Bourguignon v. Guinta, 3:01CV1151(SRU)(WIG).

• Citation: 247 F.Supp.2d 189
• Decision Date: 24 February 2003
• Docket Number: No. 3:01CV1151(SRU)(WIG).,3:01CV1151(SRU)(WIG).
• Court: United States District Courts. 2nd Circuit. United States District Court (Connecticut)
• Parties: Bristout BOURGUIGNON v. Detective Anthony P. GUINTA, Jr. Captain Donald A. Brown Town of Westport

247 F.Supp.2d 189

Bristout BOURGUIGNON v. Detective Anthony P. GUINTA, Jr. Captain Donald A. Brown Town of Westport

No. 3:01CV1151(SRU)(WIG).

United States District Court, D. Connecticut.

February 24, 2003.

Bristout Bourguignon, Suffield, CT, Pro se.

Stephen P. Fogerty, Robert Avery Rhodes, Halloran & Sage, Westport, CT, for Defendant.

RULING ON MOTIONS FOR SUMMARY JUDGMENT

UNDERHILL, District Judge.

The plaintiff, Bristout Bourguignon ("Bourguignon"), brings this civil rights action pro se pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1915. He alleges that he was falsely arrested and imprisoned by the defendants in violation of his Fourth Amendment rights. In addition, he asserts state law claims of defamation and intentional infliction of emotional distress. Pending are the defendants' motion for summary judgment and Bourguignon's motion for partial summary judgment. For the reasons that follow, the defendants' motion is granted and Bourguignon's motion is denied.

I. Standard of Review

In a motion for summary judgment, the burden is on the moving party to establish that there are no genuine issues of material fact in dispute and that it is entitled to judgment as a matter of law. See Rule 56(c), Fed.R.Civ.P.; Anderson v. Liberty Lobby, Inc., 477 U.S. 242, 256, 106 S.Ct. 2505, 91 L.Ed.2d 202 (1986); White v. ABCO Engineering Corp., 221 F.3d 293, 300 (2d Cir.2000). A court must grant

summary judgment "`if the pleadings, depositions, answers to interrogatories, and admissions on file, together with affidavits, if any, show that there is no genuine issue as to any material fact ...."` Miner v. Glens Falls, 999 F.2d 655, 661 (2d Cir. 1993) (citation omitted). A dispute regarding a material fact is genuine "`if the evidence is such that a reasonable jury could return a verdict for the nonmoving party.'" Aldrich v. Randolph Cent. Sch. Dist, 963 F.2d 520, 523 (2d Cir.) (quoting Anderson, 477 U.S. at 248, 106 S.Ct. 2505), cert, denied, 506 U.S. 965, 113 S.Ct. 440, 121 L.Ed.2d 359 (1992). After discovery, if the nonmoving party "has failed to make a sufficient showing on an essential element of [its] case with respect to which [it] has the burden of proof," then summary judgment is appropriate. Celotex Corp. v. Catrett, 477 U.S. 317, 323, 106 S.Ct. 2548, 91 L.Ed.2d 265 (1986).

When a motion for summary judgment is supported by documentary evidence and sworn affidavits, the nonmoving party must present "significant probative evidence to create a genuine issue of material fact." Soto v. Meachum, Civ. No. B-90-270 (WWE), 1991 WL 218481, at *6 (D.Conn. Aug. 28, 1991). A party may not rely "on mere speculation or conjecture as to the true nature of the facts to overcome a motion for summary judgment." Knight v. U.S. Fire Ins. Co., 804 F.2d 9, 12 (2d Cir.1986), cert, denied, 480 U.S. 932, 107 S.Ct. 1570, 94 L.Ed.2d 762 (1987).

The court resolves "all ambiguities and draw[s] all inferences in favor of the nonmoving party in order to determine how a reasonable jury would decide." Aldrich, 963 F.2d at 523. Thus, "[o]nly when reasonable minds could not differ as to the import of the evidence is summary judgment proper." Bryant v. Maffucci, 923 F.2d 979, 982 (2d Cir.), cert, denied, 502 U.S. 849, 112 S.Ct. 152, 116 L.Ed.2d 117 (1991). See also Suburban Propane v. Proctor Gas, Inc., 953 F.2d 780, 788 (2d Cir.1992). A party may not create a genuine issue of material fact by presenting contradictory or unsupported statements. See Securities & Exchange Comm'n v. Research Automation Corp., 585 F.2d 31, 33 (2d Cir.1978). Nor may he rest on the "mere allegations or denials" contained in his pleadings. Goenaga v. March of Dimes Birth Defects Found., 51 F.3d 14, 18 (2d Cir.1995). See also Ying Jing Gan v. City of New York, 996 F.2d 522, 532 (2d Cir.1993) (holding that party may not rely on conclusory statements or an argument that the affidavits in support of the motion for summary judgment are not credible). A self-serving affidavit that reiterates the conclusory allegations of the complaint in affidavit form is insufficient to preclude summary judgment. See Lujan v. National Wildlife Fed'n, 497 U.S. 871, 888, 110 S.Ct. 3177, 111 L.Ed.2d 695 (1990).

Where one party is proceeding pro se, the court reads the pro se party's papers liberally and interprets them to raise the strongest arguments they suggest. See Burgos v. Hopkins, 14 F.3d 787, 790 (2d Cir.1994). Despite that liberal interpretation, however, a "bald assertion," unsupported by evidence, cannot overcome a properly supported motion for summary judgment. Carey v. Crescenzi, 923 F.2d 18, 21 (2d Cir.1991).

When cross-motions for summary judgment are presented to the court, summary judgment should not be granted "unless one of the moving parties is entitled to judgment as a matter of law upon facts that are not genuinely in dispute." Heyman v. Commerce & Indus. Ins. Co., 524 F.2d 1317,1320 (2d Cir.1975).

II. Facts¹

On July 26, 1999, Richard Pactor contacted the Westport Police Department and stated that someone had broken into and vandalized his residence during the previous evening. Defendant Guinta was assigned to investigate the incident. Mrs. Pactor told the police officers that she had heard a noise in the lower level apartment at approximately 0:30 a.m., on July 26, 1999, but neither she nor her husband checked on the noise.

The intruder broke a glass casement window in the separate living area in the lower level of the home, causing the metal opening mechanism to become bent. Once inside, the intruder made abstract drawings on the walls and carved the following message into one wall, "REVOLUTION ... NO MORE RACIST CRACK HEAD COP ANYMORE." There was blood on two slats in the window blind and a blood spatter on the wall near the window. The homeowner later discovered that the telephone wires had been cut at the junction box located in the furnace room and that the individual circuit breakers of the house had been switched off. The furnace room is accessible from the lower level living area.

Akiko Okamoto ("Okamoto"), the tenant occupying the lower level living area, discovered the break-in and vandalism when she returned home at 5:00 a.m. on July 26, 1999. That afternoon, Westport Police Officer Aricola interviewed Okamoto. She stated that she believed that her boyfriend, Bourguignon, was responsible for the break-in and vandalism. She told Officer Aricola that Bourguignon always talked about a revolution and hated police officers because he thought they were racist. Okamoto said that Bourguignon had come to the home earlier in the day. When she asked Bourguignon why he "did this," he told her that he did it because "she had hurt his feelings."

On July 27, 1999, and again on July 29, 1999, defendant Guinta interviewed Bourguignon at the Westport Police Department about this incident. Bourguignon admitted that he had gone to the home on July 26, 1999. He said that he cut his hand when he was examining the broken window in Okamoto's bedroom and assumed that was the reason there was blood on the blind and wall near the window. He denied any involvement in or knowledge of the incident and claimed that Okamoto lied about the incident.

On July 28, 1999, defendant Guinta again met with Okamoto. She told him that Bourguignon did not enter her bedroom on July 26, 1999. She said that she may have told Bourguignon about the blood on the window blinds.

Defendant Guinta drafted an affidavit to obtain a warrant for Bourguignon's arrest. He included in the affidavit the information he obtained from Okamoto, the Pactors and Bourguignon as well as Bourguignon's criminal history. Defendant Brown witnessed Guinta's signature on the affidavit. He had no other involvement with Bourguignon's arrest.

An arrest warrant was issued by a state judicial officer. Bourguignon was arrested on charges of burglary and criminal mischief. These charges were nolled before trial.

III. Discussion

The defendants raise six arguments in support of their motion for summary judgment: (1) the arrest warrant affidavit contains no material misrepresentations or false statements of the defendants; (2) even if the arrest warrant did contain material misrepresentations or false statements, the undisputed facts demonstrated probable cause for Bourguignon's arrest; (3) Bourguignon's arrest was not based on race; (4) the actions of defendants Brown and Guinta are protected by qualified immunity; (5) the claims against defendant Town of Westport fails as a matter of law; and (6) the court should decline to exercise supplemental jurisdiction over Bourguignon's state law claims. In support of his motion for partial summary judgment on the issue of liability, Bourguignon argues that there were misrepresentations and omissions in the arrest warrant affidavit and the defendants violated his rights under the Fourth and Fourteenth Amendments.

A. Defendants' Motion for Summary Judgment

The court considers the defendants' motion as applied to the various claims raised in the complaint.

1. False Arrest Claim

The defendants first argue that Bourguignon fails to state a claim for false arrest because the arrest warrant affidavit contained no misrepresentations or omissions and there was probable cause for his arrest.

The Fourth Amendment's protection against unreasonable seizure includes the right to be free from arrests without probable cause. See Weyant v. Okst, 101 F.3d 845, 852 (2d Cir.1996). Probable cause to arrest exists "when the officers have knowledge or reasonably trustworthy information of facts and circumstances that are sufficient to warrant a person of reasonable caution in the belief that the person to be arrested has committed or is committing a crime." Id. To establish probable cause for an arrest, the officer need only establish a "probability or a substantial chance of criminal activity, not an actual showing of such activity." Illinois v. Gates, 462 U.S. 213, 244 n. 13, 103 S.Ct. 2317, 76 L.Ed.2d 527 (1983)....