Sheppard v. Department of Corrections
- John Cronan
- 1:20-cv-09405
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 4
In Sheppard v. Department of Corrections, Judge Aaron ordered service of Sheppard’s COVID-19 protection lawsuit on two defendants and requested another waive service.
Cyril Sheppard, Patricia Yang, Margaret Egan, Commissioner Cynthia Brann, and the New York City Department of Correction are affected by the service and case-management directions. The order also directs the Clerk of Court and the U.S. Marshals Service to take specified steps.
What happened
In Sheppard v. Department of Corrections, Cyril Sheppard, who is incarcerated at the Vernon C. Bain Center, filed a lawsuit without a lawyer under a federal civil-rights law. He alleges that jail officials are failing to protect him from contracting COVID-19.
The court directed the Clerk of Court and the U.S. Marshals Service to issue summonses and serve Sheppard’s Second Amended Complaint on Patricia Yang and Margaret Egan. It extended the service deadline for those defendants until 90 days after their summonses are issued and instructed Sheppard to ask for more time if service is not completed. The court also requested that Commissioner Cynthia Brann waive service.
Judge Stewart D. Aaron issued this order of service. The order did not decide whether Sheppard’s allegations are legally valid; it set procedures for notifying the defendants and moving the case forward.
The detailed version
- Sheppard v. Department of Corrections · No. 1:20-cv-09405
- John Cronan
- Mar. 29, 2021
Background
Cyril Sheppard, who is incarcerated at the Vernon C. Bain Center, filed this action without a lawyer under 42 U.S.C. § 1983. He alleges that jail officials are failing to protect him from contracting COVID-19. Sheppard originally filed his complaint with 49 other detainees, but the court separated the claims into separate civil actions. Sheppard is the only plaintiff in this action.
The court had previously granted Sheppard permission to proceed without paying filing fees in advance. Sheppard then filed a Second Amended Complaint on March 17, 2021.
Service on Yang and Egan
Because Sheppard was authorized to proceed without prepaying fees, the court explained that he could rely on the court and the U.S. Marshals Service to serve the defendants. The court directed the Clerk of Court to issue summonses for Patricia Yang and Margaret Egan, complete service forms with their addresses, and send the necessary papers to the Marshals Service.
The court extended the time to serve Yang and Egan until 90 days after their summonses are issued. If service is not completed within that period, the order states that Sheppard should request an extension of time. The order also requires Sheppard to notify the court in writing if his address changes and warns that the action may be dismissed if he does not do so.
Service on Brann
The court directed the Clerk of Court to notify the New York City Department of Correction and the New York City Law Department about the order. It requested that Commissioner Cynthia Brann waive service of summons.
Disposition and effect
This is an order of service, not a decision on the merits. Judge Stewart D. Aaron directed steps to notify Yang and Egan, requested that Brann waive service, and sent the case forward procedurally. The order did not determine whether Sheppard proved that jail officials failed to protect him from COVID-19.
Read the full 4-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.