Abdullah v. Department of Corrections

Background

Khalif Tariq Abdullah filed a civil-rights action under 42 U.S.C. § 1983, a federal law allowing claims against state actors for violating federal rights. He represented himself and was detained at the Robert N. Davoren Center on Rikers Island when the order was issued. He alleged that the defendants violated his rights while he was incarcerated at Attica Correctional Facility. The defendants named in the complaint were the “Department of Corrections,” which the court understood to mean the New York State Department of Corrections and Community Supervision, Sergeant S. Leon, and Superintendent J. Wilcox. The court treated Abdullah’s original complaint and a later supplement as one operative pleading.

Venue analysis

The court explained that venue—the proper federal district for a case—may be based on where a defendant resides or where a substantial part of the events occurred. Abdullah did not state where the defendants resided; he provided only their work addresses in Attica, New York. The court therefore said it was unclear whether venue was proper in the Southern District of New York based on the defendants’ residences.

The court concluded that venue was proper in the Western District of New York because Attica Correctional Facility is in Wyoming County, within that district. It also considered the transfer statute, which allows a court to move a case to another proper district for the convenience of the parties and witnesses and in the interest of justice. The court found that the underlying events occurred at Attica, where the individual defendants worked, and that relevant documents and witnesses could reasonably be located in Wyoming County. It therefore found the Western District of New York to be the more convenient forum.

The court noted that the complaint briefly referred to events at a shelter operated by the New York City Department of Homeless Services, but characterized those events as only tangentially related, if related at all, to the claims based on Attica. In a footnote, the court also stated that claims against the New York State agency identified as the Department of Corrections and Community Supervision are barred by constitutional immunity for states and their instrumentalities.

Ruling and effect

Chief Judge Laura Taylor Swain ordered the Clerk of Court to transfer the action to the United States District Court for the Western District of New York under 28 U.S.C. § 1404(a). The court did not decide whether Abdullah’s underlying civil-rights allegations were valid. It stated that the transferee court would decide whether Abdullah could proceed without prepaying court fees. The Southern District of New York issued no summons and closed the case in that court. It also certified that an appeal would not be taken in good faith and denied permission to appeal without prepaying fees.