Sullivan v. City of New York
690 F. App'x 63
| 2d Cir. | 2017Background
- Plaintiff Sean Sullivan, proceeding pro se, sued the City of New York, multiple NYPD officers, the NYC Department of Corrections (DOC) and Rikers officials, the New York City Criminal Justice Agency (CJA) and a CJA employee, and two Kings County ADAs under 42 U.S.C. § 1983 arising from his December 2, 2012 arrest, processing at Rikers, and subsequent prosecution.
- District court granted dismissal/summary judgment for most defendants and the City; judgment entered March 19, 2015. Sullivan appealed and moved for reconsideration, which was denied.
- Claims included false arrest, malicious prosecution, false imprisonment, abuse of process, First and Sixth Amendment violations, deprivation of property, and Monell municipal liability.
- District court dismissed DOC, Warden, DOC employees, and ADAs: DOC is not suable, plaintiff failed to plead Monell policy or personal involvement, and ADAs have prosecutorial immunity; alleged property deprivation was defeated by availability of state post-deprivation remedies.
- Claims against CJA and its employee were dismissed under Rule 12(b)(6): Sixth Amendment right to counsel had not attached at the time of the CJA interview because no accusatory instrument had been filed; CJA had no duty to appoint counsel and was not shown to have denied bail.
- Summary judgment for City and NYPD: record showed probable cause for the arrest and prosecution, negating false arrest, malicious prosecution, false imprisonment, abuse of process, and retaliation claims; no viable Monell theory was presented.
Issues
| Issue | Plaintiff's Argument | Defendant's Argument | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| False arrest / malicious prosecution / false imprisonment | Sullivan alleged arrest and prosecution lacked probable cause and were retaliatory | Officers and City showed probable cause for arrest and continuing probable cause for prosecution | Dismissed/summary judgment for defendants — probable cause existed, defeating claims |
| Monell municipal liability | City policies/customs caused constitutional violations | No underlying constitutional violation; no evidence of policy or custom causing harm | Dismissed — no constitutional violation and insufficient evidence of municipal policy/custom |
| Sixth Amendment right to counsel re: CJA interview | CJA interviewed Sullivan without counsel present, violating Sixth Amendment | Right to counsel had not attached pre-accusation; CJA had no duty to appoint counsel and could interview | Dismissed under Rule 12(b)(6) — right to counsel not yet attached; no personal responsibility for bail denial shown |
| Claims vs. DOC, Warden, ADAs, DOC employees | DOC employees and ADAs violated rights (property loss, improper assistance to ex-wife, etc.) | DOC is non-suable; plaintiff failed to plead personal involvement or Monell policy; ADAs entitled to absolute immunity; state remedies for property loss available | Dismissed — DOC non-suable, lack of personal involvement/Monell pleading, prosecutorial immunity, and adequate post-deprivation remedies |
Key Cases Cited
- Monell v. Department of Social Services, 436 U.S. 658 (municipal liability requires policy or custom causing constitutional violation)
- Kirby v. Illinois, 406 U.S. 682 (Sixth Amendment right to counsel attaches at initiation of adversary judicial proceedings)
- Betts v. Shearman, 751 F.3d 78 (probable cause is a complete defense to false arrest/false imprisonment; continuing probable cause defeats malicious prosecution)
- Alexandre v. Cortes, 140 F.3d 406 (state post-deprivation remedies render negligent deprivation of property non-actionable under § 1983)
- Warney v. Monroe County, 587 F.3d 113 (absolute prosecutorial immunity for acts intimately associated with the judicial phase)
- Jenkins v. City of New York, 478 F.3d 76 (municipal agencies are not suable separate entities)