Doe v. New York City Dept. of Social Services
| Decision Date | 02 June 1983 |
| Docket Number | D,No. 590,590 |
| Citation | 709 F.2d 782 |
| Parties | Maria DOE and Cruz Doe, individually and on behalf of their minor son Manual Doe, Plaintiffs, and Anna Doe, Plaintiff-Appellant, v. NEW YORK CITY DEPARTMENT OF SOCIAL SERVICES, et al., Defendants, and Catholic Home Bureau, Defendant-Appellee. ocket 82-7505. |
| Court | U.S. Court of Appeals — Second Circuit |
Carolyn Kubitschek, Edward N. Simon, New York City, David J. Lansner, Lansner & Wendt, New York City, Louise Gruner Gans, New York City, for plaintiff-appellant.
Frederick J. Magovern, New York City, for defendant-appellee.
Before OAKES, KEARSE and SLOVITER, * Circuit Judges.
Appellant Anna Doe's claim under 42 U.S.C. Sec. 1983 (Supp. IV 1980) against the Catholic Home Bureau ("the Bureau") comes before this court for the second time. On the first appeal, we reversed the judgment entered on the jury verdict for the defendant Bureau and remanded the case for a new trial because the jury instructions were misleading and because certain evidentiary rulings were erroneous. Doe v. New York City Department of Social Services, 649 F.2d 134 (2d Cir.1981) (Doe I ). After the jury found for plaintiff at the new trial and assessed damages at $225,000, Judge Brieant, the trial judge, United States District Court for the Southern District of New York, entered judgment notwithstanding the verdict in favor of the defendant Bureau. The judge rejected plaintiff's argument that she was entitled to the jury verdict under this court's earlier decision. Instead, the trial court held the evidence was so overwhelming that no reasonable jury could find the Bureau acted with deliberate indifference, the standard used to establish liability under the section 1983 claim at issue. Plaintiff appeals the entry of judgment in favor of the Bureau; we reverse and remand for reinstatement of the jury verdict.
Because this case reaches us on appeal from a judgment notwithstanding the jury's verdict for the plaintiff, we must view the evidence in the light most favorable to the plaintiff who "must be given the benefit of all reasonable inferences which may be drawn in [her] favor from [the] evidence." Simblest v. Maynard, 427 F.2d 1, 4 (2d Cir.1970).
Anna Doe, born in 1961, was two years old when she was placed in foster care along with her sister. The New York City Commissioner of Welfare, their legal custodian, arranged for defendant Catholic Home Bureau to supervise their care beginning January 5, 1964. The Bureau placed the girls with Mr. and Mrs. Senerchia, having previously investigated and certified them as suitable for foster placements. The Bureau placed two additional foster children with them in 1965.
The record contains evidence that Anna was regularly and frequently physically and sexually abused by Mr. Senerchia, her foster father, starting in 1971 when she was about ten or eleven years old. The physical abuse consisted, inter alia, of beating her over her entire body with his hands and with a belt, throwing her down the stairs and even once cutting her with a hunting knife. Beginning at the same time when Anna was ten or eleven, and continuing for more than six years, Mr. Senerchia forced Anna to have intercourse and oral sexual relations with him. He had threatened Anna she would be institutionalized if she told anyone of his actions.
The Bureau took decisive action only after Mrs. Senerchia reported to the Bureau in August 1977 that she had recently discovered Mr. Senerchia and Anna in bed together. On receipt of this information, the Bureau barred Mr. Senerchia from returning home and the Bureau reported the abuse to the appropriate city authority, the Confidential Investigation Unit. Shortly thereafter, one of Anna's foster sisters reported that she had also been physically and sexually abused by Mr. Senerchia. The Confidential Investigation Unit corroborated the occurrence of abuse of Anna. It is undisputed that prior to August 1977, the Bureau did not report any suspected abuse either to the New York City Department of Social Services or to the Confidential Unit.
In this law suit, filed in April 1979, Anna claims that the Catholic Home Bureau violated her constitutional right to be kept free from harm. She alleges that the Bureau's failure to supervise her placement adequately and to report her situation to the New York City Department of Social Services as a case of suspected child abuse led to continuation of her mistreatment.
Plaintiff contends that the Bureau had violated specific duties imposed by New York law; that it had enough information beginning at least in early 1975 to give it actual or constructive notice of the abuse to which Anna was being subjected; and that the Bureau was grossly negligent and deliberately indifferent to Anna's physical well-being in failing to act, resulting in Anna's continued abuse.
To support the jury's verdict, which depended on a finding of deliberate indifference to plaintiff's needs, plaintiff relies primarily on events beginning in early 1975. The case records evince some earlier concerns. There are notations about Mr. Senerchia's unusual dominance within the family, the difficulty of dealing with him, the suspicion that Mr. Senerchia had severe emotional problems, the difficulties which Mr. and Mrs. Senerchia placed in the path of workers seeking to see Anna alone, and the Senerchias' practice of often answering questions directed to Anna. Nonetheless the early case records were generally positive about the family environment.
However, in January 1975, when Anna was in the eighth grade, specific information of a problem was communicated to Sister Una McCormack, the Bureau's executive head. A priest told her that Mr. Senerchia had taken Anna out of her school allegedly because "Anna was sexually acting out in school" with other children, and was attempting to get her into parochial school. Sister Una directed that Anna be seen by Dr. Lewis, a Bureau psychologist. Ms. Crowe, the supervisor of the Staten Island office which was handling Anna's case, contacted Mr. Senerchia regarding this appointment. Mr. Senerchia repeated the allegation of frequent sexual activity to Ms. Crowe, and stated that Anna, upon his prodding, had confessed to sexual involvement with other school children including actual intercourse occurring since the first grade. These activities allegedly occurred during school hours in empty classrooms, hallways, the gym and the cafeteria. The case records of conversations of Bureau personnel with Mr. Senerchia note that he seemed eager to give details of this sexual activity and that he seemed to derive some satisfaction from recounting the matter. Mr. Senerchia insisted that his wife not be told and that the Bureau not approach the school.
Ms. Moroney, Ms. Crowe's supervisor, visited the Bureau's branch office, read the case record and discussed the situation. Ms. Moroney took the case record containing background information on the Senerchia family to Dr. Lewis. Dr. Lewis was informed that Anna had been "engaging in sexual activity with classmates." Dr. Lewis, however, did not read the case record before interviewing Anna and Mr. Senerchia. During this interview on January 9, 1975, Anna admitted to "sexual play" with other children and evinced anxiety about the repercussions the episode might have on the possibility of her adoption by the Senerchias. Dr. Lewis' impression was that Anna had probably been engaging in some "sex play" and concluded, after spending 15 minutes with Mr. Senerchia, that he seemed to be a concerned and warm parent. She recommended that Anna be transferred to a more appropriate educational setting, but that the foster home placement be maintained. Dr. Lewis and the Bureau's personnel agreed, after conferring, that Anna should not return to the school she had been attending. Significantly, on learning of Mr. Senerchia's allegation, no one from the Bureau contacted the school where Anna had allegedly engaged in these active and frequent sexual activities either to corroborate Mr. Senerchia's story or to see what light the school authorities could shed.
Shortly thereafter, Dr. Lewis made an up-to-date psychological evaluation of Anna to measure her intelligence for purposes of educational placement, since the Bureau was seeking to have Anna placed in a special class for the mentally handicapped. A representative of the City's Bureau of Child Guidance told Anna's caseworker that Anna's test results were above the ceiling for placement in a mentally handicapped class. The caseworker informed that representative at the City's Bureau that Anna's foster father had removed her from school Dr. de Alvarado testified that she had carefully read the case history and felt something did not add up. Upon questioning Anna, she did not believe the details of Anna's sexual involvement with other school children. She asked Anna directly if she was sexually involved with Mr. Senerchia. Although Anna did not answer, Dr. de Alvarado knew that a great majority of abused children deny occurrence of such abuse. Dr. de Alvarado reached the judgment that sexual abuse was occurring, which she based upon her reading of the case history and her observation of Anna during the interview, including Anna's tearful reaction to the question about sexual involvement with her foster father. After the interview, the psychiatrist called a conference that same day with Ms. Crowe and others and, as Dr. de Alvarado testified, "very explicitly said to them that I thought there was sexual abuse in that home and that she [Anna] should be removed so that they could explore" the situation. Dr. de Alvarado testified that she "thought it was a crisis situation." Her report recommended removal from the foster home and placement in a residential structured situation.
but did not give the reason. The Catholic Bureau then considered trying to place...
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