St. v. Wylie Funeral Homes
| Decision Date | 28 June 2022 |
| Docket Number | Civil Action RDB-21-1970 |
| Parties | DEMETRA STREET, PLAINTIFF, v. WYLIE FUNERAL HOME, P.A., et al., DEFENDANTS. |
| Court | U.S. District Court — District of Maryland |
Plaintiff Demetra Street (“Plaintiff” or “Ms Street”), a resident of Virginia, brings this action against Defendants Wylie Funeral Home, P.A.; Wylie Funeral Home, P.A. of Baltimore County (together, the “Funeral Home”); and Albert P. Wylie; Brandon M. Wylie; Devin B Conner; and Tuverla T. Livingston (collectively, the “individual Defendants”) alleging that they buried the body of her late husband Ivan T. Street (“Mr. Street”) instead of cremating his remains as they were contractually obligated to do. Plaintiff further alleges that Defendants lied to her by representing that Mr Street's body had been cremated, produced to her a funerary urn that purportedly contained the remains of Mr. Street, and hosted a memorial service in Mr. Street's honor at which they displayed that empty funerary urn. Plaintiff's Complaint raises the following claims: breach of contract (Count One); negligence (Count Two); gross negligence (Count Three); malicious fraud (Count Four); misrepresentation (Count Five); unfair or deceptive practices in violation of the Maryland Consumer Protection Act (“MCPA”), Md Code Ann., Com. Law, § 13-301, et seq. (Count Six); and intentional infliction of emotional distress (Count Seven). She seeks over $8 million in compensatory and punitive damages. The jurisdiction of this Court is predicated on diversity of citizenship pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1332. Presently pending is the Defendants' Motion to Dismiss for Failure to State a Claim. (ECF No. 5.) The parties' submissions have been reviewed, and no hearing is necessary. See Local Rule 105.6 (D. Md. 2021). For the reasons that follow, the Defendants' Motion to Dismiss (ECF No. 5) is GRANTED IN PART AND DENIED IN PART. Specifically, it is GRANTED with respect to all claims against Defendant Livingston, which shall be DISMISSED WITH PREJUDICE. It is also GRANTED with respect to Plaintiff's breach of contract claims against the individual Defendants but DENIED with respect to the breach of contract claim against the Funeral Home. The Defendants' Motion is DENIED with respect to Plaintiff's claims for negligence, gross negligence, unfair or deceptive practices, and intentional infliction of emotional distress against Conner, Albert Wylie, Brandon Wylie, and the Funeral Home. Finally, the Defendants' Motion is GRANTED with respect to Plaintiffs' fraud and misrepresentation claims against Albert Wylie and Brandon Wylie and DENIED with respect to the fraud and misrepresentation claims against Conner and the Funeral Home.
This case shall proceed as to Plaintiff's breach of contract claim (Count One) against the Funeral Home; negligence (Count Two) and gross negligence (Count Three) claims against Conner, Albert Wylie, Brandon Wylie, and the Funeral Home; fraud (Count Four) and misrepresentation (Count Five) claims against Conner and the Funeral Home; unfair or deceptive practices claim (Count Six) against Conner, Albert Wylie, Brandon Wylie, and the Funeral Home; and intentional infliction of emotional distress (Count Seven) claim against Conner, Albert Wylie, Brandon Wylie, and the Funeral Home.
In ruling on a motion to dismiss, this Court “accept[s] as true all well-pleaded facts in a complaint and construe[s] them in the light most favorable to the plaintiff.” Wikimedia Found. v. Nat'l Sec. Agency, 857 F.3d 193, 208 (4th Cir. 2017) (citing SD3, LLC v. Black & Decker (U.S.) Inc., 801 F.3d 412, 422 (4th Cir. 2015)). Plaintiff Demetra Street is the widow of Ivan Tyrone Street. ) She is a resident of Virginia. Defendant Wylie Funeral Home, P.A. (“Mount Street Home”) is a Maryland professional corporation with its principal office located in Baltimore, Maryland. (¶2.) Defendant Wylie Funeral Home, P.A. of Baltimore County (“Randallstown Home”) is a Maryland professional corporation with is principal office located in Baltimore, Maryland. (¶3.) Mount Street Home and Randallstown Home operate as one enterprise with two business locations and hold themselves out to the public as a single business entity (the “Funeral Home”). (¶4.) Defendant Albert P. Wylie is a Maryland citizen who is the founder, owner, and principal of the Funeral Home. (¶5.) Defendant Brandon M. Wylie is a Maryland citizen and a co-owner of the Funeral Home. (¶6.) Defendant Devin B. Conner is a Maryland citizen and, at all relevant times, was an employee of the Funeral Home. (¶ 7.) Defendant Tuverla Livingston is a Maryland citizen and, at all relevant times, was an employee of the Funeral Home. (¶8.)
Ms. Street married her late husband on April 22, 2016. (¶ 27.) On January 9, 2021, Mr. Street died of congestive heart failure. (¶ 18.) His body was taken to the Mount Street Home for funeral arrangements. (Id.) Mr. Street's cousin Rita Jeffers supplied relevant personal information about Mr. Street to Defendants Livingston and Conner for the purposes of making funeral arrangements. Jeffers informed Conner that Mr. Street was married to Ms. Street and provided Conner with her telephone number. (¶ 21.) Conner later called Plaintiff to inform her that Mr. Street had passed away.[2] (Id.) He requested that she come to the Mount Street Home to identify the body.
On January 13, 2021, Plaintiff met with Livingston and Conner, identified Mr. Street's body, and authorized a direct cremation. (¶ 22.) She provided Livingston and Conner with her gold-sealed official marriage certificate confirming her marriage to Mr. Street. Plaintiff executed a contract with the Funeral Home for Mr. Street's direct cremation and memorial service at a price of $2,500.[3] (¶ 23.) Plaintiff provided Conner and Livingston with a $650 voucher request to the Maryland Department of Human Resources for burial assistance. (Id.) Under the terms of the contract, Plaintiff and Mr. Street's family members were required to pay the Funeral Home the remaining $1,850 for Mr. Street's funeral goods and services. (Id.) Shortly thereafter, a woman who identified herself as Renee Cook went to the Mount Street Home and claimed to be Mr. Street's spouse. (¶ 24.) Cook provided an “unsealed marriage license dated October 24, 1997.” (¶ 25.) Conner called Plaintiff to inform her that Cook identified herself as Mr. Street's spouse and that Cook insisted that Mr. Street's remains be buried. Plaintiff reaffirmed that she was Mr. Street's widow and informed Conner that Cook had no authority to make changes to Mr. Street's funeral arrangements. (¶ 25.)
At some time between January 14, 2021 and January 21, 2021, Plaintiff called the Funeral Home and attempted to speak with Conner for the purpose of discussing Mr. Street's memorial service. (¶ 28.) The Funeral Home's receptionist directed Plaintiff's call to a man who identified himself only as “Mr. Wylie.” (Id.) Mr. Wylie indicated that the Funeral Home would follow Cook's instruction and bury Mr. Street's body. (Id.) Mr. Wylie taunted Plaintiff, insinuating that there was nothing she could do to stop the Funeral Home from going forward against her wishes. (Id.) On January 22, 2021, Conner called Plaintiff to inform her that the Funeral Home had instead rejected Cook's instructions and would conduct the planned memorial service on January 23, 2021. (¶ 29.) At the time Conner made these statements, Mr. Street had in fact already been buried.
When the time came for the memorial service, the Funeral Home produced to Plaintiff a funerary urn purportedly containing Mr. Street's remains. (¶ 33.) The Funeral Home refused to allow Plaintiff to see the urn after the memorial service. On January 25, 2021, Conner sent Plaintiff an email that referenced Mr. Street's “resting location at Mr. Zion Cemetery.” (¶ 36.) Confused and alarmed, Plaintiff called the Funeral Home to discuss the email with Conner. Instead, Plaintiff was again directed to a man who identified himself as Mr. Wylie. Mr. Wylie informed Plaintiff that the Funeral Home had buried Mr. Street's body as he said it would. Mr. Wylie then hung up the phone. (¶ 37.)
Plaintiff later learned that Conner reported to the Maryland Department of Health that Mr. Street's spouse was “unknown.” (¶ 41.) She also learned that Mr. Street had been buried at Mt. Zion Cemetery in Baltimore on January 20, 2021, three days before the memorial service. (¶ 42.) Plaintiff has experienced severe emotional distress as a result of the Defendants' actions. She is prescribed mental health medication and suffers from insomnia and uncontrolled eating. (¶¶ 59, 60.) On August 4, 2021, Plaintiff filed suit in this Court. (ECF No.1.)
Under Rule 8(a)(2) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, a complaint must contain a “short and plain statement of the claim showing that the pleader is entitled to relief.” Fed. R. Civ. P 8(a)(2). Rule 12(b)(6) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure authorizes the dismissal of a complaint if it fails to state a claim upon which relief can be granted. Fed.R.Civ.P. 12(b)(6). The purpose of Rule 12(b)(6) is “to test the sufficiency of a complaint and not to resolve contests surrounding the facts, the merits of a claim, or the applicability of defenses.” Presley v. City of Charlottesville, 464 F.3d 480, 483 (4th Cir. 2006).
To survive a motion under Fed.R.Civ.P. 12(b)(6), a complaint must contain facts sufficient to “state a claim to relief that is plausible on its face.” Ashcroft v Iqbal, 556 U.S. 662, 684 (2009) (quoting Bell Atl Corp. v. Twombly, 550 U.S. 544, 570 (2007)). Under the plausibility standard, a complaint must contain “more than labels and conclusions” or a ...
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