Johnson v. City of New York

Background

Michael A. Johnson, proceeding without a lawyer, brought an action under 42 U.S.C. § 1983. He alleged that, on November 8, 2017, at a New York City Department of Social Services location in the Bronx, six defendants assaulted him and then falsely arrested him. The six defendants identified as allegedly involved in those events were the City of New York; Sergeants Alexis Rodriguez and Wendell Wright; Dexter Freeman; Harriet Burke; and Nancy Coleman.

Johnson named 34 defendants in total. He alleged that eight other defendants had been placed on notice months earlier that the six defendants planned to assault him: Steven Banks, Jacqueline Dudley, Peter Uzamere, James Reed, Michael West, Eugene Ross, Herminia Palacio, and Bill de Blasio. He alleged no facts showing that the remaining 20 defendants participated in the November 8 events or knew about them beforehand.

Johnson had previously been granted permission to proceed without paying filing fees. The court therefore screened the complaint under 28 U.S.C. § 1915(e)(2)(B), which requires dismissal of an action that is frivolous, malicious, fails to state a legally sufficient claim, or seeks money from an immune defendant. The court also noted that it must dismiss a case over which it lacks subject-matter jurisdiction.

Court’s Analysis

The court explained that a § 1983 claim requires facts showing each defendant’s direct and personal involvement in the alleged constitutional violation. A person cannot be held liable merely because that person supervises or employs someone who allegedly violated the plaintiff’s rights.

The court found that Johnson’s allegation that the eight defendants had been warned about a possible future assault did not show their personal involvement in violating his constitutional rights. The court also found that Johnson alleged no personal involvement at all by the other 20 defendants.

Ruling and Service

The court dismissed Johnson’s claims against the 28 defendants in those two groups for failure to state a claim under 28 U.S.C. § 1915(e)(2)(B)(ii). The court did not dismiss the claims against the City of New York, Alexis Rodriguez, Wendell Wright, Dexter Freeman, Harriet Burke, and Nancy Coleman at this stage. Because Johnson was proceeding without paying filing fees, the court ordered the Clerk to issue summonses and prepare service forms for those six defendants and directed the U.S. Marshals Service to serve them. The court extended the service deadline to 90 days after the summonses are issued.

The court also directed Johnson to notify the court if his address changes and stated that the action could be dismissed if he failed to do so. Judge George B. Daniels certified that an appeal from the order would not be taken in good faith and denied Johnson permission to proceed without paying fees for an appeal.