Youngbey v. Dist. of D.C.

• Decision Date: 01 March 2011
• Docket Number: Case No. 1:09–CV–00596.
• Citation: 766 F.Supp.2d 197
• Parties: Jerry YOUNGBEY, et al., Plaintiffs,v.DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA, et al., Defendants.
• Court: U.S. District Court — District of Columbia

766 F.Supp.2d 197

Jerry YOUNGBEY, et al., Plaintiffs,

v.DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA, et al., Defendants.

Case No. 1:09–CV–00596.

United States District Court, District of Columbia.

March 1, 2011.

Arthur B. Spitzer, American Civil Liberties Union, Frederick V. Mulhauser, ACLU of the National Capital Area, Washington, DC, for Plaintiffs.Reid Whitten, Steven J. Anderson, Office of Attorney General, Arthur B. Spitzer, American Civil Liberties Union, Peter J. Leininger, Fulbright & Jaworski, L.L.P., Washington, DC, for Defendants.

OPINION & ORDER

[Resolving Doc. Nos. 83, 84, 85, 86, 87, 88, 89, 90, 91 ]

JAMES S. GWIN, District Judge:

In this civil rights suit, Plaintiffs Jerry Youngbey and Rubin Butler sue the District of Columbia and several members of the D.C. Metropolitan Police Department for injuries they allegedly sustained following the police officers' search of their home.¹ Defendants Charles Yarbaugh, Jose Acosta, Darrin March, Larry Scott, Raymond Chambers, Duane Fowler, Sean McLaughlin, Christopher Smith, Thomas Miller, Darryl Thompson, Lonnie Bruce, Timothy Dumontt, and the District of Columbia now file separate motions for summary judgment.² [Doc. 83; Doc. 84; Doc. 85; Doc. 86; Doc. 87; Doc. 88; Doc. 89; Doc. 90; Doc. 91.%] The motions are opposed. [Doc. 96; Doc. 97; Doc. 98; Doc. 99; Doc. 100; Doc. 101; Doc. 102; Doc. 103; Doc. 104.] Defendants Acosta, Bruce, Chambers, Dumontt, Fowler, March, McLaughlin, Miller, Smith, Thompson, Yarbaugh, and the District of Columbia replied. [Doc. 107; Doc. 109; Doc. 110; Doc. 111; Doc. 112; Doc. 113; Doc. 114; Doc. 115; Doc. 116.]

For the following reasons, the Court GRANTS IN PART and DENIES IN PART the Defendants' motions for summary judgment.

I. Background

On July 16, 2008, Robert Mallory died from several gunshot wounds and the District of Columbia Deputy Medical Examiner determined the cause of death to be homicide. [Doc. 85 at 3.] Defendant Detective Darin March, then employed by the Violent Crimes Branch of the Metropolitan Police Department (“MPD”), investigated the murder. [ Id.] A confidential source told March that John Youngbey, Plaintiff Jerry Youngbey's adult son, had been in an altercation with a man named “Rob” and that Youngbey indicated that he was going to take revenge on “Rob.” [ Id. at 4; Doc. 99 at 2.] This same source also shared that she had heard that John Youngbey had admitted to the murder of Robert Mallory. [ Id. at 2; Doc. 85 at 4.]

Detective March discovered from the Court Service and Offender Supervision Agency that John Youngbey lived with his mother, Plaintiff Youngbey, at her home on 1312 Queen Street NE, Washington, D.C. [ Id. at 4.] March also performed a WALES check that confirmed that this address was John Youngbey's current address. [ Id. at 4.] However, John Youngbey did not live at that address at the time of the application for and execution of the search warrant. He had not lived with his mother since 2004. [Doc. 100 at 4.]

Detective March prepared an “Affidavit in Support of an Application for Search Warrant,” requesting to search the Queen Street address, along with several others, “for the seizure of any firearms including spent cartridges and bullet fragments, ammunition, holsters, gun cleaning kits, paper showing ownership receipts, photographs and papers that document criminal activity, a relationship between John YoungBey, Michael Fluellyn, Avonte Palmer, and the decedent, and additional documentation that provides a link between John YoungBey and this or any other address.” [Doc. 85 at 4–5.] The affidavit did not contain a request for nighttime execution, nor did it assert that the warrant could not be executed during daylight hours, that the property sought was likely to be removed or destroyed if not seized immediately, or that the property sought was unlikely to be found except at certain times or under certain circumstances. [Doc. 85–2; Doc. 99 at 2.]

On August 13, 2008, and after reviewing March's affidavit, District of Columbia Superior Court Judge John R. Hess issued search warrant 2008 CRWSLD 3070. [Doc. 85 at 5; Doc. 99 at 2.] Judge Hess found probable cause to believe that the material sought in the affidavit was present at Youngbey's home on Queen Street. [Doc. 85–2.] The warrant further read, “you are hereby authorized to search in the daytime/at any time of the day or night.” [ Id.] No part of this language was crossed out, circled, or marked in any way. [ Id.; Doc. 99 at 2.]

Upon receiving the search warrant from Judge Hess, Detective March requested that the MPD's Emergency Response Team assist with the warrant's execution. [Doc. 86 at 3; Doc. 99 at 3.] Lieutenant Larry Scott—commander of the Special Operations Division of the MPD, which included the Emergency Response Team—reviewed the warrant and assigned the team of Sergeant Chambers the lead role during the execution. [Doc. 86 at 3; Doc. 87 at 4; Doc. 101 at 3.] Sergeant Raymond Chambers was also assigned the drafting of a plan for the warrant's execution. [Doc. 86 at 3; Doc. 87 at 4; Doc. 101 at 3.] Thus, Sergeant Chambers was responsible for making logistical arrangements necessary for the search. [Doc. 87 at 4.] Sergeant Chambers, as well as Defendant officers Timothy Dumontt, Duane Fowler, and Lonnie Bruce consulted with Detective March, scouted the Queen Street location, and made other miscellaneous arrangements in preparation for the execution of the warrant. [Doc. 87 at 4; Doc. 88 at 2; Doc. 90 at 4–5; Doc. 97 at 3.] Defendant officers Dumontt and Bruce and Sergeant Chambers read the search warrant and supporting affidavit. [Doc. 97 at 3; Doc. 98 at 3.] Sergeant Chambers drafted a search plan, which was actually typed by Officer Dumontt. [Doc. 87 at 4; Doc. 88 at 3; Doc. 90 at 4; Doc. 97 at 3.] This plan was reviewed and approved by Lieutenant Scott. [Doc. 86 at 4; Doc. 87 at 4.] Although the plan did not specify the time of day for the search, Sergeant Chambers and Lieutenant Scott agreed that the best time to conduct the search was at 4 A.M. [Doc. 86 at 4;Doc. 87 at 4–5; Doc. 101 at 3.] Detective March also admits that he discussed the search with the Emergency Response Team and agreed that the search should be conducted at 4 A.M. [Doc. 85 at 5; Doc. 87 at 4.]

Several days before the search of Plaintiff Youngbey's residence at Queen Street, Sergeant Charles Yarbaugh, a member of the Emergency Response Team of the MPD, was also told that his team would assist in the execution of the Queen Street search. [Doc. 83 at 3; Doc. 102 at 2.] Sergeant Yarbaugh acted as the leader of an eight man team that was assigned to secure the top-floor of Plaintiff Youngbey's home. [Doc. 83 at 3.] Sergeant Yarbaugh says that he was not shown the warrant, but that he was given other background information about the investigation. [ Id.]

At approximately 2 A.M., on August 20, 2008, the Emergency Response Team conducted an operational briefing, led by Officer Dumontt, during which all of the officers involved were provided with the details of the search warrant execution plan. [Doc. 89 at 6; Doc. 90 at 6; Doc. 97 at 3.] At about 4 A.M., on the same night, approximately twenty-one officers from the Emergency Response Team approached the residence of the Plaintiffs on Queen Street. [Doc. 90 at 6; Doc. 101 at 3.] Officer Dumontt led the line of officers who approached the front door. [Doc. 90 at 6.] Officers Thomas Miller and Darryl Thompson were assigned the duty of knocking and announcing the presence of the officers and forcing entry if necessary. [Doc. 89 at 6.] Plaintiff Youngbey and Plaintiff Butler were asleep in the house. [Doc. 101 at 3.] Plaintiff Youngbey was asleep in her upstairs bedroom and Plaintiff Butler was asleep in his basement apartment. [ Id.]

Officer Miller says that he announced their presence and knocked on the door with a halligan bar; when nobody answered, he began to pry at the front metal security door with the bar. [Doc. 89 at 6.] When that was not successful, Officer Miller broke a living room window, causing glass to shatter onto a couch, and Officer Timothy Dumontt threw one or two flash-bang grenades into the house, which caused some of the living room furniture to catch fire. [Doc. 89 at 6; Doc. 90 at 6; Doc. 97 at 4; Doc. 97–17.] Officer Bruce entered through the window and says that he yelled “Police with a search warrant.” [Doc. 90 at 6.] Other Emergency Response Team officers also entered the house through the broken window. [ Id.] When the police began their no-knock entry by breaking the window, Plaintiffs Youngbey and Butler say they awoke and also say that the police never knocked or announced their presence before forcing an entry. [Doc. 96 at 2; Doc. 97–17.] Youngbey says that she heard breaking glass and thought that burglars were breaking into the house and called 911. [Doc. 89 at 6–7; Doc. 101 at 3.]

The officers assigned to Sergeant Yarbaugh immediately proceeded upstairs, while those assigned to Sergeant Chambers began to secure the first floor of the home. [Doc. 83 at 4; Doc. 87 at 5; Doc. 102 at 3.] Sergeant Yarbaugh and another officer entered the first room on the second floor, which was unoccupied. [Doc. 83 at 4.] The other officers in the upstairs team checked the other rooms in pairs—Defendant Officer Jose Acosta entered Plaintiff Youngbey's bedroom. [Doc. 84 at 4; Doc. 102 at 3.] Plaintiff Youngbey says that the police shouted, “Open up, police!” and began battering her bedroom door. [ Id.] Youngbey says that she then opened the door, allowing Officer Acosta into the room. [ Id.] Plaintiff Youngbey was wearing only a tank-top at the time and she says that the shirt left the entire lower portion of her body exposed. [Doc. 96 at 2; Doc. 102 at 3–4.] Plaintiff Youngbey further says that Officer Acosta pointed an assault rifle in her face at close range and then ordered her to lay down on the floor. [Doc. 102 at 3–4.] Youngbey states she immediately complied with the order. [Doc. 96 at 3.] Sh...