Edwards v. Reynaud, Civ. A. No. 76-2000

• Decision Date: 23 January 1979
• Docket Number: 77-3542.,Civ. A. No. 76-2000
• Citation: 463 F. Supp. 1235
• Parties: Frank M. EDWARDS, Jr. v. Denny Eves REYNAUD. Frank M. EDWARDS, Jr. v. UNITED STATES of America and Denny E. Reynaud.
• Court: U.S. District Court — Eastern District of Louisiana

463 F. Supp. 1235

Frank M. EDWARDS, Jr. v. Denny Eves REYNAUD.

Frank M. EDWARDS, Jr. v. UNITED STATES of America and Denny E. Reynaud.

Civ. A. Nos. 76-2000, 77-3542.

United States District Court, E. D. Louisiana, Section "I".

January 23, 1979.

James A. McPherson, New Orleans, La., for plaintiff.

Herbert R. Alexander, Bogalusa, La., Gerard Smolin, Jr., Civil Division, Dept. of Justice, Washington, D. C., Michaelle F. Pitard, Asst. U. S. Atty., New Orleans, La., for defendants.

JACK M. GORDON, District Judge.

MEMORANDUM AND ORDER

This matter is before the Court on the joint motion of defendants, United States of America and Denny Eves Reynaud, for summary judgment dismissal of these consolidated civil actions. After a thorough review of the record, the memoranda of counsel, and the applicable law, the Court has decided to grant the motion for the following reasons.

Plaintiff has sued defendants for the following alleged violations of his constitutional rights. Between March, 1975, and December, 1975, plaintiff was the Sheriff of Tangipahoa Parish, Louisiana, and he was running for reelection. Also at that time, defendant Reynaud was an agent for the Department of Treasury, Division of Alcohol, Firearms, and Tobacco, and was investigating plaintiff for suspected violations of federal law, pursuant to orders from the United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Louisiana, who was at that time Gerald J. Gallinghouse. Plaintiff alleged that in the course of this investigation, defendant Reynaud maliciously interfered with plaintiff's constitutional right to run for public office by using the investigation to defame plaintiff, and thus harm his chances for reelection as Sheriff of Tangipahoa Parish.

Plaintiff alleged that defendant Reynaud turned the federal investigation into an "inquisition," that he leaked grand jury testimony to the press, that he defamed plaintiff, and that he attempted to commit assault and battery against the plaintiff, as well as attempting false arrest and imprisonment. Plaintiff further alleged that these actions of defendant Reynaud occurred prior to and during the first primary election, and that the ill effect the activities had on plaintiff's reputation caused plaintiff to have to go through a second primary, at a cost of $50,000.00, which would not have been necessary but for the actions of Denny Reynaud. Plaintiff was reelected as Sheriff; however, he alleges that in addition to the $50,000.00 of added campaign costs necessitated by defendant's actions, he suffered $3,950,000 of compensable damages for mental anguish and loss of reputation.

With respect to the alleged liability of the United States of America, plaintiff avers that the United States was negligent in hiring and supervising Reynaud, whom plaintiff alleges to be an incompetent, both emotionally and mentally unsuitable for his duties, which defects resulted in the alleged violations of plaintiff's rights.

Defendants have moved for summary judgment dismissal of these actions on the ground of immunity, as to defendant Reynaud, and on the ground that no actionable tort has been stated such as to impose liability on the United States under the Federal Tort Claims Act. Detailed memoranda, as well as affidavits and transcripts from prior court proceedings, were attached to defendants' motion in support of these contentions. The facts asserted in defendants' submissions have been in no way contradicted or distinguished by the plaintiff, nor has the plaintiff supplied the Court with any additional facts to aid in its ruling, other than the conclusory allegations outlined in the two complaints, and recited above. Therefore, for the purposes of the defendants' motion for summary judgment, the Court accepts the facts as submitted by defendants, and finds that there is no genuine material issue of fact, and that judgment dismissing the complaints is warranted as a matter of law.

The undisputed facts concerning defendant Reynaud's actions are these: From March, 1975, through November, 1975, Agent Reynaud was assigned to an investigation of alleged violations of a combination of federal gun, liquor and gambling laws in Tangipahoa Parish. Included in this investigation was the inquiry into allegations of the unlawful interstate transportation of a sawed-off shotgun, the production of illicit whiskey, and illegal gambling. In addition, Agent Reynaud participated in the investigation of alleged federal offenses involving various public officials in Tangipahoa Parish, including the plaintiff herein. While conducting these investigations, defendant Reynaud provided information regarding various state and federal offenses to the Attorney General's Office of the State of Louisiana, and its Strike Force, the F.B.I., and the I.R.S., the United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Louisiana, and the United States Department of Justice Organized Crime Strike Force in New Orleans, Louisiana.

On November 4, 1975, "Little Johnny's Place," a restaurant on Highway 51, between Hammond and Ponchatoula, Louisiana, was raided by a band of three men, brandishing automatic shotguns, who assaulted several of the restaurant patrons. The then United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Louisiana, Gerald J. Gallinghouse, ordered Agent Reynaud to conduct a full-scale investigation of the incident.

In response to that order, Agent Reynaud met on November 9, 1975, with one Speck Calmes, who told Reynaud that there were people who wished to speak with him concerning the alleged federal law violations. Accordingly, Mr. Calmes took Reynaud to the home of one Al Bigner, where an interview was conducted with Mr. Bigner, Mr. Calmes, a Gene Tallo and a Jerry Morgan. On November 17, 1975, also at Mr. Bigner's home, Agent Reynaud re-interviewed Bigner, Calmes and Tallo. The second interview of November 17, 1975, was held at the request of Bigner and the others, and it was tape-recorded by plaintiff without Reynaud's knowledge. Plaintiff was not present at any of these interviews, and defendant Reynaud did nothing between March, 1975, and December, 1975, except as outlined above.

With respect to the liability of defendant Reynaud for the money damages claimed here, it is asserted by movers that the uncontested facts show that the actions of Reynaud during the time period in question were all within the outer perimeters of his official duties as an agent for the Department of Treasury, Division of Alcohol, Firearms, and Tobacco. Therefore, defendant claims the absolute immunity to which federal agents are entitled when they are accused of state law torts committed in the exercise of their federal authority. Barr v. Matteo, 360 U.S. 564, 79 S.Ct. 1335, 3 L.Ed.2d 1434 (1959). Specifically, defendant asserts that when the allegations in the complaint are read in their most favorable light against the undisputed facts of the case, the inescapable conclusion is that there has been no violation of any constitutional right of the plaintiff, but at best a possible state law tort of defamation, from which defendant is absolutely immune from liability. Barr v. Matteo, ibid.; Butz v. Economou, ___ U.S. ___, 98 S.Ct. 2894, 57 L.Ed.2d 895 (1978); Expeditions Unltd. v. Smithsonian, 566 F.2d 289 (D.C.Cir. 1977), cert. den. ___ U.S. ___, 98 S.Ct. 3144, 57 L.Ed.2d 1160 (1978).

With respect to the possible liability of the United States, the government contends that there can be no liability under the Federal Tort Claims Act, because the acts alleged in the complaint are exempt under 28 U.S.C. § 2680(h). Furthermore, even if defendant Reynaud's actions could be construed as having violated a constitutional right of the plaintiff, which the United States denies, there is no liability for that violation under a theory of respondeat superior. Monell v. Department of Social Services of the City of New York, 436 U.S. 658, 98 S.Ct. 2018, 2037, 56 L.Ed.2d 611 (1978).

In response to the lengthy factual documentation supplied by the defendants, and the weight of the law cited in support of their arguments, plaintiff filed the following three-paragraph opposition, but only after numerous continuances and extensions of time, reluctantly granted by this Court over the last seven months:

MEMORANDUM IN OPPOSITION TO MOTIONS TO DISMISS OR FOR SUMMARY JUDGMENT

MAY IT PLEASE THE COURT:

Agent Reynaud had exceeded the permissible perimeters of his legitimate duties in his actions to defeat the re-election of Sheriff Edwards. The failure of the government to supervise and monitor the activities of Agent Reynaud is a separate, independent, actionable tort on behalf of the federal government.

The recent case of Daniels v. Kieser, 7 Cir., 586 F.2d 64 although re-affirming prosecutorial immunity leaves open the actions against federal agents for their tortious conduct outside the perimeters of their legitimate duties, as well as the failure of the government to properly supervise, monitor and restrain the illegitimate activities of a renegade agent.

Plaintiff requests permission to supplement this memorandum within the next five (5) days.¹

After reviewing the authorities cited by the parties, the Court concludes that defendants' position is the correct one.

In Butz v. Economou, 438 U.S. 478, 98 S.Ct. 2894, 57 L.Ed.2d 895 (1978), the Court held that federal investigative officers had only a...