530 F.Supp.3d 356
S.D.N.Y.2021Background
- In 1995 Calvin Buari was convicted of two counts of second-degree murder based solely on eyewitness testimony; he served decades until a 2017 state court vacated his conviction and ordered a new trial, and the Bronx DA later dismissed the indictment in 2018.
- Buari alleges NYPD detectives coerced and induced witnesses (including Griffiths, Robinson, Effort, and others) to give false statements and that Bronx ADAs and investigators aided, concealed, or pressured witnesses to recant post-conviction disclosures.
- Plaintiff sued under 42 U.S.C. § 1983 and New York law asserting malicious prosecution, denial of fair trial (fabrication of evidence), failure to intercede, conspiracy, supervisory and Monell municipal claims, and state-law claims; defendants moved to dismiss under Rule 12(b)(6).
- The court accepted Buari’s factual allegations at the pleading stage and addressed immunity, sufficiency of the § 1983 and state-law claims, qualified immunity, and Monell theories.
- The court dismissed all claims against certain Bronx ADAs and investigators on absolute prosecutorial-immunity grounds, but allowed malicious prosecution, fabrication-of-evidence (fair-trial), failure-to-intercede, and many municipal respondeat-superior/state-law claims to proceed against NYPD and the City in part; it dismissed the conspiracy claim but granted leave to amend that claim alone.
Issues
| Issue | Plaintiff's Argument | Defendant's Argument | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Absolute prosecutorial immunity for Bronx ADAs/investigators | ADAs and investigators engaged in non-advocative, investigative acts (esp. during post-conviction CIU review) and thus are not absolutely immune | ADAs and investigators’ acts were advocacy-related (grand-jury presentation, prosecution, defending conviction/post-conviction litigation) and thus absolutely immune | Court: ADA Karen, ADAs Lung/Coddington/Mignola, and Investigator Defs. entitled to absolute immunity; all claims against them dismissed |
| Malicious prosecution (federal & state) | Buari: prosecution was initiated/continued by police fabrication/coercion; dismissal and DA’s decision not to retry indicate favorable termination and rebut probable cause | Defendants: grand jury indictment creates presumption of probable cause; state court rulings sever chain of causation | Court: Malicious prosecution claims survive — plaintiff plausibly alleged initiation/continuation, favorable termination, lack of probable cause (rebutted by allegations of fabricated/coerced testimony), and malice |
| Denial of fair trial / fabrication of evidence & failure to investigate | Buari alleges fabrication/coercion forwarded to prosecutors; also alleges failure to pursue exculpatory leads (Robinson) | Defendants: no constitutional right to an investigation; allegations insufficient to show fabrication/knowledge of falsity | Court: Fair-trial claim based on fabrication survives; stand-alone failure-to-investigate claim dismissed (no independent constitutional right to investigation) |
| Monell municipal liability (NYPD and Bronx DA) | City/DA Office had de facto customs and failed training/supervision; cites Mollen Report, other cases, and patterns of discipline failure | Defendants: cited authorities/reported incidents are too remote/insufficiently widespread to plead a municipal custom; training allegations are conclusory | Held: NYPD Monell claim survives as to widespread-practice and failure-to-train/supervise theories (Mollen Report + contemporaneous allegations make claim plausible); Bronx DA Monell fails on widespread-practice theory but survives on failure-to-train/supervise/discipline theory |
Key Cases Cited
- Imbler v. Pachtman, 424 U.S. 409 (absolute prosecutorial immunity for advocacy functions)
- Buckley v. Fitzsimmons, 509 U.S. 259 (functional test distinguishing advocacy from investigative/prosecutorial acts)
- Monell v. Department of Social Services, 436 U.S. 658 (municipal liability requires policy or custom)
- Ashcroft v. Iqbal, 556 U.S. 662 (pleading standard: factual plausibility required)
- Bell Atlantic v. Twombly, 550 U.S. 544 (plausibility and Twombly standard for pleadings)
- Warney v. Monroe County, 587 F.3d 113 (absolute immunity can extend to post-conviction advocacy functions)
- Ricciuti v. N.Y.C. Transit Auth., 124 F.3d 123 (fabrication of evidence and denial of qualified immunity for obvious constitutional violations)
- Zahrey v. Coffey, 221 F.3d 342 (fabrication of evidence violates due process)
- Connick v. Thompson, 563 U.S. 51 (failure-to-train deliberate-indifference framework)