Coste v. City of New York
- Colleen McMahon
- 1:20-cv-10365
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 2
In Coste v. City of New York, Judge McMahon unsealed specified arrest records for confidential use in the parties’ pending civil case.
The order affects the plaintiffs and defendants in the civil action, the agencies and other entities holding the specified arrest records, and the records of Ryan Guzman and Michel Jeandarcel. The records may be disclosed to the City’s Corporation Counsel or an authorized representative, subject to the confidentiality and case-use limits in the order.
What happened
Coste v. City of New York concerns a joint request to obtain records about the December 12, 2017 arrests of Ryan Guzman and Michel Jeandarcel. The order says the records were believed to be sealed under New York law and were relevant to the pending civil case.
The court ordered the records unsealed if they were held by listed agencies or other relevant entities. The records could be provided to the City’s Corporation Counsel or an authorized representative, but they had to remain confidential and could be used only to prosecute or defend the plaintiffs’ claims in this case.
Judge McMahon granted the joint request by ordering the records unsealed and restricting their use to this civil lawsuit.
The detailed version
- Coste v. City of New York · No. 1:20-cv-10365
- Colleen McMahon
- Mar. 1, 2022
Background
The parties jointly applied to unseal records concerning the December 12, 2017 arrests of Ryan Guzman and Michel Jeandarcel. The order states that the records were believed to be sealed and protected from disclosure under New York Criminal Procedure Law sections 160.50 and 160.55. It also states that the requested information was material and relevant to the pending civil action.
Court’s Authority and Order
The court stated that it had inherent authority to unseal the records in connection with the civil action. It ordered unsealed records in the possession, custody, or control of the New York City Police Department; the New York County District Attorney’s Office; the Supreme, Criminal, and/or Family Courts of New York County; the New York City Department of Correction; and any other agency, investigative body, or individual holding documents related to the arrests.
The court ordered that the records be disclosed to Georgia M. Pestana, Corporation Counsel of the City of New York, or an authorized representative. The records were to remain confidential and could be used only to prosecute or defend the plaintiffs’ claims in this civil suit.
Disposition
Judge Colleen McMahon ordered the specified records unsealed under New York Criminal Procedure Law sections 160.50 and 160.55. The order addressed access to and permitted use of records; it did not decide the underlying claims in the civil action.
Read the full 2-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.