Brown v. State
| Decision Date | 02 November 1995 |
| Citation | 633 N.Y.S.2d 409,221 A.D.2d 681 |
| Parties | Ricky BROWN et al., Appellants, v. STATE of New York, Respondent. |
| Court | New York Supreme Court — Appellate Division |
Whiteman, Osterman & Hanna (Paul C. Rapp, of counsel), Albany, for appellants.
Dennis C. Vacco, Attorney General (Denise A. Hartman, of counsel), Albany, for respondent.
Before CARDONA, P.J., and MERCURE, CREW, CASEY and SPAIN, JJ.
Appeal from an order of the Court of Claims (Hanifin, J.), entered March 30, 1994, which granted the State's motion to dismiss the claim.
Claimants are African-American men and women who were students attending the State University of New York, College at Oneonta (hereinafter SUCO) and/or residents of the City of Oneonta, Otsego County, in September 1992, as well as all others similarly situated. On September 4, 1992, a 77-year-old woman was allegedly attacked during an attempted burglary of a house in the vicinity of Oneonta; she reported to law enforcement officials that she believed the perpetrator was a young African-American male who sustained a superficial knife wound to his hand during the incident. Thereafter, law enforcement authorities allegedly sought and obtained a list of the names and addresses of all African-American male students attending SUCO. Claimants allege that law enforcement officials then "sought out, approached, questioned, seized and/or searched every person on that list", allegedly conducting a five-day "sweep" of Oneonta during which they attempted to stop, question and examine the hands of all nonwhite males and some nonwhite females.
Claimants thereafter commenced this claim in the Court of Claims against the State and various law enforcement officials and agencies. The claim originally set forth 11 causes of action based on various State and Federal constitutional and civil rights violations. The claim was thereafter dismissed as to all defendants except the State 1 and claimants withdrew the sixth and 10th causes of action. The State moved to dismiss the claim based, inter alia, on lack of subject matter jurisdiction and failure to state a cause of action. The Court of Claims granted the State's motion and dismissed each of the nine remaining causes of action for lack of subject matter jurisdiction. Claimants appeal.
Because we are of the view that the Court of Claims correctly determined that it lacked subject matter jurisdiction over constitutional and statutory civil rights violations absent the existence of a traditional tort, we affirm its dismissal of the first, second, third, fourth, fifth, seventh, eighth and ninth causes of action. The thorough and exhaustive analysis by the Court of Claims in its 42-page memorandum decision and order amply addresses the relevant issues of law upon which its conclusion is based. We concur in its reasoning and in its conclusion regarding the aforesaid causes of action.
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Brown v. State
...the emotional content of the issues presented to it" (Brown v. State of New York, Ct. Cl., Mar. 17, 1994, claim No. 86979, affd. 221 A.D.2d 681, 633 N.Y.S.2d 409). The focus in this Court, too, should remain solely on the statutory construction question posed by this case: whether the State......
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Ferrer v. State
...this Court. One that does is Brown v. State of New York (Claim No. 86979, Motion No. M-48150, filed 3/30/94, HANIFIN, J., affd 221 A.D.2d 681, 633 N.Y.S.2d 409, lv. granted 87 N.Y.2d 809, 642 N.Y.S.2d 195, 664 N.E.2d 1258). 4 In Brown, Judge Hanifin held, after thorough analysis, that the C......
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Brown v. State
...pertinent facts will be repeated herein (Brown v. State of New York, 89 N.Y.2d 172, 652 N.Y.S.2d 223, 674 N.E.2d 1129, modfg. 221 A.D.2d 681, 633 N.Y.S.2d 409) (hereinafter Brown I ). In September 1992, a 77-year-old woman was reportedly attacked at knife point at a home just outside the Ci......
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Brown v. State
...N.Y.S.2d 195 87 N.Y.2d 809, 664 N.E.2d 1258 Ricky Brown v. State of New York NO. 1659 Court of Appeals of New York Feb 20, 1996 221 A.D.2d 681, 633 N.Y.S.2d 409 MOTION FOR LEAVE TO GRANTED OR DENIED. Granted. ...
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A cause of action for damages under the state constitution.
...at 42 (granting the State's motion to dismiss because the Court of Claims lacked subject matter jurisdiction). (17) See Brown v. State, 633 N.Y.S.2d 409, 410 (App. Div. 1995) (agreeing with the Court of Claims' thorough analysis and reasoning), rev'd, 674 N.E.2d 1129 (N.Y. (18) See Brown, 6......