Blaskiewicz v. County of Suffolk

• Decision Date: 07 December 1998
• Docket Number: No. CV 96-5425(DRH).,CV 96-5425(DRH).
• Parties: Michael S. BLASKIEWICZ, Plaintiff, v. COUNTY OF SUFFOLK, Defendant.
• Court: U.S. District Court — Eastern District of New York

29 F.Supp.2d 134

Michael S. BLASKIEWICZ, Plaintiff, v. COUNTY OF SUFFOLK, Defendant.

No. CV 96-5425(DRH).

United States District Court, E.D. New York.

December 7, 1998.

COPYRIGHT MATERIAL OMITTED

Jocelyne S. Kristal, McCabe, Collins, McGeough & Fowler, LLP, Mineola, NY, Michael S. Blaskiewicz, Mid-State Correctional Facility, Marcy, NY, for Michael S. Blaskiewicz, plaintiff.

Garrett W. Swenson, Jr., Asst., County Atty., Robert J. Cimino, Suffolk County Attorney, Hauppauge, NY, for County of Suffolk, defendant.

ORDER

BOYLE, United States Magistrate Judge.

Plaintiff, Michael S. Blaskiewicz ("plaintiff"), in this civil rights action commenced by the plaintiff pro se in November 1996, moves to amend the pro se complaint to add four named individual defendants and four unnamed John Does. Plaintiff now appears with appointed counsel in this action. The individual defendants are Suffolk County Corrections Officers who are alleged to be acting individually and in their official capacity at relevant times in the amended complaint.

The original complaint, filed on November 5, 1996, named as defendants the "County of Suffolk, agents, employees and servants." The plaintiff requested compensatory damages in the sum of $1,000,000 and punitive damages in the same amount. The original complaint alleged claims for "assault, battery, negligence, [and] violations of civil rights" arising from an incident that occurred at the Suffolk County Minimum Security Facility at Yaphank, New York, on January 14, 1994, wherein County officers employed at the facility are alleged to have used excessive force against the plaintiff. This incident was part of what is described as "an institutional shakedown" that occurs periodically at the correction facility, without prior notice, wherein all inmates are stripped of their clothing and a search for contraband of each inmate and his or her cell is conducted.

A notice of claim was timely filed by the plaintiff, pursuant to New York General Municipal Law § 50-e, in which he advised the County that "several corrections officers, including a number of sergeants, lieutenants and a captain, without justification or excuse subjected claimant to a severe beating." Affirmation by Jocelyne S. Kristal, Esq., in Support of Motion to Amend. Prior to the initiation of this litigation, and at a time when the plaintiff was represented by retained counsel, plaintiff submitted to a deposition conducted by the County Attorney of Suffolk County, pursuant to New York General Municipal Law Section 50-h. The deposition, consisting of more than 100 pages of transcript, is annexed to plaintiff's moving papers at Exhibit A, and contains a detailed account by the plaintiff of the incident giving rise to this litigation.

By letter dated January 2, 1997, addressed to the Sheriff of Suffolk County, the then pro se plaintiff made a request, pursuant to the Freedom of Information Act (5 U.S.C. § 552 et seq.), for "information pertaining to disciplinary infractions, reports, hearings conducted and depositions" relating to the incident in which he was a party occurring on January 14, 1994. Motion to Amend Complaint at Exhibit C. No information by the Sheriff's Office was produced nor did the Sheriff respond to this request. This request was repeated by notice dated February 14, 1997, wherein plaintiff requested "the names of officers involved with Yaphank Corr. Fac. Shakedown on January 14, 1994 by their ranking, duty and involvement ... related to ... Blaskiewicz v. County of Suffolk, CV 96-5425." Motion to Amend Complaint at Exhibit D. On February 28, 1997, after the applicable three-year statute of limitations had run on the January 14, 1994 incident, the Sheriff's Office responded that the information "relating to the names, rank, duty and involvement of officers relative to a January 14, 1994 incident cannot be located after a diligent search." Motion to Amend Complaint at Exhibit E.

Counsel was appointed to represent plaintiff and appeared in this action on August 25, 1997. The County defendants, on October 6, 1997, provided plaintiff's counsel with the internal affairs unit investigation report prepared by the Suffolk County Sheriff relating to the January 14, 1994 incident involving plaintiff that is the subject of this litigation.

Plaintiff seeks to add these additional parties to the action on the relation-back theory, codified at Rule 15(c) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure on the ground that the amendment arises "out of the conduct, transaction, or occurrence set forth or attempted to be set forth in the original pleading." Fed.R.Civ.P. 15(c)(2). At the municipal hearing, conducted pursuant to Section 50-h of the General Municipal Law, on August 10, 1994, prior to the commencement of the lawsuit, the plaintiff identified three of the individual defendants he seeks to add— the defendants Roy Fries, Michael Egan and Warden Wesley Bednosky. The fourth identified person that plaintiff seeks to add as a party is Lieutenant Pamela O'Malley, who was identified in the internal affairs investigation report as the supervisor of the four-person squad whose members, according to plaintiff, used excessive force in removing him from the tier to a holding pen on the date in question.

Plaintiff asserts that it is the policy of the Suffolk County Department of Corrections that officer's shields contain a number and no name. Defendants do not dispute this. This is cited as one of the reasons for plaintiff's difficulty in specifying the individual correction employees involved in this incident. Plaintiff maintains that identification here is further complicated by the fact that the squad members were dressed in riot gear, including helmets, at the time of the January 14, 1994 incident. Thus, to this date he is unable to recognize or identify four of the individuals he seeks to add to this litigation. Plaintiff's Memorandum of Law in Support of Motion to Amend Complaint at ¶ 8.

The County opposes the amendment on the ground that the statute of limitations has run, and the plaintiff has failed to take timely steps to amend the complaint.

DISCUSSION

A. The Applicable Standard for a Motion to Amend

Rule 15(a) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure provides, in pertinent part, that "a party may amend [its] pleading ... by leave of court" and that "leave shall be freely given when justice so requires." Fed. R.Civ.P. 15(a). This rule also allows for the addition of new parties. Junior Gallery, Ltd. v. Neptune Orient Line, Ltd., No. 94 Civ. 4518, 1997 WL 26293, at *2, (S.D.N.Y. Jan.22, 1997) (citing Staggers v. Otto Gerdau Co., 359 F.2d 292 (2d Cir.1966) (citations omitted)). Generally, amendments are favored, as they tend "to facilitate a proper decision on the merits." Junior Gallery, 1997 WL 26293, at * 2 (quoting Conley v. Gibson, 355 U.S. 41, 48, 78 S.Ct. 99, 2 L.Ed.2d 80 (1957)). In addition, the Second Circuit has stated that "[t]he district court has discretion whether or not to grant leave to amend, and its discretion is not subject to review on appeal except for abuse of discretion." Ruffolo v. Oppenheimer & Co., 987 F.2d 129, 131 (2d Cir.1993) (quoting 3 James W. Moore et al., Moore's Federal Practice ¶ 15.08[4] (2d ed.1992) (footnotes omitted)). A pro se plaintiff in a civil rights action should be afforded the opportunity to amend his complaint, even where the request is made after the court has entered judgment dismissing the complaint. Bradley v. Coughlin, 671 F.2d 686, 690 (2d Cir.1982).

The party opposing such amendment has the burden of establishing that leave to amend would be prejudicial or futile. Harrison v. NBD Inc., 990 F.Supp. 179, 185, 1998 WL 10723 (E.D.N.Y.1998) (citing Panzella v. Skou, 471 F.Supp. 303, 305 (S.D.N.Y. 1979)). In making this determination, the court should not consider the merits of a claim or defense on a motion to amend unless the amendment is "clearly frivolous or legally insufficient on its face." Northbrook Nat'l Ins. Co. v. J & R Vending Corp., 167 F.R.D. 643, 647 (E.D.N.Y.1996) (citing Lerman v. Chuckleberry Pub., Inc., 544 F.Supp. 966, 968 (S.D.N.Y.1982), rev'd on other grounds sub. nom., 745 F.2d 123 (2d Cir.1984), cert. denied, 471 U.S. 1054, 105 S.Ct. 2114, 85 L.Ed.2d 479 (1985)). "If the [movant] has at least colorable grounds for relief, justice ... require[s]" that the court grant leave to amend a complaint. Golden Trade, S.r.L. v. Jordache, 143 F.R.D. 504, 506 (S.D.N.Y.1992) (quoting S.S. Silberblatt v. East Harlem Pilot Block-Building 1 Hous. Dev. Fund Co., Inc., 608 F.2d 28, 42 (2d Cir.1979)).

B. Statute of Limitations is Not a Bar to Amendment

A motion to amend the complaint may be considered futile if the claims or parties sought to be added are barred by the relevant statute of limitations. Northbrook, 167 F.R.D. at 647-48 (citing Deluca v. Atlantic Refining Co., 176 F.2d 421 (2d Cir.1949), cert. denied, 338 U.S. 943, 70 S.Ct. 423, 94 L.Ed. 581 (1950); Long v. United States, 616 F.Supp. 1280 (E.D.N.Y.1985)). However, under Rule 15(c) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, an otherwise time-barred amendment may be deemed timely based on the "relation back" doctrine. Fed.R.Civ.P. 15(c)(2) and (3). Rule 15(c)(2) provides, in pertinent part, that "[a]n amendment of a pleading relates back to the date of the original pleading when ... the claim or defense asserted in the amended pleading arose out of the conduct, transaction, or occurrence set forth or attempted to be set forth in the original pleading." Fed.R.Civ.P. 15(c)(2).

1. Same Conduct, Transaction or Occurrence

No new facts are alleged in the proposed amendment. The plaintiff seeks solely to name additional party defendants in the complaint. There is no dispute that the additional parties are part of the same conduct, transaction and occurrence set forth in the original complaint. Accordingly, plaintiff has satisfied this prerequisite for application of the relation-back theory. Fed.R.Civ.P....