Valanzuela v. Snider, Civ. A. No. 85-K-1845.

• Citation: 889 F. Supp. 1409
• Decision Date: 20 June 1995
• Docket Number: Civ. A. No. 85-K-1845.
• Parties: June VALANZUELA, Plaintiff, v. James H. SNIDER, a/k/a Buster Snider; Officer Harry Queen; former Chief of Police, Thomas Coogan, in his individual capacity only; Chief of Police Aristedes Zavaras, in his official capacity only; Mayor Federico Pena; and the City and County of Denver, Defendants.
• Court: United States District Courts. 10th Circuit. United States District Court of Colorado

889 F. Supp. 1409

June VALANZUELA, Plaintiff, v. James H. SNIDER, a/k/a Buster Snider; Officer Harry Queen; former Chief of Police, Thomas Coogan, in his individual capacity only; Chief of Police Aristedes Zavaras, in his official capacity only; Mayor Federico Pena; and the City and County of Denver, Defendants.

Civ. A. No. 85-K-1845.

United States District Court, D. Colorado.

June 20, 1995.

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Kenneth A. Padilla, Kathy P. Bonham, Denver, CO, for plaintiff.

Robert M. Liechty, Theodore S. Halaby, Denver, CO, for all defendants except Snider.

David Bruno, Denver, CO, co-counsel, for defendant Queen.

Lee Rallis, Denver, CO, for defendant Snider.

MEMORANDUM OPINION AND ORDER

KANE, Senior District Judge.

June Valanzuela filed this civil rights case arising out of an alleged kidnapping, false imprisonment and repeated sexual assaults by then police officer James H. Snider, a/k/a Buster Snider. Plaintiff filed her complaint in the District Court for the City and County of Denver in July 1985. Defendants removed the action to this court.

The Second Amended Complaint asserts claims under 42 U.S.C. §§ 1983 and 1985 and nine pendent state tort claims against Snider, Officer Harry H. Queen, former Chief of Police, Thomas Coogan (in his individual capacity), Chief of Police Aristedes Zavaras (in his official capacity), Manager of Safety Manuel Martinez (in his official capacity), Mayor Federico Pena, and the City and County of Denver ("City").¹

Before me is a motion for summary judgment filed by all Defendants with the exception of Snider. In their motion, Defendants argue they are entitled to judgment as a matter of law on the following grounds: (1) Coogan and Queen have qualified immunity from the ninth and tenth claims for relief under 42 U.S.C. §§ 1983 and 1985; (2) Plaintiff fails to state a claim against the City in her ninth and tenth claims for relief under 42 U.S.C. §§ 1983 and 1985; (3) Defendants have immunity from the state torts; (4) This court should decline to exercise jurisdiction over the pendent state tort claims. I grant the motion in part and deny it in part.

I. Factual Allegations.

Plaintiff asserts the pertinent facts established through the investigative record, depositions and other discovery as well as her affidavit are as follows.² On the night of July 24, 1984 she had been drinking alcohol and was driving her car on the streets of Denver. Before she was stopped, she had consumed a six-pack of beer and, approximately one half-hour earlier, a bottle of Irish Cream liqueur.

At approximately 11:45 p.m., Officer Harry Queen, acting as a police officer of the City and County of Denver stopped her because her car was weaving. In investigating whether she was driving under the influence of alcohol, Queen performed roadside sobriety tests upon Plaintiff when Defendant Officer James H. "Buster" Snider arrived at the scene. After some discussion between Queen and Snider, they determined not to arrest her. Queen advised Plaintiff not to drive her car and left her with Snider.

Snider told Plaintiff he would follow her home to make sure she would arrive there safely and they proceeded. At a dark and secluded industrial area, Snider pulled Plaintiff over using the emergency equipment on his police car. By now, in the early hours of July 25, 1984, Snider ordered her into his police car claiming he needed to obtain additional information.

Snider then began touching Plaintiff against her will on her breasts, buttocks and vaginal area and forcibly removed her underwear. He then drove a short distance to a more secluded area and had sexual intercourse with Plaintiff against her will. Snider had placed his revolver on the floorboard of the police car. Throughout this time Plaintiff pleaded with him not to commit these acts upon her and to allow her to return to her car so she could continue on her way home.

Snider then drove Plaintiff in his police car through the streets of Denver, making her lie down in the front seat. As he was driving, he continued to have sexual contact with her by placing his hands and fingers inside her vagina.

Snider took Plaintiff inside a White Spot restaurant and ate his dinner. Thereafter, he took her to the Denver Police Department Traffic Operations and en route continued to make her lie down in the front seat of the police car, again having forcible sexual contact with her. At Traffic Operations, Snider made Plaintiff slide out of the police car and into his private car. Thereafter, after turning in his log book to complete his shift of duty, Snider returned to his car where he resumed his sexual contact with Plaintiff by placing his hand and fingers inside her vagina.

At this time Queen came up to Snider's car, witnessed the sexual acts of Snider and told Plaintiff, "Baby, can I fuck you too?" Plaintiff asked Queen if he had a family and what they would think if they saw him sexually assaulting her. Snider told Queen there was no need for him to come along and drove off continuing his forcible sexual contact.

Snider again drove to a secluded area and again forcibly had sexual intercourse with Plaintiff. Thereafter, he forced her to masturbate him. Plaintiff was crying and pleading with Snider to take her to her car so she could go home. Snider eventually took Plaintiff back to her car after he made her promise not to reveal to anyone what had occurred. He told her he knew where she lived and she should never say anything about what he had done to her or about the actions of Queen.

Later that day, Plaintiff went to the Denver Police Department to notify them about the assaults committed by Snider. She went to Denver General Hospital to be examined by a physician and to obtain a rape kit. There, Denver police officers intervened and ordered that no rape kit should be given to her. She was not examined by a doctor.

Faced with the unwillingness of Denver Police Department to investigate her complaints, Plaintiff conducted her own investigation to determine the identities of Snider and Queen. She found the police station where she had been required to move from the police car to Snider's personal car. There, amongst several police officers, she recognized Snider as the officer who had raped and sexually assaulted her. After determining Snider's identity, she reported this to the Denver Police Department. Once the Department informed Snider and Queen of the complaints, Snider called Plaintiff and threatened her.

When confronted with these allegations by members of the Police Internal Investigations and Inspection Bureau, Snider denied having sexual contact with Plaintiff while on duty in the police car. Faced with a polygraph examination he told the polygraph examiner he had not told the truth and gave a different account of what had occurred. Thereafter, Snider, in a supplemental statement, admitted to having sexual relations with Plaintiff but denied he had done so forcibly while on duty and denied she had ridden in his police car.

When Snider was confronted with the investigative reports, indicating he had been seen with Plaintiff at the White Spot Restaurant, while on duty, he admitted she was in his police car, but denied having sexual contact with her in it. Snider and Queen then both took and failed polygraph examinations. As a result of Plaintiff's complaint, Queen received four days suspension without pay and Snider was dismissed from the police force.

The Denver Police Department had a history of numerous complaints alleging Snider's activities with regard to improper sexual contact with females, using his authority as a police officer. In 1980, Snider was investigated for raping an intoxicated woman whom he had volunteered to give a ride home from a bar, when he and another officer were in the bar in police uniform. The woman complained several months later to the Denver Police Department that Snider had raped her, forced her to commit oral sex on and masturbate him while he placed his revolver on the floorboard of the car and had taken her to the White Spot Restaurant. Snider in his initial statement denied sexual relations with the woman. After being confronted with a polygraph investigation showing he had lied, Snider admitted he had sex with the woman in the parking lot of the White Spot Restaurant, but claimed she had forced him to do it. After investigation, the Denver Police Department determined Snider had not raped the woman. No criminal charges were filed against him. Although the woman's polygraph examination revealed she was truthful about her account of the incident, the allegations were found to be not proven and Snider was not disciplined for the rape charge. He was disciplined only for lying to his superiors and for improper conduct while not on duty and in uniform. He was given a five day suspension without pay and was allowed to work off the fine by working five days that would normally be his days off.

Following this incident, in the fall of 1983 through spring of 1984, Snider was investigated for multiple violations of having an unauthorized female in his police car, for having an improper relationship with a thirteen-year-old Hispanic runaway and known prostitute and for having his girlfriend ride with him in his police car. As a result of the investigation concerning the thirteen-year-old girl, Lt. Leary of the Denver Police Department stated the conduct of Snider "can only be described as despicable" and that if the information regarding his contact with her was to become public, "the discredit to the Denver Police Department would be devastating." Snider was given no discipline in relation to his contact with the thirteen-year-old girl.

In the course of that investigation, the Staff Inspection Bureau learned Snider was making advances to other young Hispanic girls in West Denver. In another arrest, Snider was alleged to have a black female prostitute in his automobile while...