Snyder v. American Kennel Club
| Decision Date | 06 October 2009 |
| Docket Number | Civil Case No. 08-4094-SAC. |
| Citation | 661 F.Supp.2d 1219 |
| Parties | Dennis SNYDER and Audra Snyder, Plaintiffs, v. The AMERICAN KENNEL CLUB, Defendant. |
| Court | U.S. District Court — District of Kansas |
Paul D. Post, Topeka, KS, for Plaintiffs.
Brian P. Pezza, Philip Mackey, Lewis, Rice & Fingersh, LC, St. Louis, MO, Douglas C. McKenna, Scott A. Wissel, Lewis, Rice & Fingersh, LC, Kansas City, MO, for Defendant.
This case comes before the court on the defendant's motion to dismiss the second amended complaint or, in the alternative, for summary judgment (Dk. 40), and on the plaintiff's motion for partial summary judgment (Dk. 44). The American Kennel Club (AKC) is a national organization which regulates the breeding, registration and showing of purebred dogs within the United States. Plaintiffs are not members of the AKC, but are professional dog handlers who show dogs at AKC sanctioned events. Plaintiffs allege that the defendant intentionally interfered with their existing and prospective contracts by suspending them from participating in or showing dogs at AKC sanctioned shows and sponsored shows based on false allegations of cruelty and negligence, and that the defendant libeled them by publishing notices of their suspensions in the AKC newsletter. Plaintiffs seek actual and punitive damages, claiming that defendant's acts deprive them of their livelihood.
Plaintiffs' motion contends that they are entitled to partial summary judgment setting aside the AKC's findings that Dennis Snyder was guilty of cruelty and neglect and that Audra Snyder was guilty of cruelty. Defendant's motion seeks dismissal of or summary judgment on all of plaintiff's claims. An evidentiary hearing was previously held on the plaintiffs' motion for a preliminary injunction, thus the court is quite familiar with the facts of this case. For the reasons set forth below, the court grants the defendant's motion for summary judgment and denies all other motions.
Defendant's motion to dismiss
Defendant's motion seeks to dismiss the Second Amended Complaint for failure to state a claim for relief, pursuant to Fed.R. Civ.P. 12(b)(6). In the alternative, it seeks summary judgment on all claims.
Rule 12(d) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure teaches that "if, on a motion under Rule 12(b)(6) . . . matters outside the pleadings are presented to and not excluded by the court, the motion must be treated as one for summary judgment under Rule 56." This is such a case. Accordingly, this motion shall be treated as one for summary judgment and the court shall not determine whether the facts stated in support of the plaintiffs' claims in the second amended complaint are plausibly pleaded. See Bell Atlantic Corp. v. Twombly, 550 U.S. 544, 127 S.Ct. 1955, 1974, 167 L.Ed.2d 929 (2007); Robbins v. Oklahoma, 519 F.3d 1242 (10th Cir.2008).
On summary judgment, the initial burden is with the movant to point out the portions of the record which show that the movant is entitled to judgment as a matter of law. Thomas v. Wichita Coca-Cola Bottling Co., 968 F.2d 1022, 1024 (10th Cir.1992), cert. denied, 506 U.S. 1013, 113 S.Ct. 635, 121 L.Ed.2d 566 (1992). If this burden is met, the non-movant must set forth specific facts which would be admissible as evidence from which a rational fact finder could find in the non-movant's favor. Adler v. Wal-Mart Stores, Inc., 144 F.3d 664, 671 (10th Cir.1998). The non-movant must show more than some "metaphysical doubt" based on "evidence" and not "speculation, conjecture or surmise." Matsushita Elec. Indust. Co. v. Zenith Radio Corp., 475 U.S. 574, 587, 106 S.Ct. 1348, 89 L.Ed.2d 538 (1986); Bones v. Honeywell Intern., 366 F.3d 869, 875 (10th Cir.2004). The essential inquiry is "whether the evidence presents a sufficient disagreement to require submission to the jury or whether the evidence is so one-sided that one party must prevail as a matter of law." Anderson v. Liberty Lobby, 477 U.S. 242, 251-52, 106 S.Ct. 2505, 91 L.Ed.2d 202 (1986). In ruling on a motion for summary judgment, the nonmoving party's evidence "is to be believed, and all justifiable inferences are to be drawn in [that party's] favor." Anderson, 477 U.S. at 255, 106 S.Ct. 2505. At this stage, "[c]redibility determinations, the weighing of the evidence, and the drawing of legitimate inferences from the facts are jury functions, not those of a judge . . ." Anderson, 477 U.S. at 255, 106 S.Ct. 2505. However, "[w]here the record taken 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. See Pinkerton v. Colorado Dept. of Transp., 563 F.3d 1052, 1058 (10th Cir.2009).
The events giving rise to this case occurred at an AKC sanctioned dog show presented by the Muskogee Kennel Club in Shawnee, Oklahoma on Memorial Day weekend in 2005. The majority of the facts stated below were presented as sworn testimony at a disciplinary hearing held on June 6 and 7, 2007, by the Northwest Trial Board of the AKC, in which Audra Snyder was charged with cruelty and Dennis Snyder was charged with cruelty and neglect in relation to their handling of the dog, "Jag."1
Plaintiffs are experienced dog show handlers who intended to show a Golden Retriever called "Jag" on May 27-30th, 2005, at the AKC sanctioned dog show presented by the Muskogee Kennel Club. Audra Snyder showed Jag on the first day, Friday the 27th, in Dennis Snyder's absence, but Jag did not win. Instead, a Golden Retriever ("Jimmy") whom Jag had never beaten, won the breed and the sporting group on Friday. The number one Golden Retriever ("Murphy") was also at the show.
Dennis Snyder arrived at the dog show on Friday evening and initially intended to show Jag on Saturday. On Saturday, both Audra and Dennis Snyder were showing dogs and were very busy. After Jag was groomed, Dennis asked Nick Nelson, a fifteen-year-old who was working for the Snyders that weekend, to put Jag on the grooming table inside the dog containment area in the back of the Snyder's rig, which was separated from the family's living quarters by a bathroom. The dog area could be seen from the living quarters if the bathroom doors were open. Whether the doors were open or closed at the relevant time is disputed, as are other controlling facts.
In accordance with Dennis Snyder's instructions, Nick Nelson carried the grooming table inside, put Jag on it, and attached him to a noose secured to an arm of the table. The Snyder's eleven-year-old son, Kyle, was in the living quarters at the time watching his three younger siblings, one of whom was seven months old. As Dennis Snyder left the rig, he instructed Kyle to keep an eye on Jag. Dennis Snyder and Nick Nelson then left to show other dogs. Nick was to check on Jag, or bring him to the show ring when the time came.
Dennis Snyder testified that approximately five or six minutes after leaving the rig, he asked Donna Nelson to take a dog back to the trailer, and she did so. A minute or so later, Donna Nelson ran up to Dennis Snyder, who was at ring side, and told him about Jag. Upon hearing the news from Donna Nelson, Dennis Snyder immediately ran out of the exhibition hall. It is uncontested that Jag was left on the grooming table in a noose, without anyone in the dog containment area of the trailer to supervise him. Facts relating to Jag's physical condition thereafter are disputed.
Donna Nelson testified that when she took a dog back to the Snyder's trailer, as Dennis Snyder had requested, she saw Jag drooling, hanging "lifeless" from the noose on the back side of the grooming table. She shoved the dog she was attending into a crate, then worked to get the noose off Jag. When she finally succeeded, Jag dropped to the floor and did not move. She crawled underneath the table, felt Jag, and thought he was dead. She then ran to find Dennis Snyder and told him there was a dog down and that she did not think he was alive. Audra Snyder then came over and Donna told her that the dog was hanging lifeless from the noose and she thought it was dead.
Dennis Snyder testified that when he was ringside on Saturday, he learned that Jag had tough competition which he deemed to be unbeatable, so he decided not to show Jag for the remainder of the show. Sometime thereafter, Donna Nelson told him that a dog had fallen off the grooming table. He immediately ran from ringside to his trailer, opened the door, and saw Jag "standing there wagging his tail ready to go." The grooming table had fallen over, flat on its side. Dennis Snyder put Jag in his crate, but did not seek any assistance or consult a veterinarian for Jag because he did not believe any medical care was necessary.
Audra Snyder testified that she was in the ring showing another dog at the time Dennis ran out, which she found to be unusual. When Dennis returned to the show building he told her that he had left because Jag had fallen off the grooming table, but that Jag was fine. Later that day, Donna Nelson stopped by, asked how Jag was doing, and told Audra that she had found Jag hanging from the grooming table noose and had gotten him down. Audra asked if Jag was okay and Donna replied "yes." Audra then told Donna not to say anything to anyone about how she had found Jag. Audra told Donna "don't say anything" because "the whole situation, it just sounds bad" and disclosure would harm the Snyders' reputation. Jt. Exh. B, p. 608. Audra did not seek any assistance or consult a veterinarian for Jag because she did not believe any medical care was necessary.
Donna Nelson further testified that later in the day, she asked Audra how Jag was doing and Audra told her that Jag was fine, and told her not to say anything to anybody. Donna believed her,...
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