Flaherty v. Knapik
| Decision Date | 21 February 2014 |
| Docket Number | C.A. No. 12–CV–30055–MAP. |
| Citation | 999 F.Supp.2d 323 |
| Court | U.S. District Court — District of Massachusetts |
| Parties | David FLAHERTY, Jane Wensley and David Costa, Plaintiffs v. Daniel KNAPIK, Defendant. |
William Newman Lesser, Newman & Nasser, LLP, Luke S. Ryan Sasson, Turnbull & Hoose, Northampton, MA, for Plaintiff.
Edward M. Pikula, Springfield, MA, for Defendant.
MEMORANDUM AND ORDER REGARDING DEFENDANT'S MOTION FOR SUMMARY JUDGMENT AND PLAINTIFFS' MOTION FOR SUMMARY JUDGMENT (Dkt. Nos. 20 & 30)
Plaintiffs David Flaherty, a city councilor; Jane Wensley, a local government official; and David Costa, a politically active land owner, all reside in the city of Westfield, Massachusetts. Defendant, Daniel Knapik, is the Mayor of Westfield. Plaintiffs have brought this five-count action asserting violations by Knapik of their right to free expression under federal and state law. Their complaint also includes claims for common-law trespass and conversion. The parties have filed cross-motions for summary judgment. (Dkt. Nos. 20 & 30.)
The dispute centers on Mayor Knapik's order on November 7, 2011 to Westfield employees to remove certain political signs in the vicinity of East Silver Street and Lindbergh Boulevard near his home, on the ground that they were creating an unsafe condition by interfering with the sight lines at an intersection. Plaintiffs contend that the safety issue was a pretext; they say Knapik ordered the removal because the signs supported political rivals. As evidence, they point to the undisputed fact that Knapik ordered the removal only of the political signs and allowed a commercial sign to stay.
It is clear from the undisputed facts that Defendant Knapik's removal of the signs—whatever his actual intent—constituted a content-based restriction of free speech. Applying the strict scrutiny analysis applicable to content-based restrictions on expression in public forums, the court must conclude that Plaintiffs are entitled to summary judgment on their federal claim for violation of their First Amendment rights and on their parallel claim under the Massachusetts Declaration of Rights. They have failed, however, to show the use of threats, intimidation, or coercion, and thus Defendant is entitled to summary judgment on Plaintiffs' claim under the Massachusetts Civil Rights Act, Mass. Gen. Laws ch. 12, § 11I. Defendant is also entitled to summary judgment on Plaintiffs' conversion claim, as Plaintiffs have not shown a genuine dispute of material fact on the issue of damages.
Finally, since a disputed issue of fact exists regarding the ownership of the tree belt where the signs were placed and then removed, summary judgment for either party on Plaintiffs' trespass claim is inappropriate.
In sum, for the reasons set forth in more detail below, the court will allow Plaintiffs' motion for summary judgment on their federal and state constitutional claims (Counts I and II), will allow Defendant's motion for summary judgment on the state civil rights claim (Count III) and the conversion claim (Count IV) and will deny both parties' motions for summary judgment on the trespass claim (Count V). The clerk will set the case for a status conference to address possible further proceedings regarding the trespass claim and attorneys' fees.
The city of Westfield, Massachusetts, held local elections on November 8, 2011. At stake, among other positions, were seven at-large seats on the City Council and a seat on the Municipal Light Board. City Councilors John Beltrandi and Plaintiff David Flaherty were two of eleven candidates seeking election to the Council. Plaintiff Jane Wensley and Jack Callahan vied to represent Ward 3 on the Municipal Light Board. As noted above, at the time of the election Defendant Daniel Knapik was the Mayor of Westfield.
In November 2011, Plaintiff David Costa had just purchased property located at 38 East Silver Street. Abutting his property to the east was 133 Lindbergh Boulevard, owned by the Atwater family. Both of these properties sat on the north side of East Silver Street between Cross Street and Lindbergh Boulevard. Nearby, on the south side of the street, was the home of Defendant Knapik, at 43 East Silver Street, positioned diagonally from and within direct sight of Plaintiff Costa's and the Atwaters' properties.
The deed to Plaintiff Costa's property, as recorded in the Hampden County Registry of Deeds, reflected lot lines measuring 148.9 feet by 100 feet. The city's Geographic Information System (GIS) viewer indicated that the lot extended from the house in a southern direction and ended shortly before the northern edge of the roadway.
Plaintiffs rely on this deed to contend that the tree belt, the land between the street and the sidewalk, was their private property. The deed, they point out, fails to indicate that any entity, including the city, owned an easement or right of way on, or to, the tree belt area. At worst, they contend, the tree belt was private land with a public right of way.
Defendant, relying on a survey completed by Land Surveyor Donald Frydryk, argues that the City of Westfield was the owner of this space, and the tree belt was public property. Defendant also relies on DPW Director James Mulvenna's and DPW Foreman David Curran's depositions, where they described the tree belt as city property.
As election day 2011 approached, campaign signs inevitably appeared around town. Prior to November 7, Ward 4 City Councilor Mary O'Connell obtained permission to place one of Plaintiff Wensley's signs on the Atwater's property at 133 Lindbergh Boulevard. Plaintiff Costa gave permission to City Councilor John Beltrandi to place his signs on Costa's property at 38 East Silver Street. After learning about this location, and its proximity to a polling place, Plaintiff Flaherty asked Beltrandi to obtain permission on his behalf to place signs on the Costa property as well. On November 7, Beltrandi informed Plaintiff Flaherty that Plaintiff Costa had given the requested permission. On the same day, Ms. O'Connell also informed Plaintiff Flaherty that she had obtained permission on his behalf to put signs on the abutting property owned by the Atwaters at 133 Lindbergh Boulevard.
Having received a green light from the property owners, Plaintiff Flaherty positioned four signs on the Atwater and Costa properties. He stationed his signs next to Beltrandi's, creating a “line of signs” on the tree belt. Both parties rely on a photograph taken by Westfield News photographer Fred Gore as a depiction of the location of the signs. Notably, one of Plaintiff Flaherty's signs was placed near a commercial sign offering a real estate advertisement on Plaintiff Costa's property.
Defendant Knapik observed Plaintiff Flaherty's signs roughly twenty minutes after they were installed. He immediately called DPW Director Mulvenna twice and ordered the removal of the political signs. As Mulvenna explained, “[H]e requested that I send someone down to the corner of East Silver Street and Cross Street to remove some political lawn signs that he determined were blocking the vision of people coming in and out of that particular street.” (Mulvenna Dep. 35.) All of the witnesses with first- or second-hand knowledge of the order, including Defendant Knapik, agree that the order was directed toward political signs only, and toward a specific geographic location—the north side of East Silver Street between Cross Street and Lindbergh Street. Knapik and Mulvenna did not discuss any alternatives to outright removal of the political signs.
In response to the order, Mulvenna used his two-way radio to pass the direction to DPW Foreman David Curran to remove the signs. Curran filled out a work order and sent two DPW workers to complete the task. Fred Gore, a photographer for Westfield News, overheard the directive over the radio and went to the location, where he photographed the workers removing the political signs. His photograph was later published in the Westfield News.
Following the removal of the signs, Plaintiff Flaherty happened to be in the area and noticed their absence. City Councilor candidate Mary O'Connell went to the police station where she learned that they had not received any complaints about the signs. Plaintiff Flaherty learned from Westfield Building Inspector Jonathan Flagg that his department had also not received any complaints. Beltrandi asked Defendant Knapik if he knew what happened, to which Knapik allegedly responded, “[H]ow would I know, I just got home from work.” (Beltrandi Dep. 15.) Beltrandi then inquired of Knapik's next-door neighbor, who revealed the involvement of DPW Foreman Curran. When asked, Curran informed Beltrandi that Mulvenna had ordered the removal of the signs, and Mulvenna, after allegedly claiming at first that the police directed the action, disclosed Defendant Knapik's involvement. Plaintiff Flaherty replaced his signs the same day, November 7, at the same location, and Beltrandi received his signs back the morning of November 8. After Plaintiff Flaherty replaced his signs, they were not disturbed again.
Prior to this incident, Defendant Knapik had never before ordered the DPW to remove a campaign sign. Further, Mulvenna, who had worked for the DPW since 1999, was unaware of any occasion where a campaign sign had been removed. Instead, Mulvenna said it was the policy of the DPW to leave the decision as to the placement of political signs to the homeowner. He further testified that, if he were concerned about a sign's location, he would have been inclined to “call the candidate and tell them[,] could you move your sign a little more from the location where you put it.” (Mulvenna Dep. 53.)
With respect to the facts surrounding Mayor Knapik's motive in ordering the signs' removal, the parties vigorously dispute what inferences can be drawn.
Plaintiffs believe that Defendant directed...
To continue reading
Request your trial