July 11, 2000, the court entered a decree approving a modified distribution plan reflecting the agreement reached between Dawson's parents. Specifically, Ms. Dawson was awarded $256,000 for her individual constitutional claim. The balance of the proceeds, derived from Ms. Dawson's wrongful death claim, was allocated to Dawson's estate, which both parents were entitled to share in equal portions pursuant to statute. Thus,...