Masterson v. Meade County Fiscal Court

• Citation: 489 F.Supp.2d 740
• Decision Date: 05 February 2007
• Docket Number: No. 3:03cv-530-R.,3:03cv-530-R.
• Parties: David MASTERSON, et. al., Plaintiffs v. MEADE COUNTY FISCAL COURT, et. al., Defendants.
• Court: U.S. District Court — Western District of Kentucky

489 F.Supp.2d 740

David MASTERSON, et. al., Plaintiffs v. MEADE COUNTY FISCAL COURT, et. al., Defendants.

No. 3:03cv-530-R.

United States District Court, W.D. Kentucky, Louisville Division.

February 5, 2007.

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Fred R. Radolovich, Louisville, KY, for Plaintiffs.

Jonathan A. Rabinowitz, Robert Keith Bond, Coleman Lochmiller & Bond, Elizabethtown, KY, for Defendants.

MEMORANDUM OPINION

RUSSELL, District Judge.

This matter comes before the Court on the Defendants' Motion to Dismiss and/or Motion for Summary Judgment (Docket # 53). The Plaintiffs, David Masterson ("Masterson"), Scott Davis ("Davis"), and Morris Phillips ("Phillips") have responded (Docket # 62). This matter is now ripe for adjudication. For the following reasons, the Defendants' Motion to Dismiss and/or Motion for Summary Judgment is GRANTED.

BACKGROUND

The Plaintiffs in this matter allege numerous claims against the Defendants, which include: violation of the Plaintiffs' Constitutional rights of free speech, religion, privacy, due process, equal protection, and freedom from confiscation of property without just compensation; violation of 42 U.S.C. § 1983; violation of the Racketeering and Corrupt Organizations Act ("RICO"), 18 U.S.C. § 1961, et. seq., through the commission of mail and wire fraud; and violations of the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, 15 U.S.C. § 1601, et. seq. The Defendants include several individual officials and government entities within Meade County, Kentucky. The suit has been brought against the individuals in both their individual and official capacities. Specifically, the Plaintiffs base their claims on an ordinance (830.10) upon which the Meade County Solid Waste District ("MCSWD") operates, arguing that the actions of the Defendants violate their rights. The Plaintiffs allege that the Defendants have exempted certain parts of Meade County from the jurisdiction of MCSWD, but continue to collect fees from those not receiving services based upon property ownership taxes. In addition, the Plaintiffs contend that the Defendants, acting alone or in concert, used their offices to commit criminal acts, including mail fraud and wire fraud. Further, the Plaintiffs assert that the Defendants: unfairly rewarded friends and political allies; assisted friends by preventing the enforcement of certain ordinances; collected funds and fees in a disparate manner or through coerciveness; and improperly confiscated payments and property to which they are not entitled.

STANDARD

"When considering a motion to dismiss pursuant to Rule 12(b)(6) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, the district court must accept all of the allegations in the complaint as true, and construe the complaint liberally in favor of the plaintiff." Lawrence v. Chancery Court of Tenn., 188 F.3d 687, 691 (6th Cir.1999) (citing Miller v. Currie, 50 F.3d 373, 377 (6th Cir.1995)). Denial of the motion is proper "unless it can be established beyond a doubt that the plaintiff can prove no set of facts in support of his claim which would entitle him to relief." Achterhof v. Selvaggio, 886 F.2d 826, 831 (6th Cir.1989) (citing Conley v. Gibson, 355 U.S. 41, 45-46, 78 S.Ct. 99, 2 L.Ed.2d 80 (1957)). Nonetheless, unwarranted factual inferences or legal conclusions masquerading as fact will not prevent a motion to dismiss. Blakely v. United States, 276 F.3d 853, 863 (6th Cir. 2002). A "complaint must contain either direct or inferential allegations respecting all the material elements to sustain a recovery under some viable legal theory." Andrews v. Ohio, 104 F.3d 803, 806 (6th Cir.1997) (citing In re DeLorean Motor Co., 991 F.2d 1236, 1240 (6th Cir.1993)).

Summary judgment is available under Fed.R.Civ.P. 56(c) if the moving party can establish that the "pleadings, depositions, answer to interrogatories, and admissions on file, together with the affidavits, if any, show that there is no genuine issue of material fact and that the moving party is entitled to judgment as a matter of law." In determining whether summary judgment is appropriate, a court must resolve all ambiguities and draw all reasonable inferences against the moving party. See Matsushita Elec. Indus. Co. v. Zenith Radio Corp., 475 U.S. 574, 587, 106 S.Ct. 1348, 89 L.Ed.2d 538 (1986).

"[N]ot every issue of fact or conflicting inference presents a genuine issue of material fact." Street v. Bradford & Co., 886 F.2d 1472, 1477 (6th Cir.1989). The test is "whether the party bearing the burden of proof has presented a jury question as to each element in the case." Hartsel v. Keys, 87 F.3d 795, 799 (6th Cir.1996). The plaintiff must present more than a mere scintilla of evidence. To support this position, he/she must present evidence on which the trier of fact could find for the plaintiff. See id. (citing Anderson v. Liberty Lobby, 477 U.S. 242, 251-52, 106 S.Ct. 2505, 91 L.Ed.2d 202 (1986)). Mere speculation will not suffice to defeat a motion for summary judgment: "[t]he mere existence of a colorable factual dispute will not defeat a properly supported motion for summary judgment. A genuine dispute between the parties on an issue of material fact must exist to render summary judgment inappropriate." Monette v. Electronic Data Systems Corp., 90 F.3d 1173, 1177 (6th Cir.1996). Finally, while Kentucky state law is applicable to this case pursuant to Erie Railroad v. Tompkins, 304 U.S. 64, 58 S.Ct. 817, 82 L.Ed. 1188 (1938), a federal court in a diversity action applies the standards of Fed.R.Civ.P. 56, not "Kentucky's summary judgment standard as expressed in Steelvest, Inc. v. Scansteel Serv. Ctr., Inc., 807 S.W.2d 476 (1991)." Gafford v. General Electric Co., 997 F.2d 150, 165 (6th Cir. 1993).

DISCUSSION

The Defendants argue that there are four (4) reasons why the Court should dismiss the claims of the Plaintiff and/or grant summary judgment. First, the Defendants assert that the Plaintiffs have failed to plead the claim of mail fraud and wire fraud under RICO with particularity as mandated by FRCP 9(b); second, the Plaintiffs failed to sufficiently allege a RICO violation; third, the Plaintiffs failed to allege any specific charges in regards to their claims under 42 U.S.C. § 1983; and fourth, the Plaintiffs have not alleged appropriate facts to prove a violation of the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act. The Court will address each of these arguments individually.

1. Particularity of the Plaintiffs' Claims of Mail and/or Wire Fraud under RICO

FRCP 9(b) states that: "[i]n all averments of fraud or mistake, the circumstances constituting fraud or mistake shall be stated with particularity. Malice, intent, knowledge, and other condition of mind of a person may be averred generally." As applied to RICO, the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals has determined that RICO plaintiffs must allege in their complaints "the time, place and contents of the misrepresentations on which he or she relied; the fraudulent scheme; the fraudulent intent of the defendants; and the injury resulting from the fraud." United States ex rel. Bledsoe v. Cmty. Health Sys., Inc., 342 F.3d 634, 643 (6th Cir.2003). This requires a plaintiff to describe specific acts of the fraud within the pleadings. Leeds v. City of Muldraugh, Meade County, KY, 174 Fed. Appx. 251, 254 (6th Cir. 2006).

In Bledsoe, the Sixth Circuit affirmed the decision of the district court in finding that the plaintiff had not sufficiently pled its fraud claim with particularity. Bledsoe, 342 F.3d at 643. The Court noted that the plaintiff failed to set forth dates as to the various claims of improper billing, and failed to list the names of individuals involved. Id. The Court held that the plaintiff had not provided explicit details to identify what each defendant engaged in to amount to fraudulent conduct. Id. The Court reasoned that "the amended complaint often states that `Defendants' engaged in certain practices, without ever specifying the defendants to which it was referring ... [a] [fraud] complaint `may not rely upon blanket references to acts or omissions by all of the "defendants," for each defendant named in the complaint is entitled to be apprised of the circumstances surrounding the fraudulent conduct with which he individually stands charged.'" Id.; see also Yuhasz v. Brush Wellman, Inc., 341 F.3d 559, 564 (6th Cir.2003)(holding that a complaint that fails to identify specific parties who committed fraudulent acts requires dismissal under FRCP 9(b)).

In the instant case, the Plaintiffs' complaint and more definite statement do not meet the particularity requirement as set forth in FRCP 9(b). In the complaint, paragraphs 21 and 22 indicate that the Plaintiffs allege the Defendants' activities have taken place and continue to take place in Meade County, Kentucky. In addition, paragraph 22 notes that the Plaintiffs believe the activities by the Defendants affect interstate commerce. Meanwhile, paragraphs 26-32 provide some detail concerning the alleged mail and wire fraud activities of the Defendants. Those paragraphs generally note the schemes that the Defendants allegedly use, as well as the means by which the Defendants act upon their illegal activities, by use of the United States Postal Service to send out their bills, and through contacts with local media outlets to eliminate criticism. Paragraphs 31 and 32 indicate the general injuries sustained by the alleged fraudulent actions, and state that the Plaintiffs seek a financial sum greater than the jurisdictional minimum. The more definite statement claims that the Defendants committed wire fraud through the use of the telephone, fax, and email, and mail fraud through the United States Postal Service.

However, similar to Bledsoe, nowhere within the complaint and more definite statement do the Plaintiffs identify with particularity the individual Defendants who...