Nunez v. N.Y.C. Department of Correction
- Laura Swain
- 1:11-cv-05845
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 5
In Nunez v. N.Y.C. Department of Correction, Judge Swain granted continued sealing of specified exhibits, allowing access only to the parties.
The parties, who retain access to the specified exhibits, and members of the public, who cannot access those exhibits because they remain sealed.
What happened
In Nunez v. N.Y.C. Department of Correction, the defendants asked the court to keep certain exhibits filed under seal. The exhibits included a Department of Correction compliance report, assessments, and security-audit materials.
The defendants argued that protective orders and agreements in the case required the documents to remain confidential. They also argued that public access could create safety and security concerns and could expose incomplete or confusing information.
Judge Swain granted the request. Exhibits 154, 156, and 159 through 169 attached to Mary Lynne Werlwas’s declaration will remain sealed, with access limited to the parties.
The detailed version
- Nunez v. N.Y.C. Department of Correction · No. 1:11-cv-05845
- Laura Swain
- June 20, 2024
Background
The defendants asked the court to continue sealing exhibits 154, 156, and 159 through 169 attached to the declaration of Mary Lynne Werlwas. The request followed the court’s June 14, 2024, order directing the defendants to explain why those documents should remain sealed. The filing stated that the plaintiffs took no position on continued sealing.
Arguments
The defendants argued that the documents were covered by protective orders and confidentiality agreements entered during the case. They identified the documents as including the Department of Correction’s First Compliance Report, assessments prepared by the Nunez Compliance Unit concerning incidents at the Robert N. Davoren Center, and materials supporting Nunez Compliance Unit security audits.
The defendants relied on a 2015 amended protective order, later agreements concerning Department of Correction compliance reports, a 2017 supplemental protective order, and a 2023 supplemental protective order. They argued that these measures required confidential materials to be filed under seal. They also argued that the public-access rules did not require disclosure because the compliance report was intended to support the monitoring process and because disclosure of the security materials could threaten the safety of Department of Correction staff and prisoners.
Ruling
Judge Swain granted the request. The court ordered that exhibits 154, 156, and 159 through 169 attached to the declaration of Mary Lynne Werlwas remain under seal, with party-level access only, for the reasons stated in the defendants’ filing. The docket entry for the plaintiffs’ related filing, DE 721, was marked resolved. The order addressed sealing and did not decide the underlying claims in the case.
Read the full 5-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.