Nova v. Martuscelli
- Kenneth Karas
- 7:24-cv-01574
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 3
In Nova v. Martuscelli, Judge Karas denied sanctions but granted service assistance for four defendants through the U.S. Marshals Service.
Julio Nova, the four identified defendants—Kyle J. Brooks, Christian Alemany, Michael Macura, and Eduardo Esquere—and the Clerk of Court and United States Marshals Service responsible for arranging service.
What happened
In Nova v. Martuscelli, Julio Nova, who is incarcerated and representing himself, sued under a federal civil-rights law. He had asked for sanctions against defense counsel, and the court had already denied that request.
The court treated Nova’s sanctions request as also asking for more time to serve four defendants: Kyle J. Brooks, Christian Alemany, Michael Macura, and Eduardo Esquere. Because Nova was allowed to proceed without paying filing fees in advance, the court directed the Clerk and the U.S. Marshals Service to help serve those defendants.
Judge Kenneth M. Karas left the sanctions denial in place but granted Nova’s motion to serve. The summonses and amended complaint must be served within 90 days after the summonses are issued, or Nova should request more time.
The detailed version
- Nova v. Martuscelli · No. 7:24-cv-01574
- Kenneth Karas
- Aug. 13, 2025
Background
Julio Nova, who is incarcerated at Clinton Correctional Facility, brought this action without a lawyer under 42 U.S.C. § 1983. The opinion identifies Kyle J. Brooks, Christian Alemany, Michael Macura, and Eduardo Esquere as defendants relevant to this order. The court had previously allowed Nova to proceed without paying filing fees in advance.
Motions
Nova filed a letter seeking sanctions against defendants’ counsel under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 11 based on statements counsel made in connection with Nova’s request for more time to serve defendants. The court denied the sanctions motion on May 13, 2025. In this order, however, the court construed Nova’s representations in that letter as also seeking an extension of time to serve the defendants who had not yet been served.
Ruling
The court stated that a plaintiff allowed to proceed without prepaying fees may rely on the court and the United States Marshals Service to carry out service. The court therefore denied the Motion for Sanctions and granted the Motion to Serve.
The Clerk of Court was instructed to prepare a separate USM-285 process receipt and return form and summons for each of the four identified defendants, and to provide the United States Marshals Service with the paperwork needed to serve each defendant with the summons and the amended complaint. The Clerk was also directed to mail Nova a copy of the order and amended complaint.
The court explained that service must occur within 90 days after the summonses for those defendants are issued. If service does not occur within that period, Nova should request an extension of time for service. The order concerns service and sanctions; it does not decide the underlying civil-rights claims.
Read the full 3-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.