Fitzpatrick v. Smith
| Decision Date | 09 November 1982 |
| Citation | 456 N.Y.S.2d 902,90 A.D.2d 974 |
| Parties | In the Matter of the Application of Martin FITZPATRICK, Respondent, v. Harold J. SMITH, Superintendent, Attica Correctional Facility, Appellant. |
| Court | New York Supreme Court — Appellate Division |
Robert Abrams, Atty. Gen., Albany by David Edmunds, Jr., Asst. Atty. Gen., Buffalo, for appellant.
Norman P. Effman by Leigh Anderson, Attica, for respondent.
Before DILLON, P.J., and CALLAHAN, DENMAN, BOOMER and SCHNEPP, JJ.
MEMORANDUM:
...Special Term erred in granting the application of the petitioner, an inmate serving a life sentence, to marry.Section 79-a of the Civil Rights Law prohibits marriages by inmates serving sentences of life imprisonment.Nevertheless, petitioner contends that the right to marry is a fundamental right and that section 79-a should be reexamined in view of the recent decision in Zablocki v. Redhail, 434 U.S. 374, 98 S.Ct. 673, 54 L.Ed.2d 618.We find nothing in the rationale of Zablocki v. Redhail(supra), which would invalidate the continued ban on marriage as an additional punishment for crimes of the most serious nature.Those courts which have heretofore scrutinized the statute have found it to be constitutional in factually similar cases(Johnson v. Rockefeller, 365 F.Supp. 377, affd sub nomButler v. Wilson, 415 U.S. 953, 94 S.Ct. 1479, 39 L.Ed.2d 569;Muessman v. Ward, 95 Misc.2d 478, 408 N.Y.S.2d 254).
Judgment unanimously reversed and petition dismissed.
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7 cases
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Fitzpatrick v. Smith
...318 466 N.Y.S.2d 318 59 N.Y.2d 916, 453 N.E.2d 547 In the Matter of Martin FITZPATRICK, Appellant, v. Harold J. SMITH, Superintendent, Attica Correctional Facility, et al., Respondents. Court of Appeals of New York. June 28, 1983. [59 N.Y.2d 917] Order affirmed, without costs, for reasons stated in the memorandum at the Appellate Division (
90 A.D.2d 974, 456 N.Y.S.2d COOKE, C.J., and JASEN, JONES, WACHTLER, MEYER and SIMONS, JJ., concur.... -
Miner v. New York State Dept. of Correctional Services
...may constitutionally prohibit individuals sentenced to life imprisonment to marry. Johnson v. Rockefeller, 365 F.Supp. 377 (D.C., N.Y., 1973), affirmed 415 U.S. 953, 94 S.Ct. 1479, 39 L.Ed.2d 569;
Fitzpatrick v. Smith, 90 A.D.2d 974, 456 N.Y.S.2d 902 (4th Dept., 1982)affirmed 59 N.Y.2d 916, 466 N.Y.S.2d 318, 453 N.E.2d 547 (1983), U.S. cert. denied 464 U.S. 963, 104 S.Ct. 399, 78 L.Ed.2d 340, U.S. reh. denied 464 U.S. 1064, 104 S.Ct. 749, 79 L.Ed.2d 205; Muessman... -
Doe v. Coughlin
...marry (see, Turner v. Safley, 482 U.S. 78, 107 S.Ct. 2254, 96 L.Ed.2d 64, supra; cf., Johnson v. Rockefeller, 365 F.Supp. 377, affd. sub nom. Butler v. Wilson, 415 U.S. 953, 94 S.Ct. 1479, 39 L.Ed.2d 569; and
Matter of Fitzpatrick v. Smith, 90 A.D.2d 974, 456 N.Y.S.2d 902, affd. 59 N.Y.2d 916, 466 N.Y.S.2d 318, 453 N.E.2d 547 [both holding Civil Rights Law § 79-a constitutional] Nevertheless, an inmate is constitutionally deprived of his liberty upon conviction and sentence... -
De'Vere v. Reid
...petitioner's claim, it is well settled that the prohibition against marriage contained in Civil Rights Law § 79-a for those who have been convicted and sentenced to life imprisonment is neither a denial of equal protection of the laws nor cruel and unusual punishment (see,
Matter of Fitzpatrick v. Smith, 90 A.D.2d 974, 456 N.Y.S.2d 902, affd. 59 N.Y.2d 916, 466 N.Y.S.2d 318, 453 N.E.2d 547 on mem. at the App.Div., cert. denied, 464 U.S. 963, 104 S.Ct. 399, 78 L.Ed.2d 340; Johnson v. Rockefeller,...
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