Drumgold v. Callahan

• Decision Date: 24 August 2011
• Docket Number: Civil Action No. 04cv11193–NG.
• Citation: 806 F.Supp.2d 405
• Parties: Shawn DRUMGOLD, Plaintiff, v. Timothy CALLAHAN, Defendant.
• Court: U.S. District Court — District of Massachusetts

806 F.Supp.2d 405

Shawn DRUMGOLD, Plaintiff,

v.Timothy CALLAHAN, Defendant.

Civil Action No. 04cv11193–NG.

United States District Court, D. Massachusetts.

Aug. 18, 2011.As Amended Aug. 24, 2011.

Jonathan M. Albano, Bingham McCutchen LLP, Boston, MA, for Third Party Witness.

Janelle M. Austin, Gregg J. Corbo, Jackie A. Cowin, Joseph L. Tehan, Jr., Kopelman & Paige, PC, Patrick Joseph Donnelly, Hogan, Roache & Malone, John P. Roache, Roache & Associates, P.C., Susan M. Weise, City of Boston Law Department, William M. White, Jr., Law Offices of William M. White, Jr., Boston, MA, Hugh R. Curran, Bletzer and Bletzer, PC, Brighton, MA, for Defendant.

Natalie S. Monroe, Attorney General's Office, Boston, MA, for Witness.Michael W. Reilly, Tommasino & Tommasino, Boston, MA, for Plaintiff.Rosemary C. Scapicchio, Law Office of Rosemary C., Boston, MA, for Plaintiff/Defendant.

MEMORANDUM AND ORDER RE: POST–TRIAL MOTIONS

GERTNER, District Judge.

Shawn Drumgold (“Drumgold”) brought this action for damages arising from his wrongful conviction and unlawful imprisonment for the murder of a twelve-year-old girl, Tiffany Moore. He alleges that former homicide detectives, Timothy Callahan (“Callahan”), Paul Murphy (“Murphy”), and Richard Walsh (“Walsh”), withheld exculpatory evidence. The exculpatory evidence included information that the police provided one of the government's key witnesses, Ricky Evans (“Evans”), with cash, meals, and housing at a Howard Johnson's Hotel for months, fed him information about the Tiffany Moore murder, and promised assistance with his own pending criminal cases. Evans was homeless at the time. He recanted his trial testimony that placed Drumgold near the scene of the crime before and after Tiffany Moore's murder. In a motion for a new trial in state court, Drumgold argued that the fact that this impeachment evidence was withheld contributed to his wrongful conviction of first degree murder, for which he was sentenced to life in prison without parole. After fourteen years of incarceration, Drumgold's motion for a new trial was granted, and he was released; the District Attorney entered a nolle prosequi on November 6, 2003.

Drumgold filed this civil suit on June 3, 2004. He brought claims under 42 U.S.C. § 1983 and Mass. Gen. Laws. ch. 12 § 11 against detectives Callahan, Murphy, and Walsh, police commissioner Francis Roache (“Roache”), and the City of Boston for violations of his state and federal constitutional rights. See Compl. (document # 1). The case went to trial in March 2008. That trial, by motion of the defendants, was divided into three phases before the same jury: The first phase addressed the liability of defendants Walsh and Callahan,¹ the second phase would address the liability of defendants Roache and City of Boston, and the third phase would address damages.

At the first phase, the jury found in favor of the defendants on all claims, except that it found that defendant Callahan had violated Drumgold's civil rights in connection with one witness: Evans. The jury was asked whether Callahan violated Drumgold's right to a fair trial by withholding exculpatory evidence from prosecutors, manufacturing evidence, and/or obtaining false statements regarding: (1) Evans' alleged observations of Drumgold and his co-defendant, Terrance Taylor (“Taylor”), on the day of the crime; (2) that Evans was housed at a hotel and provided with meals; (3) that Evans was given substantial amounts of money; and (4) the disposition of Evans' criminal cases. Verdict Slip at 2–3, Apr. 9, 2008 (document # 265). The jury found that Callahan had violated Drumgold's rights as to the third claim: that he had given Evans “substantial amounts” of money and not disclosed it. The jury rejected the other three claims regarding Evans.

All parties agreed to proceed to phase three to assess damages in lieu of proceeding against defendant Roache and the City of Boston. At this final phase, however, the jury was unable to reach a verdict on the appropriate award for Drumgold as against Callahan. I subsequently granted a retrial only as to defendant Callahan and issues regarding his conduct with witness Evans. See Order Re: Scope of Retrial, Mar. 31, 2009 (document # 313).

The case proceeded to a second trial in September 2009. This trial was again divided into two phases: liability and damages. At the first phase of the second trial, the jury was asked whether Drumgold had proven by a preponderance of the evidence that Callahan had intentionally or recklessly withheld evidence from prosecutors about: (1) the fact that Evans was housed at a hotel and provided with meals; (2) that there were promises of favorable treatment in Evans' pending criminal cases; and (3) that money was given to Evans.² The jury found that Callahan had intentionally or recklessly withheld evidence from prosecutors about housing and meals (category 1) and cash given to Evans in the amount of $20 (category 3). The jury also found that this evidence was material and its withholding was a legal cause of Drumgold's conviction. The jury rejected the claims that Callahan had withheld exculpatory evidence of promises of favorable treatment in Evans' pending criminal cases and that Callahan had intentionally or recklessly obtained false statements. See Verdict Slip, Oct. 14, 2009.

At the second phase of the second trial, Callahan was permitted to argue to the jury that there had been an intervening cause of the harm to Drumgold. Specifically, Callahan claimed that the prosecutor later came to learn of the exculpatory evidence and as such, he was required to turn it over to the defense; Callahan's conduct did not cause any injury to Drumgold. The jury rejected that argument entirely. It awarded $14,000,000 to the plaintiff from Callahan. See Verdict Slip, Oct. 21, 2009 (document # 395).

The case is presently before the Court on post-trial motions. Callahan has renewed his motion for judgment as a matter of law. See Def. Mot. JMOL (document # 422). He argues that his conduct did not rise to the level of a constitutional violation under Brady v. Maryland, 373 U.S. 83, 83 S.Ct. 1194, 10 L.Ed.2d 215 (1963), and even if it did, qualified immunity precludes a damage award. He alleges that the law was not clearly established at the time of the events in question such that he would have been on notice that his conduct was unlawful. In the alternative, he argues that the scope of the second trial was over-broad and therefore the jury's verdict is invalid as a matter of law. Next, Callahan moves for a new trial on the grounds that the Court erred in an evidentiary ruling, in its jury instructions on causation and in the definition of exculpatory evidence. Def. Mot. New Trial (document # 424). Finally, Callahan moves for remittur because the jury lacked sufficient evidence to reject his intervening cause defense and because the verdict is excessive. Def. Mot. Remittur (document # 426). I will consider each motion in turn below.

I. FACTS

I should note at the outset that this trial, like most, hinged on questions of credibility. Many of the witnesses had testified in four prior proceedings: Drumgold's criminal trial in 1989, the hearing in state court on the motion for new trial in 2003, the 2008 trial in this court, and now the 2009 trial, in addition to depositions. For some, their stories changed.³ Indeed, with conflicting testimony from virtually every witness, the jury was asked to assess whose story they believed—and which version or part of that story—and render their verdict accordingly. At this stage of the litigation, we are to defer to the jury's judgment and consider the facts in the light most favorable to the verdict. Marcano Rivera v. Turabo Med. Ctr. P'ship, 415 F.3d 162, 167 (1st Cir.2005). Where a jury finds in favor of one party on some claims and in favor of another party on other claims, the court is to construe the facts in the favor of the verdict on each claim. See Raiche v. Pietroski, 623 F.3d 30, 37 (1st Cir.2010). (“[I]t is the duty of the courts to attempt to harmonize” a jury's findings “if it is possible under a fair reading of them.”) (quoting Gallick v. Baltimore & Ohio R.R. Co., 372 U.S. 108, 119, 83 S.Ct. 659, 9 L.Ed.2d 618 (1963)).

Here I recite the facts as presented to the jury at the second trial, bearing in mind that the jury found that Callahan intentionally or recklessly withheld evidence from prosecutors regarding Evans' housing and meals, and cash in the amount of $20, but not with respect to favorable treatment in his pending criminal cases or obtaining false statements. See Verdict Slip, Oct. 14, 2009. I will present only the facts relevant to those claims.

The story begins on August 19, 1988, when twelve-year-old Tiffany Moore was murdered during gang warfare in Boston. Drumgold was arrested on unrelated drug charges on August 28. He was held in custody and moved to the Roxbury District Court the next morning for arraignment. On August 29, he was charged with the first-degree murder of Tiffany Moore. On September 8, Drumgold and Taylor were indicted by the Suffolk County Grand Jury.

Detective Callahan was assigned to the Moore homicide in late May or early June 1989. The jury heard evidence that Callahan launched a vigorous investigation, during which he called on Evans. Evans was a young homeless man who had recently been a victim in another shooting. Evans' shooter had killed his cousin, Roy Evans, in his presence, but Evans had been miraculously spared. He was now unemployed, wounded, with no benefits, and living with his brother in violation of his brother's lease. Callahan had been investigating the Evans' shooting for six months; Evans was the main witness against the alleged shooter, Treas Carter. Callahan had developed a relationship with Evans by the time he asked him about the Tiffany Moore case in June of 1989.

Evans testified, “As soon as I talked about the murder of Tiffany Moore that...