Stevens v. Rifkin
| Decision Date | 17 October 1984 |
| Docket Number | No. C 81-3943-RPA.,C 81-3943-RPA. |
| Citation | 608 F. Supp. 710 |
| Parties | Thomas W. STEVENS, et al., Plaintiffs, v. Harry RIFKIN, et al., Defendants. |
| Court | U.S. District Court — Northern District of California |
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Thomas W. Stevens, Larry Weissman, Terrile Cox, Shirley Freitas, Terry Phillips, Ronald Landberg, Chester Neal, Jr., San Francisco, Cal., in pro per.
Philip S. Ward, Deputy City Atty., San Francisco, Cal., for the City and County of San Francisco.
Robert M. Arbuthnot, Ericksen, Arbuthnot, McCarthy & Kearney, Inc., San Francisco, Cal., for defendant SPCA.
Robert Fremlin, Robert Kavanaugh, R.J. Heher, Lillick, McHose & Charles, San Francisco, Cal., for defendant American Broadcasting.
Thomas F. Bertrand, Mead, Keenan & Bertrand, San Francisco, Cal., for defendants Rifkin and Rubenstein.
Ronald E. Mallen, Peter R. Kindem, Long & Levit, San Francisco, Cal., for defendant Mark I. Schickman.
Thomas E. Morton, Morton & Bennett, San Francisco, Cal., for defendants Scopus and Holden.
Eric Leimseider, Paul E. Rabin, Williams, Martinet & Rabin, San Francisco, Cal., for defendants.
This action is before the Court on various motions to dismiss or for summary judgment brought by many of the defendants to a complaint brought by the White Panther Party. Six members of the White Panther Party, and one of its associate members, join in the Complaint. The Complaint alleges violations of the civil rights laws and various state laws.
In the past few years, the White Panther Party and its members have become embroiled in a controversy surrounding the possession of a Victorian home in the Haight-Ashbury district of San Francisco. This controversy initially pitted the White Panther Party against two developers, their construction crew and attorney. The controversy later came to involve a company engaged in the business of supplying guard dogs, the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, the San Francisco Police Department, the San Francisco District Attorney's Office, the American Broadcasting Companies, Inc., and one of its reporters. All these persons are defendants named in plaintiffs' Complaint.
The Court will summarize the factual allegations of the Complaint which explain plaintiffs' view of the above-mentioned controversy. However, the Court will first discuss the nature of the White Panther Party as asserted by plaintiffs in their Complaint.
The White Panther Party was founded in 1967, and was originally organized "to assist the Black Panther Party in the struggle against racism and the systematic use of illegal police power to destroy resistance to the profit system." Complaint, p. 3, lines 3-6. In more recent times, the White Panther Party has described itself as a "dissident organization actively resisting speculation in housing, the exploitation of tenants, the forced relocation of non-affluent people from the Haight-Ashbury district of San Francisco, and the concomitant illegal use of police power to hasten this relocation." Id. at p. 3, lines 9-13. It states as its purpose "the education of the lower classes in their constitutional and human rights, and the defense of these rights against encroachment by the more affluent classes either through direct economic oppression or exploitation or through indirect oppression or governmental action unduly influenced by the affluent classes." Id. at p. 3, lines 17-22.
Understandably, in light of this background, the conflicts giving rise to this lawsuit began when developers decided to renovate, and thereafter rent out, a building on a parcel of property adjacent to property occupied by a member of the White Panther Party. The Court believes that a chart of the persons involved in the incidents comprising plaintiffs' Complaint will be an effective tool for future discussion of these incidents. Thus, the plaintiffs and defendants to this action, and their respective categories, are as follows:
The Court now summarizes, according to the allegations of plaintiffs' Complaint, the facts giving rise to their claims for relief.
Plaintiff Stevens, a member of the White Panther Party, has resided at 1889 Oak Street for over ten years. In 1977, the adjacent property was brought by defendants Rifkin and Rubenstein. Rifkin and Rubenstein planned to renovate the property and rent out the units. They entered into a joint venture to develop and speculate the property.
Rifkin and Rubenstein formed Scopus Construction Company for the purpose of doing the renovation work on the property. Holden was hired as foreman of the work crew, and Baker and Robb were hired as members of the work crew. Schickman acted as Rubenstein's attorney in connection with all legal matters concerning the development of the property.
Between November 10 and 18, 1980, Rifkin and Rubenstein had guard dogs, furnished by K-9, placed on the property. Plaintiffs allege that the guard dogs were placed on the property under such circumstances as to make it reasonably likely that the dogs would attack plaintiffs. The dogs did in fact place plaintiffs in fear of their lives and their physical well-being. Despite requests by plaintiffs and other residents of the neighborhood, the dogs were not removed. Plaintiffs claim that Police Chief Murphy, Captain Mucci and the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals ("SPCA") failed to discharge their lawful duty to remove the guard dogs or arrest the persons responsible for the placement of the dogs.
A few days later, on November 20, 1980, assertedly as a result of communications between Rubenstein or his representative and Captain Mucci, four police officers, including Pera, Barnes and Curtin, came upon Stevens' property, and assaulted and battered Weissman. This was done allegedly in retaliation for his mere presence on the property and his insistence that a warrant was required for the police to enter the property. While Weissman was being assaulted by police officers, one of the officers allegedly told Neal to turn around so that he would not witness the assault. Weissman and Neal were both arrested and taken to a police station. After an hour, Weissman and Neal were released from custody. According to plaintiffs, the arresting officers prepared a false police report stating that Weissman had a history of assaulting police officers with guns.
During this same period of time, Rifkin and Rubenstein decided that entry onto Stevens' property was necessary to do some of the renovation work required on the adjoining property. Plaintiffs allege that Rifkin and Rubenstein told the work crew to ignore any protests by occupants of the property when they came upon the property. They were told to use force against the occupants if necessary. Schickman allegedly told the work crew that they would not be prosecuted for their entries onto Stevens' property because of arrangements made with authorities of the City and County of San Francisco.
On December 1, 1980, the work crew entered Stevens' property and allegedly attempted to forcefully eject some of the plaintiffs who were there. The crew assaulted plaintiff Cox until plaintiff Weissman, armed with a shotgun, ordered them to stop. Holden then summoned the police. Mucci, Morlock, Citizen, Higdon and Ritter arrived and arrested Cox and Weissman, who were charged with felony assault. Plaintiffs allege that these charges against Weissman and Cox were based upon the previously mentioned improper police report. Plaintiffs also allege that in connection with the prosecution of these charges, Suslow and Giannini suborned perjurious statements from Baker and Robb concerning assault and battery by Weissman and Cox and threats made against them by members of the White Panther Party. Plaintiffs further allege that Suslow, Giannini, Bergstrom, and McLaughlin concealed evidence from plaintiffs that could be used in the defense of Weissman and Cox.
American Broadcasting Companies, Inc. ("ABC"), through its local affiliate, KGO-TV, broadcast a live report as part of its five o'clock newscast by reporter Carole Ivey which allegedly falsely reported that several years earlier, members of the White Panther Party had shot at a police officer. This was done while the prosecution against Weissman and Cox was still pending (the charges were dismissed at the preliminary hearing). Plaintiffs allege that the broadcast followed a pattern of ABC to make derogatory statements about the White Panther Party. Pl...
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...prosecutors and police officers are immune from suit for concealing evidence under the California Government Code. (Stevens v. Rifkin (N.D.Cal.1984) 608 F.Supp. 710, 729 [claims against prosecutors and police officers for malicious prosecution and improper acts concerning evidence "pertain ......
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...testimony, and concealment of exculpatory evidence will be dismissed on grounds of prosecutorial immunity. See Stevens v. Rifkin, 608 F. Supp. 710, 728 (N.D. Cal. 1984). Nor does it make anydifference if the plaintiff is alleging that the prosecutors were engaged in a conspiracy to violate ......
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...be some racial, or perhaps otherwise class-based, invidiously discriminatory animus behind the conspirator's action." Stevens v. Rifkin, 608 F.Supp. 710, 719 (D.C.Cal.1984) (citing Griffin v. Breckenridge, 403 U.S. 88, 101-02, 91 S.Ct. 1790, 1798, 29 L.Ed.2d 338, 347-48 (1971)). Gibson has ......
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