Morpurgo v. Incorporated Village of Sag Harbor

• Decision Date: 05 March 2010
• Docket Number: No. 07-CV-1149 (JS)(AKT).,07-CV-1149 (JS)(AKT).
• Citation: 697 F. Supp.2d 309
• Parties: Annselm MORPURGO, M.A., Plaintiff, v. The INCORPORATED VILLAGE OF SAG HARBOR, and Gregory N. Ferraris as appointed Mayor, Edward Deyermond as retiring elected Mayor, and J. Doe #1 through # N of the elected Board of Trustees, Sag Harbor Village Police and Thomas Fabiano as Police Chief, Police Officer Patrick Milazzo, Sag Harbor Village Buildings Department and Timothy Platt as Fire Marshal/Code Enforcer, and Building Inspector Albert Daniels as material witness, Suffolk County Water Authority and Paul Greenwood as Assistant Superintendent, Caleca & Towner, PC, Andrew T. Tower, Esq., John Jermain Memorial Library, Gregory N. Ferraris as President of the Board of Trustees, and J. Doe # 1 Through #N of the appointed or elected Board of Trustees, John Jermain Future Fund Gail Slevin and Gregory N. Ferraris, CPA, LLC, as Contacts, and J. Doe # 1 through # N as subscribers, Gail Slevin as Contact, Gregory N. Ferraris, Thomas Fabiano, Patrick Milazzo, Timothy Platt, Paul Greenwood, Christine Stanley also known as Helga Morpurgo, Andrew T. Towner, Esq., Michael A. Wolohojian, Peter Darrow, Other Persons J. Doe # 1 Through # N as other conspiring individuals upon Discovery, Ed Deyermond as retiring elected Mayor, Defendants.
• Court: U.S. District Court — Eastern District of New York

697 F. Supp.2d 309

Annselm MORPURGO, M.A., Plaintiff, v. The INCORPORATED VILLAGE OF SAG HARBOR, and Gregory N. Ferraris as appointed Mayor, Edward Deyermond as retiring elected Mayor, and J. Doe #1 through # N of the elected Board of Trustees, Sag Harbor Village Police and Thomas Fabiano as Police Chief, Police Officer Patrick Milazzo, Sag Harbor Village Buildings Department and Timothy Platt as Fire Marshal/Code Enforcer, and Building Inspector Albert Daniels as material witness, Suffolk County Water Authority and Paul Greenwood as Assistant Superintendent, Caleca & Towner, PC, Andrew T. Tower, Esq., John Jermain Memorial Library, Gregory N. Ferraris as President of the Board of Trustees, and J. Doe # 1 Through #N of the appointed or elected Board of Trustees, John Jermain Future Fund Gail Slevin and Gregory N. Ferraris, CPA, LLC, as Contacts, and J. Doe # 1 through # N as subscribers, Gail Slevin as Contact, Gregory N. Ferraris, Thomas Fabiano, Patrick Milazzo, Timothy Platt, Paul Greenwood, Christine Stanley also known as Helga Morpurgo, Andrew T. Towner, Esq., Michael A. Wolohojian, Peter Darrow, Other Persons J. Doe # 1 Through # N as other conspiring individuals upon Discovery, Ed Deyermond as retiring elected Mayor, Defendants.

No. 07-CV-1149 (JS)(AKT).

United States District Court, E.D. New York.

March 5, 2010.

Annselm Morpurgo, M.A., Sag Harbor, NY, pro se.

David H. Arntsen, Devitt Spellman Barrett, Smithtown, NY, Patrick Brian Fife, Twomey Latham Shea Kelley Dubin & Quartararo LLP, Riverhead, NY, Andrew Taras Towner, Caleca and Towner, PC, East Hampton, NY, Wade Thomas Dempsey, Hammill, O'Brien, Croutier, Dempsey, Pender & Koehler, Syosset, NY, Nica B. Strunk, Esseks Hefter & Angel, Riverhead, NY, Richard A. Spehr, Sharon Alise Sandell, Meyer Brown LLP, New York, NY, for Defendants.

Christine Stanley, East Hampton, NY, pro se.

MEMORANDUM & ORDER

SEYBERT, District Judge:

On March 19, 2007, pro se Plaintiff, Annselm Morpurgo ("Morpurgo") commenced this action. By Order dated July 27, 2009, this Court referred the case in its entirety to Magistrate Judge A. Kathleen Tomlinson for issuance of a Report and Recommendation ("R & R") on the then-pending motions. Judge Tomlinson issued her R & R on February 17, 2009, and it was served on Plaintiff two days later. On March 2, 2010, within the deadline for submitting objections, Plaintiff filed her objection with the Court.

"When evaluating the report and recommendation of a magistrate judge, the district court may adopt those portions of the report to which no objections have been made and which are not facially erroneous." Walker v. Vaughan, 216 F.Supp.2d 290, 291 (S.D.N.Y.2002) (citation omitted). However, if a party serves and files specific, written objections to a magistrate's report and recommendation within ten days of receiving the recommended disposition, see FED. R. CIV. P. 72(b), the district "court may accept, reject, or modify, in whole or in part, the findings and recommendations made by the magistrate judge." 28 U.S.C. § 636(b)(1)(C); see also FED. R. CIV. P. 72(b). When a party raises an objection to a magistrate judge's report, "the court is required to conduct a de novo review of the contested sections." See Pizarro v. Bartlett, 776 F.Supp. 815, 817 (S.D.N.Y.1991). However, "when a party makes only conclusory or general objections, or simply reiterates his original arguments, the Court reviews the Report and Recommendation only for clear error." Barratt v. Joie, 2002 WL 335014, at *1, 2002 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 3453, at *2 (citations omitted).

In this case, Plaintiffs objections are conclusory at best. Such objections are insufficient to warrant this Court's de novo review of the R & R. Thus, the Court reviews the R & R for clear error. Upon careful review and consideration, the Court ADOPTS the R & R in its entirety, finding no clear error in its recommendations. Accordingly, Defendants' motions to dismiss are GRANTED. Plaintiff's Amended Complaint is hereby DISMISSED in its entirety. Sag Harbor Defendants' motion to revoke Plaintiff's in forma pauperis status is, therefore, moot. The Clerk of the Court is directed to mark this matter CLOSED and to mail a copy of this Order to the Plaintiff.

SO ORDERED.

REPORT AND RECOMMENDATION

A. KATHLEEN TOMLINSON, United States Magistrate Judge:

I. PRELIMINARY STATEMENT

Before the Court are various Defendants' motions to dismiss which have been referred to me by Judge Seybert for a Report and Recommendation. The Motions to Dismiss and this case as a whole are set against the backdrop of a related state court action, Helga Morpurgo a/k/a Christine Stanley v. Annselm Morpurgo, a/k/a Anna Selma Vinjie Morpurgo, individually and d/b/a Sag Habor Art Center, Sag Habor Savings Bank, Household Finance Corp., Discovery Bank and John C. Cochrane as the Treasurer of Suffolk County, Index No. 2003-5554 (N.Y. Supreme Ct., Suffolk County) (the "State Action"). Both the State Action and the instant case concern the respective rights of two sisters, Helga Morpurgo and Plaintiff Annselm Morpurgo, to a certain property located at 6 Union Street, Sag Harbor, New York (the "Property"), which Plaintiff alleges is her sole residence. Am. Compl. at 3.

In the Amended Complaint DE 4 filed in this action, Plaintiff alleges violations of her constitutional rights pursuant to 42 U.S.C. §§ 1983 and 1985 by the following Defendants: The Incorporated Village of Sag Harbor; Sag Harbor Village Police; Sag Harbor Village Buildings Department; J. Doe # 1 through # N of the elected or acting Board of Trustees; Suffolk County Water Authority ("SCWA"); Caleca & Towner, P.C.; John Jermain Memorial Library; John Jermain Future Fund; Gail Slevin; J. Doe # 1 through # N as subscribers to the Fund; Christine Stanley (a.k.a. Helga Morpurgo); Michael A. Wolohojian; Peter Darrow; Andrew Towner, Esq.; and Albert Daniels (as material witness). Plaintiff also sues the following individuals in their official and individual capacities: Gregory N. Ferraris (as appointed Mayor of the Village, President of the Library Board of Trustees, and Gregory N. Ferraris, CPA, LLC as "Contact" of the Fund); Thomas Fabiano (Police Chief); Patrick Milazzo (Police Officer); Timothy Platt (Fire Marshal/Code Enforcer); Paul Greenwood (as Assistant Superintendent of the SCWA); and Ed Deyermond (as retiring elected Mayor of the Village).

Based upon the documentary evidence, written submissions and the applicable case law, I respectfully recommend that the respective Defendants' motions to dismiss be GRANTED.

II. BACKGROUND

A. Factual Background

The following facts are taken from the Amended Complaint and are not findings of fact by the Court. Rather, they are assumed to be true for purposes of deciding these motions and are construed in the light most favorable to Plaintiff, the non-moving party. See LaFaro v. New York Cardiothoracic Group, PLLC, 570 F.3d 471, 475 (2d Cir.2009). Because Plaintiff is proceeding pro se, the Court construes the Amended Complaint broadly and interprets it to raise the strongest arguments that it suggests. See Hughes v. Rowe, 449 U.S. 5, 9, 101 S.Ct. 173, 66 L.Ed.2d 163 (1980); Weixel v. Bd. of Educ. of the City of New York, 287 F.3d 138, 145-46 (2d Cir.2002).

According to Plaintiff, this case arises out of "actions committed by Officials of The Incorporated Village of Sag Harbor, and the Sag Harbor Village Police and other persons acting under color of law in violation of 42 U.S.C. Section 1983 in concert and/or conspiracy with, and in sympathy with, the private interests of neighbors and predatory real estate developers," including Trustees of the John Jermain Memorial Library and subscribers to the John Jermain Memorial Fund, and by Plaintiff's sister, Defendant Helga Morpurgo and her attorneys, Caleca & Towner, "to violate Plaintiff's First, Fourth, Fifth and Fourteenth Amended Rights and to deprive Plaintiff of all her civil rights and property without due process." Am. Compl. at 3. In sum, Plaintiff alleges that the Defendants are conspiring to force her out of her home so that the Property can be used for the not-for-profit entity which is currently located next door.

1. The Property And The Savant Garde Institute

Plaintiff is the landlord of and resides on the Property, which is a ten bedroom, eight-unit apartment house. Id. at 4, 10. The Property is "landmarkable, though still unlandmarked" and has been identified "as an authentic Federalist Italianate post-and-beam 10-bedroom townhouse or lodge built circa 1770." Id. at 10. Plaintiff believes that "because of its fundraising value at a Charities Auction as a Trophy Collectible . . . it's Trophy value may be in the high multimillions. . . ." Id. Plaintiff identifies herself as a "celebrity owner and professional in the arts and sciences" (id.), as well as the "Founder and Manager" of a not-for-profit educational foundation, The Savant Garde Institute, which maintains offices on the Property. Id. at 3-4. The Property also serves as a "faculty residence under net lease" for the Savant Garde Institute. Id. The Savant Garde Institute "is attempting to raise funds to create a Cultural Center on the property that would also benefit the Library next door." Id. at 4. Alternatively, Plaintiff states that the Savant Garde Institute "is seeking to create an Art Center and rehabilitated residence for Plaintiff, Founder and Tenant in Common." Id.

2. The Library And The Fund

The John Jermain Memorial Library ("Library"), which is supported by the John Jermain Future Fund ("Fund"), is located on property adjacent to Plaintiff's Property (id. at 3), and is a "rival not-for-profit foundation" with the Savant Garde Institute (id. at 4), according to Plaintiff. Plaintiff alleges that members of the Library's Board of Trustees and subscribers to the Fund, as well as residents of Sag Harbor, are conspiring with the other Defendants to force Plaintiff to sell her Property at a...