Hickman v. Freehold Borough
| Decision Date | 31 March 2017 |
| Docket Number | Civil Action No. 15-3578 (FLW)(LHG) |
| Parties | ROMONDA HICKMAN, Plaintiff, v. FREEHOLD BOROUGH, GLENN ROBERTS, JOHN DOES 6-10, and KEVIN WERNER, Defendants. |
| Court | U.S. District Court — District of New Jersey |
**NOT FOR PUBLICATION**
:
Before the Court are the motions of Defendants Kevin Werner and Freehold Borough for summary judgment on the Complaint of Plaintiff Romonda Hickman. In her Complaint, Plaintiff brings claims against Defendant Werner, individually, for excessive force in violation of her Fourth Amendment Rights under 42 U.S.C. § 1983, and for the torts of assault and battery and negligence under the common law of the State of New Jersey, as a result of Defendant Werner's restraint of Plaintiff before her arrest during a domestic violence incident on September 23, 2014. Plaintiff also brings claims against Defendant Freehold Borough for assault and battery and negligence under the theory of respondeat superior. For the reasons stated below, the Court finds that Defendant Werner is entitled to qualified immunity from Plaintiff's § 1983 suit, and that Defendants Werner and Freehold Borough are immune from state law tort liability under the New Jersey Tort Claims Act. Accordingly, summary judgment in favor of Defendants is granted and the Complaint is dismissed.
Plaintiff Romonda Hickman is the owner of the residence located at 37 Avenue A in Freehold, New Jersey, and has lived at the residence since 2002. Defendants' Statement of Material Fact ("DSMF"), ¶5. Plaintiff's residence is a two-level house with the garage and basement on the lower level and living quarters on the upper level. Id. at ¶ 18. Plaintiff's home rests on a natural rise in the land, with the foundation of the house, which is set back from the street from which it is separated by a grass lawn, standing several feet above street level. Id. at ¶ 19. Given the elevation of Plaintiff's house, Plaintiff's lawn, rises at a fairly steep angle from its lowest point at street level, to its highest point at the foundation of Plaintiff's home. Ibid. The second floor living quarters of Plaintiff's home are accessible through a second-floor front door, which opens onto an elevated deck. The deck in turn is connected to Plaintiff's lawn and driveway by a one-story staircase. Ibid.
Plaintiff's adult daughter, Shaquanda Hickman ("Shaquanda")1, and Shaquanda's boyfriend, Derrick Crenshaw ("Derrick"), began living together with Plaintiff at 37 Avenue A some time in or around 2007, shortly before the birth of Shaquanda and Derrick's first child. DSMF, ¶¶ 1, 3, 4, 6, 7. Shaquanda and Derrick moved out of Plaintiff's home for some period between 2007 and 2012, but returned to live with Plaintiff permanently in March 2012, shortly after the birth of Derrick and Shaquanda's second child. Id. at ¶ 7. Shaquanda and Derrick were living at Plaintiff's home at the time of the incident in question in September 2014.
Plaintiff and Shaquanda had a "strained and difficult" or "love/hate" relationship, extending back to Shaquanda's teenage years, when Shaquanda believed that Plaintiff favored Shaquanda's brother over her. DSMF, ¶¶ 8, 9, 11, 12. This relationship became particularly strained after Shaquanda moved back into Plaintiff's home with her family in March 2012.
Derrick Crenshaw was incarcerated from April 2013 to February 2014 in Ocean County Jail on a second degree robbery conviction involving a weapon. Id. at ¶13. The relationship between Plaintiff and Shaquanda deteriorated further when Derrick was released from prison and began to live with Plaintiff and Shaquanda. Id. at ¶ 14. Plaintiff objected to Derrick living in her home since he was not employed, was not helping around the house, and generally remained idle. Id. at ¶ 15. In the summer of 2014, Plaintiff went to court to evict Shaquanda and Derrick from her house. Id. at ¶ 16. A New Jersey state court entered an order, dated July 24, 2014, compelling Shaquanda and Derrick to vacate Plaintiff's residence by October 1, 2014. Id. at ¶ 17.
On September 23, 2014, at 7:00 a.m., Plaintiff arrived home from her work at the United States Post Office, where she had worked from ten o'clock the previous evening until 6:30 a.m. that morning. Id. at ¶ 29. Upon arriving home, Plaintiff went downstairs to do her laundry and discovered that the Derrick's clothes were already in the washing machine. Id. at ¶ 30. Plaintiff was upset that the clothes had been left in the washing machine and went to the bedroom where Shaquanda and Derrick were sleeping. Id. at ¶ 31. The three began to argue. Ibid. Plaintiff, Shaquanda, and Derrick moved into the living room and continued to argue. Id. at ¶ 32. The argument between Plaintiff and Shaquanda became physical when Plaintiff hit Shaquanda and Shaquanda retaliated by hitting Plaintiff. Id. at ¶ 33. Derrick positioned himself between Plaintiff and Shaquanda in an attempt to stop the fight, at which point Plaintiff grabbed a broom withwhich to hit Shaquanda. Id. at ¶ 34. Derrick took the broom from Plaintiff and tossed it to one side. Id. at ¶ 35.
Plaintiff then called 911 to request assistance in getting Shaquanda and Derrick out of her house. Id. at ¶ 36. Plaintiff reported to the 911 operator that there was fighting going on with her daughter and that there was property damage as a result. Id. at ¶ 37. After she hung up with the 911 operator, Plaintiff called her mother, Beulah Hickman ("Beulah"), to request that Beulah come to Plaintiff's house and remove Shaquanda. Id. at ¶ 38. Plaintiff also told her mother, Beulah, that she and Shaquanda were fighting and that Shaquanda was breaking things in the house. Ibid. While Plaintiff was waiting for the police to arrive, she continued to argue with Shaquanda, but they were no longer "throwing punches." Id. at ¶ 39. Derrick took his and Shaquanda's two children, who were approximately ages one and five, out of the house and placed them in his car, which was parked outside on the street. Id. at ¶ 40.
While these events were transpiring at 37 Avenue A, on September 23, 2014, Patrolman Sean Healey, an officer in the Freehold Borough Police Department, was working a road construction job approximately 500 feet from Plaintiff's residence. Id. at ¶ 41. At approximately 7:20 a.m., Freehold's police dispatch broadcasted a call that there was a fight in progress at 37 Avenue A. Patrolman Healey heard the call, and, because Patrolman Healey was close to the Plaintiff's residence and the construction project had not yet started, Patrolman Healy responded to the call. Id. at ¶ 42. Since Patrolman Healey was working an extra duty assignment, the vehicle he was operating was not equipped with a Mobile Video Recording device ("MVR"). Id. at ¶ 43.
Patrolman Diego Flores, an officer in the Freehold Borough Police Department, was assigned to patrol on the 7:00 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. shift. Patrolman Flores was in policeheadquarters when he received the call from dispatch of a fight in progress. He operated a marked patrol vehicle, which was equipped with an MVR, and proceeded to the location. At approximately 7:24:35 a.m., he parked his vehicle behind the vehicle operated by Patrolman Healey and on the same side of the street as 37 Avenue A. Id. at ¶ 44. Patrolman Flores' MVR is one of the two video-recordings of the incident at issue in this case upon which the Court relies. Patrolman Flores' MVR did not record any sound, but had a direct view of the area of Plaintiff's front yard, where the incident occurred.
Patrolman Kevin Werner, an officer in the Freehold Borough Police Department and the individual Defendant in this case, was also assigned to patrol on the 7:00 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. shift. Patrolman Werner was in police headquarters when he received the call from dispatch. He operated a marked patrol vehicle, which was equipped with an MVR, and proceeded to the location. At approximately 7:24:49 a.m., Patrolman Werner arrived on scene and parked his vehicle behind Patrolman Flores' vehicle. Id. at ¶ 45. Patrolman Werner's MVR captured both video and audio recordings of the entire incident in question, and is the other video recording upon which this Court relies. The fourth officer to arrive at the scene was Sergeant Colaner, the Shift Supervisor. DSMF at ¶ 46.
Upon Patrolman Healey's arrival, he saw Plaintiff throwing clothing and personal belongings from the house onto the front lawn. Shaquanda was picking up the items and yelling at her mother from the front lawn. Derrick was on the front lawn close to the driveway and was not engaged in the argument. Id. at ¶ 47. Since the matter was a domestic violence incident, Patrolman Healey brought Plaintiff inside the home in order to separate the parties, leaving Shaquanda and Derrick outside, before any other officers arrived. Id. at ¶ 48. Once inside withPlaintiff, Patrolman Healey locked the front door behind him to ensure that the parties would remain separated. Patrolman Healey began interviewing Plaintiff Romonda Hickman. Id. at ¶ 49.
Upon the arrival of Patrolman Flores, he observed Shaquanda Hickman and Derrick Crenshaw outside the home. Patrolman Flores spoke to Shaquanda and Derrick, who were both upset, concerning the events which led to the call for police assistance. Id. at ¶ 50. Upon his arrival, Patrolman Werner also spoke to Derrick and Shaquanda outside of Plaintiff's house, on the steps near the driveway. Id. at ¶ 51.
At approximately 7:25:37 a.m., Derrick stated to Officers Werner and Flores that Plaintiff hit Shaquanda with a broomstick, and Derrick suggested that Plaintiff should be charged. Id. at ¶ 52. At approximately 7:26:48 a.m., due to Patrolman Werner's presence on the scene, Patrolman Flores knocked on the front door, and was admitted to the residence by Patrolman Healey to assist in the interview of Plaintiff. Id. at ¶ 53.
At approximately...
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