Wilkins v. Dist. of Columbia
| Decision Date | 30 September 2020 |
| Docket Number | Civil Action No. 17-884 (CKK) |
| Parties | ASHTON WILKINS, Plaintiff, v. DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA, et al., Defendants. |
| Court | U.S. District Court — District of Columbia |
On March 8, 2016, officers of the Washington, D.C., Metropolitan Police Department ("MPD") arrested Ashton Wilkins ("Plaintiff") at Gallery Place, located on the 700-block of 7th Street, N.W., Washington, D.C. MPD officers Amina Coffey, Anthony Willis, Jr., Cameron Reynolds, Owais Ahktar, and Sergeant Francis Martello were each present at the time of Plaintiff's arrest. On the basis of this arrest and its attendant circumstances, Plaintiff has asserted constitutional and common law claims against each of the individual officers and also against the District of Columbia, under the theory of respondeat superior (collectively with the individual officers, "Defendants").
Specifically, Plaintiff has raised four constitutional claims under 42 U.S.C. § 1983: Excessive Force (Count VI), False Arrest (Count VII), Fabrication of Evidence (Count VIII), and Retaliatory Arrest (Count IX). Plaintiff also asserts five parallel claims at common law: Assault (Counts I and II), False Arrest (Count III and IV), and Malicious Prosecution (Count V). Presently before the Court is Defendants' [21] Motion for Summary Judgment. Upon consideration of the pleadings, the relevant legal authorities, and the record as a whole,1 the Court GRANTS Defendants' Motion as to Plaintiff's claims for Excessive Force (Count VI), False Arrest (Counts III, IV, and VII), Malicious Prosecution (Count V), Fabrication of Evidence (Count VIII), and Retaliatory Arrest (Count IX). The Court, however, will refrain from exercising supplemental jurisdiction over Plaintiff's claims of common law assault (Counts I and II) and will DISMISS those claims WITHOUT PREJUDICE.
The Court will first address Plaintiff's [49] Motion to Strike. This motion seeks to strike Defendants' Errata filing from December 30, 2019, see ECF No. 48, which provided a corrected submission of Defendants' original Motion for Summary Judgment and the paper exhibits thereto, see ECF No. 21. As Defendants explain, the Errata submission includes no substantive changes to the original summary judgment briefing. Instead, the Errata corrects two clerical errors: (1) it revised an inaccurate citation to the transcript of Mr. Joseph Johnson and supplied a single-page of corresponding deposition transcript, and (2) the Errata removed two pages of transcript from the deposition of Officer Anthony Willis, improperly included in Defendants' Exhibit C. See Defs.' Mem., ECF No. 50, at 2. The Court has reviewed these revisions, including the supplemental page of deposition transcript from Mr. Johnson, and notes that they have no substantive impact on the Court's disposition of this action. Accordingly, Plaintiff's [49] Motion to Strike is DENIED. The Court will consider and cite to Defendants' corrected summary judgment brief and exhibits found respectively in Attachments A and B of the Errata, ECF Nos. 48-1, 48-2.
The Court will present the background of this case in two parts. First, the Court will provide the undisputed factual background for Plaintiff's claims. This presentation will include those facts that are undisputed or unrefuted by the parties, as well as those facts clearly established by the video evidence in the record.2 See Scott v. Harris, 550 U.S. 372, 381 (2007) (). Then, having set forth the undisputed factual background, the Court will outline those central facts which remain in dispute at the summary judgment stage.
On March 8, 2016, MPD Officer Anthony Willis observed a civilian named Patrick Horton Smith-Shearer "sucker punch" a pedestrian at Gallery Place, located at 707 7th Street, N.W., Washington, D.C. See Defs.' Stmt. ¶ 2; Pl.'s Opp'n at 5. During this unprovoked assault, Mr. Horton Smith-Shearer chased down the pedestrian from behind and directed a closed-fist punch to the back of the pedestrian's head. See Defs.' Mot., Ex. O, at (0:00:00-22). Before Mr. Horton Smith-Shearer could land a second punch, however, Officer Willis intervened, tackling Mr. Horton Smith-Shearer to the ground and placing him under arrest. See id.; Defs.' Stmt. ¶ 2. Officer Willis then handcuffed Mr. Horton Smith-Shearer with the assistance of his colleague, Officer Amina Coffey. See Defs.' Mot., Ex. O, at (0:00:21-50); Defs.' Stmt. ¶¶ 2-4. Mr. Horton Smith-Shearer's assault and subsequent arrest took place during the afternoon, while a large crowd of at least twenty bystanders was gathered outside in the Gallery Place common area, and while only two MPD officers (Officers Willis and Coffey) appeared at the initial arrest scene. See Defs.' Mot., Ex. O, at (0:00:00-22). And moments after the arrest of Mr. Horton Smith-Shearer, additional pedestrians walked directly towards the area. See id., Ex. N, at (00:55-01:05).
Officers Awais Ahktar and Cameron Reynolds subsequently arrived at Gallery Place after responding to a radio request for assistance. See Defs.' Stmt. ¶ 1; Pl.'s Objection ¶ 1. By the time Officers Ahktar and Reynolds arrived, the crowd at Gallery Place had grown to a considerable size, was audibly hostile, and was encircling the arrest scene of Mr. Horton Smith-Shearer. Defs.' Stmt. ¶¶ 3-5; see also Defs.' Mot., Ex. O, at (0:00:21-50). Members of the crowd were vocally upset by the manner in which Officer Willis had tackled Mr. Horton Smith-Shearer and were directing clear criticism, including some vulgarities, towards the arresting officers. See Defs.' Mot., Ex. O, at (0:00:21-55); Pl.'s Objection ¶ 7. While attempting to control this crowd, Officer Willis left Mr. Horton Smith-Shearer with Officer Coffey and proceeded to arrest another bystander named Marquesse Favors. See Defs.' Mot., Ex. E, at (16:24:00-10); see also Pl.'s Objection ¶ 5. At the same time, Officers Reynolds and Ahktar were attempting to separate the surrounding crowd from the arrest scene. See Defs.' Stmt. ¶¶ 3-7. Officer Ahktar was shouting "back up" to bystanders and physically pushing some individuals out of the way to create space. See Pl.'s Objection ¶ 7; Defs.' Mot., Ex. O, at (0:01:00-25).
During this crowd control effort, a physical altercation occurred between Officer Reynolds and a bystander named Joseph Johnson. See id., Ex. O, at (0:01:25-40). The altercation led both Mr. Johnson and Officer Reynolds to the ground, where Officer Reynolds then struck Mr. Johnson multiple times. Id. Plaintiff was positioned feet from Officer Reynolds at the outset of this altercation. See Defs.' Stmt. ¶ 9; Defs.' Mot., Ex. F. Plaintiff was also verbally criticizing Officer Reynolds and his treatment of Mr. Johnson, stating: Defs.' Mot., Ex. D (Wilkins Dep.), at 47:13-48:1. As discussed below, Plaintiff's physical conduct towards Officer Reynolds at this time remains in dispute.
Officer Ahktar then confronted Plaintiff, positioning himself between Plaintiff and the other arresting officers on the scene. See id.; see also id., Ex. G, at (00:00-04). At this time, Officers Willis, Coffey, and Reynolds were each detaining an individual arrestee. See id., Ex. G, at (00:00-04); Defs.' Stmt. ¶ 8. Officer Ahktar addressed Plaintiff verbally and motioned for him to move back, brandishing his ASP police baton above his head. See Defs.' Mot., Ex. G, at (00:00-04). In response, however, Plaintiff yelled at Officer Ahktar, while leaning forward aggressively with clenched fists. Id. Officer Willis observed this confrontation and deployed OC spray (pepper spray) into Plaintiff's face. Id., Ex. G, at (00:03-06); Defs.' Stmt. ¶ 17. In response, Plaintiff raised his arms and pushed Officer Willis' hand out of the way. See Defs.' Mot., Ex. G, at (00:03-05). Officer Ahktar then struck Plaintiff with his ASP baton, though the nature of this use of force remains largely in dispute. See id., Ex. G, at (00:03-07).
Following Officer Willis' use of pepper spray and Officer Ahktar's baton strike, Plaintiff walked away from the officers until Officer Willis pursued him on foot and attempted to place him under arrest. See Defs.' Mot., Ex. G, at (00:04-12). During this pursuit, Officer Willis had only one free hand available, as he was still detaining Mr. Favors, whom he had previously arrested. Id. When Officer Willis reached Plaintiff, a slight physical struggle ensued between them as Officer Willis attempted to move Plaintiff's hands behind his back. Id. Then, Officer Ahktar, along with Sergeant Martello, stepped in to assist Officer Willis with Plaintiff's arrest. Id.; see also id., Ex. L (Martello Dep.), at 44-45. Officer Ahktar and Sergeant Martello performed a take down maneuver on Plaintiff, forcing him to the ground. Id., Ex. G, at (00:04-12); see also id., Ex. L (Martello Dep.), at 44-45. The officers then handcuffed Plaintiff and used no more force against him after that point. See Pl.'s Objection ¶ 29. As a result of the encounter, Plaintiff sustained injuries to his face and to his leg. See Defs.' Stmt. ¶ 23; Pl.'s Objection ¶ 23.
On March 8, 2016, the day of the incident, Officer Ahktar completed a police report documenting the circumstances of Plaintiff's arrest. See Am. Compl. ¶ 98; Pl.'s Opp'n, Ex. 2 (Ahktar Dep.), at 124. This report noted, in part, that Plaintiff was arrested for a misdemeanor offense of an Assault On A Police Officer. See Pl.'s Opp'n, Ex. 14 (Arrest Report), at 3. Officer Ahktar submitted this arrest report to the United States Attorney's Office on March 8, 2016, and later attended a "papering conference" with the federal prosecutor to discuss the facts surrounding Plaintiff's arrest. See id., Ex. 2 (Ahktar Dep.), at 125-127. On March 9, 2016, the United States Attorney's Office...
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