Woodhouse v. Bosely
- Kenneth Karas
- 7:25-cv-01229
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 11
In Woodhouse v. Bosely, Judge Karas ordered service on two defendants and identification of two unnamed officers without deciding the claims’ merits.
Darri D. Woodhouse, the City of Mount Vernon, Officer Christopher Bosely, and the two unidentified Mount Vernon police officers.
What happened
In Woodhouse v. Bosely, Darri D. Woodhouse, who is proceeding without a lawyer, claims that Mount Vernon officials violated his federal constitutional rights and seeks damages. The court had already allowed him to proceed without paying filing fees in advance.
The court directed the Clerk and the U.S. Marshals Service to serve the City of Mount Vernon and Officer Christopher Bosely. It also ordered the City’s Corporation Counsel to identify the two unnamed officers who allegedly arrested Woodhouse around October 2 or 3, 2023, and provide their service information. Woodhouse must then file a Second Amended Complaint naming those officers.
Judge Kenneth M. Karas issued an order of service and set deadlines for service, identifying the unnamed officers, and filing the Second Amended Complaint. The order did not decide whether Woodhouse’s constitutional or state-law claims are valid.
The detailed version
- Woodhouse v. Bosely · No. 7:25-cv-01229
- Kenneth Karas
- Apr. 21, 2025
Background
Darri D. Woodhouse is currently held in the Westchester County Jail and is representing himself. His Amended Complaint asserts claims under 42 U.S.C. § 1983, which provides a way to seek damages for certain constitutional violations by state or local officials, as well as state-law claims. He names the City of Mount Vernon, Police Officer Christopher Bosely, and two unidentified Mount Vernon police officers. He seeks damages.
The court had previously granted Woodhouse permission to proceed without prepaying filing fees. Because he received that permission, the court explained that he could rely on the court and the United States Marshals Service to serve the summons and complaint.
Court’s Directives
The court directed the Clerk of Court to issue summonses for the City of Mount Vernon and Bosely, complete service forms with their addresses, and give the necessary documents to the United States Marshals Service. If those defendants are not served within 90 days after their summonses are issued, Woodhouse should request more time for service. The court also instructed Woodhouse to notify the court in writing of any address change.
The court found that the Amended Complaint provided enough information for the Mount Vernon Police Department to identify the two unnamed officers who arrested Woodhouse on or about October 2 or 3, 2023. It ordered the City of Mount Vernon’s Corporation Counsel to provide the officers’ identities, service addresses, and, if appropriate, badge numbers to Woodhouse and the court within 60 days.
After receiving that information, Woodhouse must file a Second Amended Complaint within 30 days. That complaint will replace, rather than supplement, the earlier complaints. The court will screen the new complaint and, if necessary, issue another service order for the newly identified defendants.
Disposition
Judge Kenneth M. Karas issued an order directing service on the City of Mount Vernon and Bosely and directing the identification of the two unnamed officers. The order did not decide the merits of Woodhouse’s federal constitutional or state-law claims.
Read the full 11-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.