Sanchez Ramos v. Puerto Rico Police Dept.

• Decision Date: 20 September 2005
• Docket Number: No. Civ.03-2043 DRD.,Civ.03-2043 DRD.
• Citation: 392 F.Supp.2d 167
• Parties: Manuel SANCHEZ RAMOS, Plaintiff, v. PUERTO RICO POLICE DEPARTMENT, et al., Defendants.
• Court: U.S. District Court — District of Puerto Rico

392 F.Supp.2d 167

Manuel SANCHEZ RAMOS, Plaintiff, v. PUERTO RICO POLICE DEPARTMENT, et al., Defendants.

No. Civ.03-2043 DRD.

United States District Court, D. Puerto Rico.

September 20, 2005.

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Carlos Fernandez-Nadal, Ponce, PR, Mauricio Hernandez-Arroyo, Mauricio Hernandez Arroyo Law Office, Ponce, PR, for Plaintiff.

Jo-Ann E stades-Boyer and Maria Eugenia Villares-Seneriz, Department of Justice, San Juan, PR, for Defendants.

OPINION & ORDER

DOMINGUEZ, District Judge.

The above captioned case is a discrimination claim filed pursuant to the provisions of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, as amended, 42 U.S.C. § 2000e et seq.; 42 U.S.C. §§ 1983, and 1988; the Fifth and Fourteenth Amendments of the Constitution of the United States; Puerto Rico Law 115 of December 20, 1991, as amended, and other State Supplemental claims under 29 P.R. Laws Ann. § 194; and Articles 1802 and 1803 of the Puerto Civil Code, 31 P.R. Laws Ann. §§ 5141, and 5142. In sum, Plaintiff is seeking several equitable, compensatory, and punitive remedies, to wit: 1) declare that the acts and practices of the Police Department of Puerto Rico to be in violation of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, and of 42 U.S.C. §§ 1983, and 1988; 2) declare that the acts and practices complained of are in violation of Puerto Rico Law 100 of June 30, 1959, as amended, 29 P.R. Laws Ann. § 146; Puerto Rico Law 115, supra; and Articles 1802, and 1803 of the Puerto Rico Civil Code, supra.; 3) declare that Defendants' acts and practices deprived Plaintiff of his federal rights as guaranteed by the Constitution of the United States and the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico; 4) punitive damages in the amount of at least $300,000.00 as provided by Title VII, supra; 5) appropriate reimbursement for medical expenses and special damages; 6) costs including reasonable attorney's fees as provided by Section 706 of Title VII, 29 P.R. Laws Ann. § 155k, and 42 U.S.C. § 1988; 7) direct co-Defendant to pay Plaintiff compensatory damages for mental anguish pain, suffering, and humiliation in the sum of at least $1,500,000.00, and a sum equal to double the damages suffered by Plaintiff for violation of 29 P.R. Laws Ann. § 194, in an amount not less than $3,000,000.00; 8) direct co-Defendant Rodriguez to pay Plaintiff compensatory and punitive damages for his mental anguish, pain, suffering, and humiliation in the sum of at least $1,500,000.00; 9) direct Defendants to pay Plaintiff damages for loss of enjoyment of life in the sum of at least $1,000,000.00 in addition to the compensatory damages claimed above; 10) prejudgment interests; and 11) any other additional relief that the Court may deem appropriate and just.

The relevant procedural history of the case is as follows: on September 19, 2000, Plaintiff filed a discrimination charge against the Police Department of Puerto Rico before the Anti-Discrimination Unit of the Department of Labor of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico pursuant to Section 503 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973. Said complaint was later referred to the United States Equal Opportunity Commission (EEOC), New York District Office. The EEOC, New York Office, then referred the case to the San Juan District Office. Subsequently, on April 18, 2003, Plaintiff requested from the EEOC a "right to sue" letter. Thus, the matter was referred to the United States Department of Justice, Civil Rights Division. On June 26, 2003, the United States Department of Justice, Civil Rights Division issued the requested "right to sue" letter, postmarked on that same date. Finally, on September 25, 2003, Plaintiff filed the instant claim before this Court.

Pending before the Court is defendants, Puerto Rico Police Department and Victor Rodriguez-Velez's Motion to Dismiss pursuant to Fed.R.Civ.P. 12(b)(6). (Docket No. 15). Defendants aver that dismissal is appropriate because the cause of action under Title VII, 42 U.S.C. § 1983 is time barred, the due process claims lack merit, and, thus, supplemental jurisdiction should not be asserted. Plaintiff, then requested an extension of time to file their opposition to Defendants' request, and the Court, even though the request was untimely pursuant to Local Rule 7.1(b), granted Plaintiff s request and provided him until Friday, July 30, 2004 to file his opposition. (Docket No. 18). However, Plaintiff disregarded the Court's gratuitous gesture and proceeded to file his opposition in an untimely fashion on Saturday, July 31, 2004. (Docket No. 19). Accordingly, the Court will now consider Defendants' unopposed request for dismissal.¹

I. MOTION TO DISMISS UNDER RULE 12(b)(6)

Under Rule 12(b)(6) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, a party may, in response to an initial pleading, file a motion to dismiss the complaint for failure to state a claim upon which relief may be granted. It is well-settled, however, that "a complaint should not be dismissed for failure to state a claim unless it appears beyond doubt that the Plaintiff can prove no set of facts in support of his claim which would entitle him to relief." Conley v. Gibson, 355 U.S. 41, 45-46, 78 S.Ct. 99, 102, 2 L.Ed.2d 80 (1957); see also Ronald C. Brown v. Hot, Sexy, and Safer Productions, Inc., 68 F.3d 525 (1st Cir.1995); Miranda v. Ponce Fed. Bank, 948 F.2d 41, 44 (1st Cir.1991). The Court must accept as true all well pleaded factual averments contained in the complaint, while, at the same time, drawing all reasonable inferences from the allegation in favor of the Plaintiff. See McDonald v. Santa Fe Trail Transp. Co., 427 U.S. 273, 276, 96 S.Ct. 2574, 2577, 49 L.Ed.2d 493 (1976); Berrios v. Bristol Myers Squibb Caribbean Corp., 51 F.Supp.2d 61 (D.P.R.1999); Aulson v. Blanchard, 83 F.3d 1, 3 (1st Cir. 1996); Vartanian v. Monsanto Co., 14 F.3d 697, 700 (1st Cir.1994); Correa-Martinez v. Arrillaga-Belendez, 903 F.2d 49, 51 (1st Cir.1990); Dartmouth Review v. Dartmouth College, 889 F.2d 13, 16 (1st Cir.1989). However, "because only well pleaded facts are taken as true, we will not accept a complainant's unsupported conclusions or interpretations of law." Washington Legal Foundation v. Massachusetts Bar Foundation, 993 F.2d 962, 971 (1st Cir.1993).

When opposing a Rule 12(b)(6) motion to dismiss, "a, Plaintiff cannot expect a trial court to do his homework for him." McCoy v. Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 950 F.2d 13, 22 (1st Cir. 1991). Rather, the Plaintiff has an affirmative responsibility to put his best foot forward in an effort to present a legal theory that will support his claim. Id. at 23, citing Correa-Martinez, 903 F.2d at 52. Thus, Plaintiff must set forth "factual allegations, either direct or inferential, regarding each material element necessary to sustain recovery under some actionable theory." Romero-Barcelo v. Hernandez-Agosto, 75 F.3d 23, 28 n. 2 (1st Cir.1996) (quoting Gooley v. Mobil Oil Corp., 851 F.2d 513, 514 (1st Cir.1988)). In sum a claim shall be dismissed under Rule 12(b)(6) only if it appears beyond doubt that the pleader can prove no set of facts in support of the claim that would entitle the pleader to relief. Conley v. Gibson, 355 U.S. at 45-46, 78 S.Ct. 99.

Notwithstanding, the Court is not obligated to accept Plaintiff's "bald assertions, unsupportable conclusions, periphrastic circumlocutions, and the like." Aulson, 83 F.3d at 3. The Court must only accept those facts that are "well pleaded," limiting its inquiry into the allegations of the complaint. Litton Indus., Inc. v. Colon, 587 F.2d 70, 74 (1st Cir.1978). In sum, the Court's focus should always be on "whether a liberal reading of [the complaint] can reasonably admit of a claim[.]" Id.; see also Rogan v. Menino, 175 F.3d 75 (1st Cir.1999).

A district court's dismissal of a claim under Rule 12(b)(6) is reviewed de novo by the appeals court; as such court, the Court of Appeals "accept[s] as true all well-pleaded factual averments and indulg[es] all reasonable inferences in the Plaintiff's favor." Calderon-Ortiz v. La-Boy-Alvarado, 300 F.3d 60, 62-63 (1st Cir. 2002); SEC v. SG Ltd., 265 F.3d 42, 46 (1st Cir.2001). Accordingly, "if the facts contained in the complaint, viewed in this favorable light, justify recovery under any applicable legal theory", any order of dismissal shall be set aside. Calderon Ortiz, 300 F.3d at 63; quoting, Conley v. Gibson, 355 U.S. at 45-46, 78 S.Ct. 99; Aulson, 83 F.3d at 3.

Finally, "it is well established that affirmative defenses [such as time prescription] may be raised in a motion to dismiss an action for failure to state a claim". Blackstone Realty LLC v. FDIC, 244 F.3d 193, 197 (1st Cir.2001); LaChapelle v. Berkshire Life Ins. Co., 142 F.3d 507, 509 (1st Cir.1998)("In the case of the affirmative defense of statute of limitations, dismissal is entirely appropriate when the pleader's allegations leave no doubt that an asserted claim is time barred".); Aldahonda-Rivera v. Parke Davis and Company, 882 F.2d 590, 592 (1st Cir.1989)("When a Defendant raises an affirmative defense that is obvious on the face of Plaintiff's pleadings, and the court makes the ruling based only on those pleadings, the motion is treated as a Rule 12(b)(6) motion to dismiss"). In cases in which the affirmative defense is based on the statute of limitations, the Court may grant a motion to dismiss if the pleader's allegations leave no doubt that the asserted claim is time-barred. See, Street v. Vose, 936 F.2d 38, 39 (1st Cir.1991); Kali Seafood Inc. v. Howe Corp., 887 F.2d 7, 9 (1st Cir.1989). See also Estate of Alicano Ayala v. Philip Morris, Inc., 263 F.Supp.2d 311, 315 (D.P.R.2003).

II. DISCUSSION

In the motion to dismiss, Defendants allege that this Court lacks jurisdiction over the 42 U.S.C. § 2000e claims because the ninety-day (90) limitation period for bringing a Title VII action after receipt of the right to sue letter in the federal forum was not complied by Plaintiff....