Jones v. Seneca Cnty.

• Citation: 154 A.D.3d 1349,63 N.Y.S.3d 620
• Decision Date: 06 October 2017
• Docket Number: 1146 CA 17-00356.
• Parties: Jacqueline M. JONES, Plaintiff–Appellant, v. SENECA COUNTY, Defendant–Respondent. Deputy Frank Eldredge, Respondent.
• Court: New York Supreme Court Appellate Division

154 A.D.3d 1349

63 N.Y.S.3d 620

Jacqueline M. JONES, Plaintiff–Appellant,

v. SENECA COUNTY, Defendant–Respondent.Deputy Frank Eldredge, Respondent.

1146 CA 17-00356.

Supreme Court, Appellate Division, Fourth Department, New York.

Oct. 6, 2017.

Cerulli, Massare & Lembke, Rochester (Matthew R. Lembke of Counsel), for Plaintiff–Appellant.

Adams Bell Adams, P.C., Rochester (Richard T. Bell, Jr., of Counsel), for Defendant–Respondent.

Bond, Schoeneck & King, PLLC, Rochester (Curtis A. Johnson of Counsel), for Respondent.

PRESENT: SMITH, J.P., PERADOTTO, LINDLEY, DeJOSEPH, AND WINSLOW, JJ.

MEMORANDUM:

Plaintiff commenced this action seeking to recover damages for injuries she allegedly sustained as a result of an encounter with respondent, Deputy Frank Eldredge, a Sheriff's deputy employed by defendant. Supreme Court denied plaintiff's motion seeking leave to amend her complaint to add respondent as a defendant and granted defendant's cross motion for summary judgment dismissing the complaint. We affirm.

Contrary to plaintiff's contention, the court properly granted the cross motion. We reject plaintiff's challenges to the viability of our prior decisions holding that "[a] county may not be held responsible for the negligent acts of the Sheriff and his [or her] deputies on the theory of respondeat superior, in the absence of a local law assuming such responsibility" ( Marashian v. City of Utica, 214 A.D.2d 1034, 1034, 626 N.Y.S.2d 646 ; see Villar v. County of Erie, 126 A.D.3d 1295, 1296–1297, 5 N.Y.S.3d 747 ; Trisvan v. County of Monroe, 26 A.D.3d 875, 876, 809 N.Y.S.2d 369, lv. dismissed 6 N.Y.3d 891, 817 N.Y.S.2d 625, 850 N.E.2d 672 ; Smelts v. Meloni [appeal No. 3], 306 A.D.2d 872, 873, 762 N.Y.S.2d 467, lv. denied 100 N.Y.2d 516, 769 N.Y.S.2d 203, 801 N.E.2d 424 ). Although "[t]he 1989 amendment to New York Constitution, article XIII, § 13 (a) ... allows a county to accept responsibility for the negligent acts of the Sheriff[,] it does not impose liability upon the county for the acts of the Sheriff or his [or her] deputies on a theory of respondeat superior" ( Marashian, 214 A.D.2d at 1034, 626 N.Y.S.2d 646 ; see Wilson v. Sponable, 81 A.D.2d 1, 11–12, 439 N.Y.S.2d 549, appeal dismissed 54 N.Y.2d 834, ––– N.E.3d ––– –). Here, defendant established that it did not assume such responsibility by local law (see Villar, 126 A.D.3d at 1296–1297, 5 N.Y.S.3d 747 ; Mosey v. County of Erie, 117 A.D.3d 1381, 1385, 984 N.Y.S.2d 706 ; cf. Barr v. County of Albany, 50 N.Y.2d 247, 255–257, 428 N.Y.S.2d 665, 406 N.E.2d 481 ; Marashian, 214 A.D.2d at 1034, 626 N.Y.S.2d 646 ).

Plaintiff contends that defendant nonetheless assumed responsibility for the acts of its Sheriff's deputies when it entered into a collective bargaining agreement (CBA) with the Seneca County Sheriff's Police Benevolent Association. We reject that contention. Plaintiff's rationale is that the CBA provides for indemnification of employees from judgments and settlements upon claims arising from actions taken within the scope of such employees' public employment and duties. We note, however, that a CBA is not a local law and, in any event, the language of the CBA here does not expressly provide that defendant will assume responsibility for the tortious acts of its Sheriff's deputies (see Santiamagro v. County of Orange, 226 A.D.2d 359, 359–360, 640 N.Y.S.2d 251 ; Nichols v. County of Rensselaer, 129 A.D.2d 167, 169–170, 517 N.Y.S.2d 315 ; cf. Barr, 50 N.Y.2d at 255–257, 428 N.Y.S.2d 665, 406 N.E.2d 481 ). We reject plaintiff's further contention that General Municipal Law § 50–j (1) renders defendant liable for the actions of its Sheriff's deputies (see Smelts, 306 A.D.2d at 873, 762 N.Y.S.2d 467 ).

Inasmuch as plaintiff asserted against defendant causes of action based only on respondeat superior, we conclude that the complaint "was properly dismissed against it because [defendant] did not assume liability for the acts of the Sheriff or his deputies, and plaintiff has alleged no other theory of liability against [defendant]" (id.; see D'Amico v. Correctional Med. Care, Inc., 120 A.D.3d 956, 959, 991 N.Y.S.2d 687 ; see also Kolko v. City of Rochester, 93 A.D.2d 977, 977–978, 461 N.Y.S.2d 650 ).

Contrary to plaintiff's further contention, we conclude that the court properly denied her motion seeking leave to amend her complaint to add respondent as a defendant. Plaintiff failed to establish that respondent and defendant are united in interest, and thus plaintiff is not entitled to the benefit of the relation back...