Hunter v. District of Columbia, 88-7265

• Decision Date: 30 August 1991
• Docket Number: No. 88-7265,88-7265
• Citation: 943 F.2d 69
• Parties: Renay HUNTER, Appellant, v. The DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA, Appellee.
• Court: U.S. Court of Appeals — District of Columbia Circuit

Page 69

943 F.2d 69

291 U.S.App.D.C. 355

Renay HUNTER, Appellant, v. The DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA, Appellee.

No. 88-7265.

United States Court of Appeals District of Columbia Circuit.

Argued Dec. 10, 1990.

Decided Aug. 30, 1991.

Appeal from the United States District Court for the District of Columbia (No. 88-CV-718).

Michael S. Rosier, Washington, D.C., for appellant.

Edward E. Schwab, Asst. Corp. Counsel, with whom Herbert O. Reid, Sr., Corp. Counsel, and Charles L. Reischel, Deputy Corp. Counsel, Washington, D.C., were on the brief, for appellee.

Before WALD, EDWARDS and D.H. GINSBURG, Circuit Judges.

Opinion for the Court filed by Circuit Judge D.H. GINSBURG.

D.H. GINSBURG, Circuit Judge:

The district court dismissed plaintiff's complaint, which made various claims at common law and under the civil rights statutes, against the District of Columbia and two of its police officers. We affirm except as to the § 1983 claim asserted against one of the police officers. We remand that claim to the district court for the plaintiff to replead in conformity with the heightened pleading standard discussed below.

I. BACKGROUND

According to the allegations of the complaint, plaintiff Renay Hunter was arrested by District of Columbia police officers on November 8, 1986, in connection with a car accident. After he was arrested and while he was handcuffed, the officers beat him causing severe, permanent physical and mental injuries. On March 16, 1988, Hunter sued the two officers and the District of Columbia, making claims under § 1983 (and other civil rights statutes as to which Hunter does not appeal), and common law claims for assault and battery, intentional infliction of emotional distress, and negligent hiring and training. Upon the defendants' motion to dismiss the complaint, the district court found that all of the claims were barred by the District's one year statute of limitations for assault and battery, and that the common law tort claims were also barred by Hunter's failure to give the District the timely and detailed notice of the incident required by D.C.Code § 12-309.

II. CLAIMS UNDER D.C. LAW

We affirm the district court in dismissing each of the claims based upon the laws of the District of Columbia.

A. Assault, Battery, and Intentional Infliction of Emotional Distress

D.C.Code § 12-301 states in pertinent part:

Except as otherwise specifically provided by law, actions for the following purposes may not be brought after the expiration of the period specified below from the time the right to maintain the action accrues:

. . . . .

(4) for libel, slander, assault, battery, mayhem, wounding, malicious prosecution, false arrest or false imprisonment--1 year;

. . . . .

(8) for which a limitation is not otherwise specially prescribed--3 years.

Hunter's claim for assault and battery is thus clearly barred by the one-year statute of limitations in § 12-301(4). As for his claim for intentional infliction of emotional distress, Hunter asserts that the one-year limitation of § 12-301(4) does not apply--thereby implying that the three-year residual statute of limitations in § 12-301(8) governs--while the District flatly asserts that § 12-301(4) does apply. Neither side cites any precedent or offers any argument in support of its position.

In fact, a recent decision of the D.C. Court of Appeals indicates that both parties err in suggesting that any single statute of limitations governs all claims of intentional infliction of emotional distress in the District. In Saunders v. Nemati, 580 A.2d 660 (D.C.1990), the court held that "an independent action for intentional infliction of emotional distress, not intertwined with any of the causes of action for which a period of limitation is specifically provided in the other provisions of section 12-301, is governed by the general residuary three-year limitation of section 12-301(8)." Id. at 665. The wrongful act asserted in Saunders was "extremely outrageous and abusive language to plaintiff which was calculated to and did cause Plaintiff extreme emotional distress." Id. at 663 n. 6. In holding that this "independent" tort is governed by the residual statute of limitations, the court distinguished--and apparently approved application of the one-year statute of limitations to--cases in which the wrongful act alleged is assault, battery, or libel. See id. at 661-63, citing Hanoch Tel-Oren v. Libyan Arab Republic, 517 F.Supp. 542 (D.D.C.1981); Thomas v. News World Communications, 681 F.Supp. 55, 73 (D.D.C.1988); de la Croix de Lafayette v. de la Croix de Lafayette, 117 Daily Wash.L.Rptr. 2133, 2138 (D.C.Super.Ct. Aug. 14, 1989).

Hunter's complaint did not allege any facts suggesting that the defendants intentionally caused him emotional distress by conduct "independent" of the alleged assault and battery. Therefore, the one-year statute of limitations bars this claim, as the district court held.

B. Negligent Hiring and Supervision

Hunter's complaint also asserts that "the Defendant District of Columbia did negligently and carelessly fail to appropriately educate, supervise, train and/or discipline Defendant [Police Officers] with respect to the utilization of force," and that the officers caused him injury as a result of this failure. It is established that negligent supervision or training of police officers does state a cause of action in the District. See District of Columbia v. White, 442 A.2d 159, 164-65 (D.C.1982); District of Columbia v. Davis, 386 A.2d 1195, 1199-1201 (D.C.1978).

The district court dismissed this claim, too, pursuant to the one-year statute of limitations in § 12-301(4). There is no case directly on point, but as we read § 12-301, the three-year residual statute of limitations presumably governs this cause of action, even if the negligent conduct of the District is alleged to have resulted in an intentional tort by the police.

We nevertheless affirm the district court's dismissal of this claim because Hunter failed to give the District the detailed notice of the claim required by § 12-309 (1981). At all relevant times, that section provided:

An action may not be maintained against the District of Columbia for unliquidated damages to person or property unless, within six months after the injury or damage was sustained, the claimant, his agent, or attorney has given notice in writing to the [Mayor] of the approximate time, place, cause, and circumstances of the injury or damage. A report in writing by the Metropolitan Police Department, in regular course of duty, is a sufficient notice under this section.

The District courts have repeatedly held that because § 12-309 is in derogation of sovereign immunity, it must be strictly construed. See, e.g., Campbell v. District of Columbia, 568 A.2d 1076, 1078 (D.C.1990).

Hunter's attorney notified the District of his claim in a 1986 letter, the body of which stated in its entirety:

NOTICE OF CLAIM AGAINST THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA

Dear Sir:

Please be advised that I represent [Renay Hunter,] claimant who was injured on [November 8, 1986] in the District of Columbia when he was beaten by officers of the District of Columbia Police Department.

Accordingly we are placing the District on notice pursuant to D.C.Code § 12-309 of this Cause of Action and request the Corporation Counsel of the District of Columbia to contact the below signed attorney in an effort to resolve this matter amicably.

The District argues that the purported notice lacked sufficient detail about the "circumstances of the injury" to enable it to conduct a meaningful investigation. We need not come to closure on that point, however, because it is clear that the letter gave neither the approximate time nor place of the injury, as required by the statute. See Washington v. District of Columbia, 429 A.2d 1362, 1365 n. 7 (D.C.1981) (claimant must give "an approximate estimate of the time of the accident"); Pitts v. District of Columbia, 391 A.2d 803, 807 (D.C.1978) (notice should describe the situs of the injury in such a manner as to enable the investigating agency to find it).

In view of the patent inadequacy of the letter, Hunter also invokes the "police report" alternative notice provision of the statute. In order to satisfy § 12-309, a police report must contain the same information that the statute expressly requires of a letter, "with at least the same degree of specificity." Campbell, 568 A.2d at 1078-79. The District Court record, however, does not contain any police report or, for that matter, any reason--other than Hunter's allegation that he was arrested--to believe that one exists. As a result, it is impossible for us to conclude that § 12-309 has been satisfied. See id. at 1078-79 ("appellants have made no showing that the District is actually in possession of a ... report ... or that the report contains the specificity required of a formal notice") (re alternative holding).

Although Hunter argues that he was not given an opportunity to discover whether there exists a police report that could serve as notice of his claim, the District points out that three months elapsed between the filing of its motion to dismiss and the close of discovery. "Appellant had ample time to request any police department reports during that period. He made no such request, either before, or after, the close of discovery." Nothing in the record or in Hunter's reply brief contradicts this account, and so we reject his lack of opportunity argument.

Hunter also argues that "[t]he purpose of the Statute ... to permit the District of Columbia to conduct an early investigation of the facts and circumstances surrounding claims against it" has been satisfied in this case because "the District had agents [presumably the police officers] present at the scene, and had every opportunity, as well as a duty, to investigate this matter." The District courts, however, have held that notice to a subordinate official does not take the place of...