Robert Draper v. Davis S. CoombsRobert Draper v. Davis S. Coombs
The plaintiff brought this
I. FACTS
In July 1980, Robert A. Draper, accompanied by three passengers, was driving his automobile south on Interstate Highway 5 in the State of Washington toward the Oregon border. While still in Washington, Wаshington State Patrol Trooper Coombs attempted to stop the automobile because Draper was driving erratically and in excess of the speed limit. He continued to drive in that manner, with Trooper Coombs in pursuit, across the state line into Oregon.
Trooper Coombs pursued Draper to Portland, Oregon where he subsequently forced Draper to stop. Coombs detained Draper and the passengers and awaited the arrival of police officers from the City of Portland whom he had called for assistance. When Portland Police Officers John Goff and John Garvey arrived at the scene, the officers from the two jurisdictions discussed the question whether Draper would be taken into custody by Coombs for return to Washington or would be arrested by the Portland police officers and initially detained in Oregon. In hopes of clarifying the apparent uncertainty as to the proper procedure to be followed, Coombs conferred with his superior, Sergeant Cook, while the Portland officers conferred with their superior, Sergeant Dick. Following these consultations, Coombs arrested Draper for “attempting to elude a pursuing police vehicle” and transported him to Clark County Jail in Washington.
After Draper’s arrest, the Portland officers ordered Draper’s automobile towed away by Sam’s Towing, a private towing company. Later that same day, Draper’s daughter, one of the three passengers in his car at the time of the arrest, attempted to recover the automobile from the towing company. Sam’s required her tо pay $53.95, in towing and other charges, before it would release the automobile. After the charges were paid, Sam’s released the automobile.
Draper was convicted in Washington state court under a Washington statute for
Draper filed this
pro se
action seeking damages under
II. THE IMMUNITY OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON AND THE WASHINGTON STATE TROOPERS UNDER THE ELEVENTH AMENDMENT
A.
The district court dismissed Draper’s
B.
Draper’s
If found to have violated an individual’s federal constitutional or statutory rights, a state official may be held
personally
liable for damages.
See Scheuer v. Rhodes,
III. DRAPER’S SECTION 1983 CLAIM BASED ON THE EXTRADITION FROM OREGON TO WASHINGTON
Draper pleaded
A.
Draper bases one of his
[wjhenever the executive authority of any State or Territory demands any person as a fugitive from justice, of the executive authority of any State, District or Territory to which such person has fled, and produces a copy of an indictmеnt found or an affidavit made before a magistrate of any State or Territory,charging the person demanded with having committed treason, felony, or other crime, certified as authentic by the governor or chief magistrate of the State or Territory from whence the person so charged has fled, the executive authority of the State, District or Territory to which such person has fled shall cause him to be arrested and secured, and notify the executive authority making such demand, or the agent of such authority appointed to receive the fugitive, and shall cause the fugitive to be delivered to such agent when he shall appear. If no such agent appears within thirty days from the time of the arrest, the prisoner may be discharged.
The Washington and Portland law enforcement officers do not dispute the fact that they failed to comply with the minimal procedures set forth in
The extradition statute implements a provision of the United States Constitution. The Constitutional provision and the implementing statute were “intended to enable each state to bring offenders to trial as swiftly as possible in the state where the alleged offense was committed” and “to preclude any state from becoming a sanctuary for fugitives from justice of another state.”
Michigan v. Doran,
In light of the nature and purpose of the extradition statute, we hold that a claim alleging its violation by state or local police officers states a cause of action under
The Portland police officers also contend that, because
B.
Draper alleges,
inter alia,
that the law enforcement officers failed to comply with the requirements of the Oregon Uniform Act on Fresh Pursuit,
Unlike other state laws, the Oregon Uniform Act on Fresh Pursuit is similar to the federal extradition statute in that it is designed to implement the extradition clause of the United States Constitution. We аgree with the four circuits that have held that a violation of state extradition law can serve as the basis of a
C. Damages
Although the district court held that Draper properly stated
IV. CONSTITUTIONALITY OF THE PORTLAND TOWING ORDINANCE AND THE OREGON LIEN STATUTE
Draper also raises due process challenges to City of Portland Ordinance § 16.-04.020, which authorized the towing of his automobile after his arrest but which failed to provide for any hearing with respect to the towing or the charges. He аlleges that, because of constitutional infirmities in the ordinance, the towing constituted a taking of property without due process in violation of the fourteenth amendment and seeks damages from the City of Portland and three of its police officers. 10 The district court granted summary judgment in favor of those defendants. We reverse.
In
Stypmann v. City & County of San Francisco,
First, the private interest that will be affected by the official action; second, the risk of an erroneous deprivation of such interest through the procedures used, and the probable value, if any, of additional or substitute procedural safeguards; аnd finally, the Government’s interest, including the function involved and the fiscal and administrative burdens that the additional or substitute procedural requirements would entail.
In applying the balancing test to the San Francisco ordinance, we stated that “[t]he private interest in the uninterrupted use of an automobile is substantial. A person’s ability to make a living and his access to both the necessities and amenities of life may depend upon the availability of an automobile when needed.”
Stypmann,
The public interest in removing vehicles from streets and highways ... is also substantial, though differing in the various situations in which removal is authorized. Moreover, the government has a considerable interest in imposing the cost of removal upon the vehicle owner and retaining possession of the vehicle as security for payment.
Id. at 1343 (emphasis added).
Because in
Stypmann
we only considered whether a post-towing hearing was required,
11
the only governmental interest
In
Goichman v. Rheuban Motors, Inc.,
Both
Stypmann
and
Goichman
stand for the proposition that a post-tow hearing is required by the due process clause. The issue in dispute in those cases was: how long after the tow can a post-tow hearing be held without violating the car owner’s right to due process? Here, unlike the ordinances in dispute in
Stypmann
or
Goichman,
the Portland ordinance does not provide for a hearing at all.
12
We hold that, because the Portland ordinance fails to provide for a hearing, it violates the due process clause.
13
Furthermore, we hold that even though Draper may have suffered no actual injury, he may still be entitled to nominal damages.
See Carey v. Piphus,
V. DRAPER’S EIGHTH AMENDMENT CLAIMS
Draper sets forth Eighth Amendment “cruel and unusual punishment” claims against Clark County, Washington, the Clark County Sheriff, the Clark County Commissioner, and other Clark County officials (“Clark County defendants”), based on the conditions in Clark County Jail where he was initially held. However, a federal district court must apply the personal jurisdiction law of the state in which it is sitting.
See Paccar International, Inc. v. Commercial Bank оf Kuwait,
The constitutional requirements for the exercise of personal jurisdiction are satisfied if defendants (1) have the “substantial” or “continuous or systematic” contacts with the forum state necessary for the exercise of “general jurisdiction” оver them; or (2) have “avail[ed themselves] of the privilege of conducting activities in the forum, thereby invoking the benefits and protections of [the forum state’s] laws,” necessary for the exercise of “limited jurisdiction.”
Gates Learjet Corp. v. Jensen,
VI. THE DISTRICT COURT’S DENIAL OF DRAPER’S MOTIONS TO COMPEL DISCOVERY AND FOR A DEFAULT JUDGMENT
A. Denial of the Motion to Compel Discovery
The district court denied Draper’s motion to compel answers to interrogatories and for sanctions under
Draper’s interrogatories to the City of Portland and Officers Garvey, Goff, and Dick were filed long after the deadline that the district court set for the end of discovery. Draper apparently never filed a motion for an extension of time. Furthermore, when finally served on the defendants, the interrogatories did not comply with the local rules. We recognize that the plaintiff represented himself and therefore, in evaluating his compliance with the technical rules of civil procedure, we treat him with great leniency.
Cf. Haines v. Kerner,
B. Denial of the Motion for a Default Judgment
The district court also denied Draper’s motions for a default judgment under
VII. CONCLUSION
We hold that Draper properly stated claims under
AFFIRMED IN PART, REVERSED IN PART, AND REMANDED FOR FURTHER PROCEEDINGS IN ACCORDANCE WITH THIS OPINION.
Notes
. In addition to his challenges to the forcible return to Washington and the tow of his vehicle, Draper seeks damages under
Wash.Rev.Code § 46.61.024 (1979) states that: any driver of a motor vehicle who wilfully fails or refuses to immediately bring his vehicle to a stop in a manner indicating a wanton and wilful disregard for the lives or property of others while attempting to elude a pursuing police vehicle, after being given a visual or audible signal to bring the vehicle to a stop, shall be guilty of a class C felony. The signal given by the police officer may be by hand, voice, emergency light, or siren. The officer giving such a signal shall be in uniform and his vehicle shall be appropriately marked showing it to be an official police vehicle.
As we hold
infra,
the 11th amendment bars a suit against the State of Washington. Moreover, the state troopers enjoy immunity from a
. The 11th amendment provides that "[t]he Judicial power of the United States shall not be construed to extend to any suit in law or equity, commenced or prosecuted against one of the United States by citizens of another State, or by Citizens or Subjects of any Foreign State."
. The State of Washington and the Washington Troopers contend that, becausе the 11th amendment, default, and discovery issues were not listed in Draper’s notice of appeal, those issues are not properly before us. A notice of appeal need not specify the precise issues raised on appeal; rather, the notice must only specify the party appealing, the judgment being appealed, and the court to which the appeal is taken.
. State officials enjoy a qualified immunity for all conduct in their official capacity. To find Trooper Coоmbs and Sergeant Cook liable for damages, the district court would have to decide that their summary extradition of Draper without any legal proceedings failed to meet the objective standard announced in
Harlow v. Fitzgerald,
. The 11th amendment does not protect local governmental bodies or local officials.
See Lincoln County
v.
Luning,
. Art. IV, section 2, cl. 2 provides that:
a person charged in any State with Treason, Felony or other Crime, who shall flee from Justice, and be found in another State, shall on Demand of the executive Authority of the State from which he fled, be delivered up, to be removed to the State having Jurisdiction of the Crime.
. Before extraditing a prisoner, the extraditing state must determine
first, that the person demanded is substantially charged with a crime against the laws of the State from whose justice he is alleged to have fled, by an indictment or an affidavit, certified as authentic by the governor of the State making the demand; and, second, that the person demanded is a fugitive from the justice of the State the executive authority of which makes the demand.
Roberts v. Reilly,
. We do not consider the question whether any officers have a valid qualified immunity defense since that issue is not now before us.
. Draper also contends that he was entitled to a hearing under the due process clause of the 14th amendment prior to being returned forcibly to Washington. Because we hold that Draper was entitled to a hearing under the extradition clause and its implementing statute, we need not decide whether the due process clause also afforded him that right.
. Draper also challenges Oregon Revised Statute § 87.152, which allowed the person towing the vehicle to establish a lien. See infra note 13.
. In Stypmann, thе plaintiff did not argue that due process required a pre-towing hearing, but argued that the law did not provide a hearing soon enough after the towing.
. The Portland ordinance provides for the towing of a vehicle when "[tjhe vehicle was in the possession of a person taken into custody by a law enforcement agency." Portland Ordinance § 16.04.020(7). Because Draper was "taken into custody,” his automobile was towed in accordance with the provisions of the Portland ordinance. To protect the proрerty of an individual arrested, towing, pursuant to a valid ordinance, is proper in these circumstances.
See Calero-Toledo v. Pearson Yacht Leasing Co.,
Draper does not allege that, at the time of his arrest, any of the passengers in his automobile offered to take possession of it and could lawfully have done so. We need not consider whether, if a passenger could have taken possession of the automobile, the towing would have been justified.
Draper also claims that, because his car was parked on private property, there was no need to tow it. We see no justification for distinguishing between situations in which the automobile is on private or on public property. In fact, because of the burden on private property owners, there may be a stronger argument for the towing if the automobile has been parked on private property.
. As the ordinance authorizing the towing is unconstitutional, imposition of the lien was improper. We need not reach the constitutionality of the Oregon lien statute.
. The defendants may of course assеrt any lawful defense they may possess to this claim.
.
. Draper also claims that while incarcerated in Washington he was denied meaningful access to the courts and was subjected to cruel and unusual punishment. Draper named only the State of Washington as a defendant in these claims. As we have held, supra, the eleventh amendment bars Draper’s claims against the State.