Salisbury v. Hickman

• Decision Date: 24 September 2013
• Docket Number: Case No. 1:12–cv–01098 LJO JLT.
• Citation: 974 F.Supp.2d 1282
• Parties: Laren SALISBURY, et al., Plaintiffs, v. Arthur E. HICKMAN, et al., Defendants.
• Court: U.S. District Court — Eastern District of California

974 F.Supp.2d 1282

Laren SALISBURY, et al., Plaintiffs,

v.Arthur E. HICKMAN, et al., Defendants.

Case No. 1:12–cv–01098 LJO JLT.

United States District Court, E.D. California.

Sept. 24, 2013.

Alfred Randal Hernandez, Mark Alan Roy, Greater Bakersfield Legal Assistance, Inc., Bakersfield, CA, Elizabeth Brancart, Christopher Brancart, Brancart & Brancart, Pescadero, CA, for Plaintiffs.

James J. Braze, Borton, Petrini, LLP, Bakersfield, CA, for Defendants.

ORDER ON THE PARTIES' MOTIONS FOR SUMMARY JUDGMENT

LAWRENCE J. O'NEILL, District Judge.

Before the Court are the parties' motions for summary judgment. Having carefully considered the parties' submissions and the record, and for all the reasons set forth below, the Court (1) GRANTS Plaintiff's motion for partial summary judgment and (2) GRANTS IN PART and DENIES IN PART Defendants' motion for summary judgment.

I. BACKGROUNDA. Factual Background

This case concerns allegations of sexual harassment and discrimination at Arrowhead Mobile Home Park (“Arrowhead”) in Ridgecrest, California.¹ The parties in this action are (1) Plaintiff Laren Salisbury (“Ms. Salisbury”), who has been a resident at Arrowhead since at least 2001; (2) Defendant Umberto Crimi (“Mr. Crimi”), who has been the on-site manager at Arrowhead since March 2012; (3) Defendant Joseph Termini (“Mr. Termini”), who does business as Charter Property Management and is contracted to manage Arrowhead; and (4) Defendants Arthur E. Hickman and Jacqueline Hickman (collectively “the Hickmans”), who own Arrowhead by way of a trust. The following facts are either undisputed or supported by admissible evidence that is viewed in the light most favorable to the party opposing summary judgment.

1. The First Incident

In the late morning of March 27, 2012, Ms. Salisbury walked her dogs by Mr. Crimi's mobile home en route to her mailbox. Mr. Crimi and his wife were the new on-site managers at Arrowhead. As Ms. Salisbury passed-by, Mr. Crimi called Ms. Salisbury's name to say hello. After shaking hands, Mr. Crimi indicated that he would like to talk with Ms. Salisbury, just the two of them. Ms. Salisbury thought nothing of the request and responded, “Well, you know where I live.” She then proceeded to walk to her mailbox.

An hour later, Mr. Crimi knocked on Ms. Salisbury's door. Ms. Salisbury invited Mr. Crimi to have a seat in her backyard. Once in the backyard, Mr. Crimi pulled up a chair close to the back steps. Mr. Crimi then grabbed Ms. Salisbury's hand and told her that he had “urges.” Ms. Salisbury stood up and pulled her hand back. Mr. Crimi, in turn, stood up and asked Ms. Salisbury if he could hold her in his arms. Ms. Salisbury pointed to Mr. Crimi's wedding ring and said, “This isn't going to happen.” As Ms. Salisbury attempted to back away, Mr. Crimi cornered her against the side of her mobile home and repeatedly said that he had “urges.”

The barking of Ms. Salisbury's dog momentarily diverted Mr. Crimi's attention, at which point Ms. Salisbury snuck around Mr. Crimi and went to her front gate so that she would be in public view. Mr. Crimi followed her and repeated that he had “urges.” Mr. Crimi also said, “If you will just let me in the back door.” Ms. Salisbury responded, “No, this is not going to happen” and “You are persistent, but this is not going to happen.”

Mr. Crimi eventually left. Ms. Salisbury went inside her home, locked the doors, and checked the windows. She then called two friends and told them what had just happened.

2. The Second Incident

Two days later, on March 29, 2012, Ms. Salisbury again walked her dogs to her mailbox. She believed that Mr. Crimi “got the message” that she was not interested in him because he did not bother her the day before. As Ms. Salisbury talked to her neighbor by the mailboxes, Mr. Crimi drove up to the mailboxes, looked at them, and then left.

A few hours later, Ms. Salisbury was sitting in the dining room table of her mobile home and was talking to her friend on the phone. When her dogs began barking loudly, Ms. Salisbury looked up and found Mr. Crimi standing in her kitchen. She asked what Mr. Crimi wanted. Mr. Crimi replied, “I came by your house earlier, your truck was in the driveway but I didn't hear your dogs. So I went to you back door, I turned the knob and it wasn't locked.” Mr. Crimi claimed that he did not actually go in her mobile home. Ms. Salisbury reiterated, “This not going to happen,” and tried to back away from Mr. Crimi. Mr. Crimi, in turn, kept advancing until Ms. Salisbury was pinned against the kitchen counter. Mr. Crimi was “right up against” Ms. Salisbury, but he did not touch her. He said, “If you'll just allow me to hold you in my arms and kiss you.” Mr. Crimi had a trance-like look on his face and kept talking about his “urges.”

Mr. Crimi's attention was diverted by the barking of Ms. Salisbury's dog, at which point Ms. Salisbury slipped out the back door. Instead of leaving altogether, Mr. Crimi went outside and sat in one of Ms. Salisbury's chairs in front of the mobile home. Hoping that he would leave, Ms. Salisbury sat in another chair and said, “This is not going to happen. I have to live here. You have to work here. It's not going to happen.” Mr. Crimi repeated that he had “urges.” He then asked Ms. Salisbury if she was going to tell his wife. After Mr. Crimi eventually left, Ms. Salisbury called her friend back, upset and crying.

When Ms. Salisbury went to her bedroom later that day, she noticed that one of her brassieres was not where she had left it. Instead of lying in a heap on her dresser, it was laid out. Ms. Salisbury suspected that Mr. Crimi had, in fact, entered her mobile home.

3. Legal Action

On March 31, 2012, Ms. Salisbury went to the police department and filed a complaint against Mr. Crimi. She also filed a civil harassment petition against him. On April 4, 2012, the Kern County Superior Court conducted a hearing on the matter and issued a three-year restraining order against Mr. Crimi. Despite the restraining order, Ms. Salisbury remains afraid that Mr. Crimi continues to watch her and may harass her.

B. Procedural History

Ms. Salisbury initiated this action on July 5, 2012. She asserts six claims in her complaint: (1) discriminatory housing practices in violation of the federal Fair Housing Act (“FHA”), 42 U.S.C. § 3601 et seq.; (2) unlawful housing practices in violation of California's Fair Employment and Housing Act (“FEHA”), Cal. Gov.Code §§ 12927, 12955 et seq.; (3) discrimination in violation of California's Unruh Civil Rights Act, Cal. Civ.Code §§ 51–52; (4) negligence; (5) breach of the covenant of quiet use and enjoyment; and (6) unlawful entry. As relief, Ms. Salisbury seeks damages, injunctive relief, and declaratory relief.

On August 5, 2013, the parties filed the pending motions for summary judgment. Defendants filed their opposition on August 28, 2013, and Ms. Salisbury filed her opposition on August 30, 2013. The parties filed replies on September 6, 2013.

II. LEGAL STANDARD

Summary judgment is appropriate when the pleadings, disclosure materials, discovery, and any affidavits provided establish that “there is no genuine dispute as to any material fact and the movant is entitled to judgment as a matter of law.” Fed.R.Civ.P. 56(a). A material fact is one that may affect the outcome of the case under the applicable law. See Anderson v. Liberty Lobby, Inc., 477 U.S. 242, 248, 106 S.Ct. 2505, 91 L.Ed.2d 202 (1986). A dispute is genuine “if the evidence is such that a reasonable trier of fact could return a verdict in favor of the nonmoving party.” Id.

The party seeking summary judgment “always bears the initial responsibility of informing the district court of the basis for its motion, and identifying those portions of the pleadings, depositions, answers to interrogatories, and admissions on file, together with the affidavits, if any, which it believes demonstrate the absence of a genuine issue of material fact.” Celotex Corp. v. Catrett, 477 U.S. 317, 323, 106 S.Ct. 2548, 91 L.Ed.2d 265 (1986) (internal quotationmarks omitted). The exact nature of this responsibility, however, varies depending on whether the issue on which summary judgment is sought is one in which the movant or the nonmoving party carries the ultimate burden of proof. See Soremekun v. Thrifty Payless, Inc., 509 F.3d 978, 984 (9th Cir.2007); Cecala v. Newman, 532 F.Supp.2d 1118, 1132 (D.Ariz.2007). If the movant will have the burden of proof at trial, it must demonstrate, with affirmative evidence, that “no reasonable trier of fact could find other than for the moving party.” Soremekun, 509 F.3d at 984. In contrast, if the nonmoving party will have the burden of proof at trial, “the movant can prevail merely by pointing out that there is an absence of evidence to support the nonmoving party's case.” Id. (citing Celotex, 477 U.S. at 323, 106 S.Ct. 2548).

If the movant satisfies its initial burden, the nonmoving party must go beyond the allegations in its pleadings to “show a genuine issue of material fact by presenting affirmative evidence from which a jury could find in [its] favor.” FTC v. Stefanchik, 559 F.3d 924, 929 (9th Cir.2009) (emphasis in the original). “[B]ald assertions or a mere scintilla of evidence” will not suffice in this respect. Id. at 929.See also Matsushita Electric Industrial Co. v. Zenith Radio Corp., 475 U.S. 574, 586, 106 S.Ct. 1348, 89 L.Ed.2d 538 (1986) (“When the moving party has carried its burden under Rule 56(c), its opponent must do more than simply show that there is some metaphysical doubt as to the material facts.”) (citation omitted). “Where the record as a whole could not lead a rational trier of fact to find for the nonmoving party, there is no ‘genuine issue for trial.’ ” Matsushita, 475 U.S. at 587, 106 S.Ct. 1348 (quoting First Nat'l Bank of Arizona v. Cities Serv. Co., 391 U.S. 253, 289, 88 S.Ct. 1575, 20 L.Ed.2d 569 (1968)).

In resolving a summary judgment motion, “the cour...