Briggs v. Goodwin
| Decision Date | 20 November 1974 |
| Docket Number | Civ. A. No. 74-803. |
| Citation | 384 F. Supp. 1228 |
| Parties | John BRIGGS et al., Plaintiffs, v. Guy GOODWIN, Individually and as Attorney for the Department of Justice, Division of Internal Security, et al., Defendants. |
| Court | U.S. District Court — District of Columbia |
Nancy Stearns, Doris Peterson, Morton Stavis, Center for Constitutional Rights, New York City, Cameron M. Cummingham, Brady Coleman, Austin, Tex., Jack Levine, Philadelphia, Pa., Philip J. Hirschkop, Alexandria, Va., for plaintiffs.
Benjamin C. Flannagan, Edward S. Christenbury, Henry E. Petersen, Asst. Atty. Gen., Dept. of Justice, Washington, D. C., for defendants.
In this civil action, Plaintiffs seek declaratory relief and damages for alleged violations of their constitutional rights which arose from the criminal case of United States v. Briggs, G.C.R. 1353 (the "Gainesville 8" case) in which eight of the Plaintiffs herein were acquitted of conspiracy. The Defendants Guy Goodwin, William H. Stafford, Jr. and Stuart J. Carrouth are attorneys with the Department of Justice and were responsible for conducting the investigation, the grand jury proceedings and the prosecution of that case. Defendant Claude Meadow is a special agent of the Federal Bureau of Investigation and was also involved in the investigation.
After the Plaintiffs served a notice to take the deposition of Defendant Guy Goodwin, remaining Defendants moved for a transfer of venue and for a stay of the deposition pending a ruling on their motion for transfer. In the alternative, Defendants Stafford, Carrouth and Meadow moved to dismiss and for a stay of Defendant Goodwin's deposition pending the filing of and a determination on a Motion to Dismiss as to Defendant Goodwin on the grounds of immunity. On July 19, 1974, this Court ordered that the deposition of Defendant Goodwin be stayed pending a determination on the question of his immunity from prosecution, without prejudice to the pending motions of the other Defendants.
The Court finds that the Motion to Dismiss filed by Defendant Guy Goodwin and the Motion to Transfer this case to the Northern District of Florida filed by Defendants Stafford, Carrouth and Meadows are both ripe for determination. For reasons explained hereinafter, both Motions must be denied.
In their Complaint, Plaintiffs have alleged that Defendant Goodwin violated their constitutional rights by committing perjury when questioned under oath by a United States District Judge concerning the presence of government informants in the "defense camp". Relying upon two recent cases from the Third Circuit and several earlier cases from the Second and District of Columbia Circuits, Defendant Goodwin moves to dismiss the Complaint as to him. He contends that as a special attorney of the United States Department of Justice and federal prosecutor, he is absolutely immune from any damage claim based upon his alleged misconduct while acting in his official capacity.
Plaintiffs oppose this Motion and contend that the doctrine is inapplicable on the grounds that the alleged misconduct in this case is beyond the scope of any official duty and is in violation of federal law. Plaintiffs rely upon recent cases from the Fourth, Sixth and Seventh Circuits which reject absolute immunity and adopt a qualified immunity for prosecutors. They contend that the recent case of Apton v. Wilson, 165 U.S.App.D.C. ___, 506 F.2d 83 (1974), No. 73-1614, decided August 16, 1974, indicates a trend in this Circuit toward adopting this developing analytical view of the doctrine.
After careful analysis of the numerous cases cited by counsel in this action, the Court concludes that Defendant Goodwin's Motion to Dismiss for failure to state a claim upon which relief can be granted based upon absolute prosecutorial immunity must be denied at this juncture.
As the cases indicate, the doctrine of immunity for quasi-judicial officers like prosecutors derives from the fact that in the course of performing their official duties, they often exercise a discretion similar to that exercised by judges. The Courts have reasoned that to ensure vigorous and effective enforcement of the laws, prosecutors should be protected from possible vindictive lawsuits arising from their activities in performing that function. This need for freedom from procedural constraints in performing their discretionary functions and the built-in safeguards within the judicial process to check misconduct are together considered justification for extending the judicial immunity...
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Briggs v. Goodwin
...from any damage action based upon alleged misconduct while acting in such a capacity." This motion was denied on November 20, 1974. 384 F.Supp. 1228. On December 13, 1974, appellant filed a fresh motion to dismiss, urging that "as a witness in a Federal court he is absolutely immune from an......
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Briggs v. Goodwin
...and Meadow were dismissed for improper venue. Stafford v. Briggs, 444 U.S. 527, 100 S.Ct. 774, 63 L.Ed.2d 1 (1980).12 Briggs v. Goodwin, 384 F.Supp. 1228, 1230 (D.D.C.1974); Briggs v. Goodwin, 569 F.2d 10 (D.C.Cir.1977), cert. denied, 437 U.S. 904, 98 S.Ct. 3089, 57 L.Ed.2d 1133 (1978) [her......
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Stafford v. Briggs Colby v. Driver
...the transfer request. He also moved for dismissal on grounds of prosecutorial immunity. This motion was denied. See Briggs v. Goodwin, 384 F.Supp. 1228 (DC 1974), aff'd, 186 U.S.App.D.C. 179, 569 F.2d 10 (1977), cert. denied, 437 U.S. 904, 98 S.Ct. 3089, 57 L.Ed.2d 1133 3. See Senate Select......
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Briggs v. Goodwin
...the other appellees. Complaint P 27, App. 12.9 Complaint P 7, App. 7.10 Complaint, App. 16.11 The District Court so found. Briggs v. Goodwin, D.D.C., 384 F.Supp. 1228 (memorandum and order Nov. 20, 1974), App. 38. Appellees do not contest that finding. See Brief for Appellees at 3, 4 n. 2.1......