Jackson v. Cnty. of Nassau, 15-CV-7218(SJF)(AKT)
Decision Date | 13 April 2016 |
Docket Number | 15-CV-7218(SJF)(AKT) |
Parties | ERWIN JACKSON, #08A5175, Plaintiff, v. COUNTY OF NASSAU, MERYL J. BERKOWITZ, in her official and individual capacity, and AMES C. GREWERT, in his official and individual capacity, Defendants. |
Court | U.S. District Court — Eastern District of New York |
I. Introduction
On December 11, 2015, incarcerated pro se plaintiff Erwin Jackson ("plaintiff") filed a complaint in this Court pursuant to 42 U.S.C. § 1983 ("Section 1983") against the County of Nassau ("the County"); the Honorable Meryl J. Berkowitz ("Judge Berkowitz"), Acting Supreme Court Justice; and Ames C. Grewert ("ADA Grewert"), an Assistant District Attorney in the Nassau County District Attorney's Office (collectively, "defendants"), accompanied by an application to proceed in forma pauperis. By Order dated March 18, 2016, plaintiff's application to proceed in forma pauperis was denied pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1915(g), and plaintiff was directed to pay the full amount of the Court's filing fee. See 28 U.S.C. § 1914(a). On or about April 1, 2016, plaintiff paid the requisite filing fee. Nonetheless, for the reasons set forth below, plaintiff's claims are sua sponte dismissed in their entirety with prejudice pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1915A(b). II. Plaintiff's Claims
(Compl. at 5).
In his second cause of action, plaintiff alleges, inter alia, that Judge Berkowitz, "an unsworn temporaily [sic] appointed Nassau County Acting Supreme Court Justice, while acting under the color of State law and in the complete absence of constitutional, statutory, and common-law jurisdiction, violated [his] federal constitutional rights [by] . . . entertain[ing] and thereafter grant[ing] an unauthorized petition submitted by [ADA Grewert] which was dated June 17, 2015 which sought an injunction precluding . . . plaintiff . . . from filing any further motions pursuant to criminal indictment #2826NO5 with the court." (Compl., ¶ 6). According to plaintiff, Judge Berkowitz, "being fully aware that no statutory authority exist [sic] which authorizes an assistant district attorney to confer jurisdiction upon any court by way of petition seeking to preclude a pro se criminal defendant/litigant from accessing the court, with an [sic] deliberate indifference to the federal constitutional rights of the plaintiff and in total absence of jurisdiction, granted the assistant district attorney's unauthorized petition[] . . . [without] afford[ing] the plaintiff an [sic] hearing or an opportunity to be heard. . . in direct retaliation . . . [for] plaintiff's continuous attempts to access the court." (Id.)
In plaintiff's fourth cause of action, he alleges, inter alia, that Judge Berkowitz "knew that [ADA] Grewert's petition for an injunction was not lawfully submitted and . . . containedfacts which were falsely sworn to . . .[;] [and] that [ADA] Grewert lacked authority to represent her in regards to [] plaintiff's disqualification/recusal application[,] . . . [but] disregarded such . . . [with] deliberate[] indifferen[ce] to [his] federal constitutional rights." (Compl., ¶ 17).
In his third cause of action, plaintiff alleges, inter alia, that ADA Grewert "illegally conferred jurisdiction upon an unsworn court and/or judge [Judge Berkowitz] by submitting a petition dated June 17, 2015 seeking and obtaining an injunction precluding [him] from motioning [sic] the court for relief." (Compl., ¶ 8). According to plaintiff, ADA Grewert "intentionally caused [him] harm . . . without excuse or justification in order to obtain a collateral objective that is outside the legitimate ends of the [sic] process[,]" (id., ¶ 9), and "stepped outside of his prosecutorial zone by seeking and obtaining such injunction for the sole purpose of punishing the plaintiff and retaliating against [him] due to the plaintiff's continuous attempts to exercise his rights to access the court in order to be heard on the merits of his federal constitutional claims." (Id., ¶ 10).
In his fourth cause of action, plaintiff alleges, inter alia, that ADA Grewert, "in complete absence of jurisdiction, appeared as an 'attorney' on behalf of [Judge] Berkowitz by submitting an opposing affidavit [in opposition to plaintiff's motion to disqualify and/or recuse Judge Berkowitz] which contained facts which were falsely sworn to dated June 17, 2015." (Compl., ¶¶ 13-14). According to plaintiff, ADA Grewert, "knowing that [Judge] Berkowitz would accept (without questioning) and entertain and thereafter grant such unauthorized and perjured affidavit, intentionally submitted [it] . . . for the purpose of having [Judge] Berkowitz punish the plaintiffby dening [sic] [his] pending post-conviction motions without considering the merits of such," (id., ¶ 15); and "stepped outside of his prosecutorial zone by becoming a witness on behalf of [Judge] Berkowitz; by representing [Judge] Berkowitz; and by swearing falsely as an [sic] witness to facts alleged in his jurisdictionally defective petition for an [sic] preclusion injunction." (Id., ¶ 16).
In his fifth cause of action, plaintiff alleges, inter alia, that the County "is required by law to assure that all elected and/or appointed Public Officials that presides [sic] in its geographical County . . . take and thereafter file their Constitutional oath of office as prescribed and mandated by law[;] [and] [t]he failure to do so prohibits the official from entering upon the performance of his/her elected, chosen or appointed duties and renders their position vacant by operation of law." (Compl., ¶ 18). According to plaintiff, the County "has an unwritten custom, policy, and practice which allows elected and temporaily [sic] appointed judges to preside on the bench in its County in the total absence of taking and filing their oath of office . . . [,]" (id., ¶ 19); and "maintains the custom, policy, and practice of allowing the supervising Nassau County Clerks [sic] Office to turn an [sic] blind eye by not informing said judges that their oath of office is not on file whereby condoning, approving, and endorsing said judges unauthorized presiding upon an unsworn bench," (id., ¶ 20), thereby depriving criminal defendants, including plaintiff, "their constitutional rights to be held, heard, tried and punished before and by an [sic] duly sworn court/judge that has competent jurisdiction . . . over the criminal proceedings." (Id., ¶ 21). Plaintiff further alleges that the County "fails to implement and enforce" the "statutes,procedures, and established laws mandating without exception the taking and filing of judicial oaths of office[] . . . [and] requir[ing] its County Clerk employees to serve notice upon every Public Official that has failed to timely take and file their constitutional oath of office[,]" (id., ¶ 23); and "has allowed [Judge] Berkowitz to preside on the unsworn bench from approximately the year 2006 to 2015." (Id., ¶ 24).
In his sixth cause of action, plaintiff alleges, inter alia, (1) that "[t]he Nassau County District Attorney, a manager and policy-maker in her office, has established unwritten customs, policies, and practices which authorize and permits [sic] her appointed and hired assistant district attorneys to submit opposing affidavits and/or affirmations which contains [sic] knowingly sworn to false statements and facts which are designed to deceive and mislead the reviewing court(s) and are designed to...
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