Smith v. Doe
- Vincent Briccetti
- 7:20-cv-01274
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 4
In Kimberly Smith v. Parole Officer Michael Kenny, Judge Briccetti ordered the Clerk to help the Marshals Service serve several defendants.
Kimberly Smith and the defendants Michael Kenny, Brigitte Fortune, and the Jack and Jill Doe defendants, whose service was to be handled through the U.S. Marshals Service.
What happened
Kimberly Smith brought a civil-rights lawsuit under federal law against parole officers, a director, and other identified and unidentified defendants. The court had already allowed her to proceed without paying filing fees and had extended the deadline for serving the amended complaint.
Summonses had been issued for Michael Kenny, Brigitte Fortune, and the Jack and Jill Doe defendants, but not for Robert Rosenberg. The opinion states that Smith could rely on the court and the U.S. Marshals Service to serve the defendants because she was allowed to proceed without prepaying fees.
Judge Vincent L. Briccetti ordered the Clerk of Court to complete service forms, issue the necessary summonses, and provide the documents and addresses to the Marshals Service for service on Kenny, Fortune, and the Jack and Jill Doe defendants.
The detailed version
- Smith v. Doe · No. 7:20-cv-01274
- Vincent Briccetti
- Sept. 4, 2020
Background
Kimberly Smith brought an action under 42 U.S.C. § 1983 against Parole Officers Michael Kenny and Robert Rosenberg, Director of Reentry Services Brigitte Fortune, and Jack and Jill Doe defendants. The court had previously allowed Smith to proceed without prepaying filing fees. It also directed her to request summonses and extended the time for service of the amended complaint to October 11, 2020.
Summonses were issued for Michael Kenny, Brigitte Fortune, and the Jack and Jill Doe defendants. The opinion states that no summons had been issued for Robert Rosenberg as of the date of the order.
Service ruling
Because Smith was allowed to proceed without prepaying fees, the court stated that she could rely on the court and the U.S. Marshals Service to serve the defendants. The court instructed the Clerk of Court to complete U.S. Marshals Service Process Receipt and Return forms with the addresses for Kenny, Fortune, and the Jack and Jill Doe defendants. The Clerk was also instructed to issue summonses and deliver the documents needed for service to the Marshals Service. The opinion did not decide the merits of Smith’s civil-rights claims.
Read the full 4-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.