Murray v. C.O. John Doe
- James Oetken
- 1:22-cv-00973
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 9
In Murray v. C.O. John Doe, Judge Oetken ordered officials to identify unnamed defendants and allowed Robert Murray to amend his civil-rights complaint.
Robert Murray and the unnamed defendants are affected. The New York City Law Department must investigate and provide identifying and service information, and Murray must file an amended complaint after receiving it.
What happened
Robert Murray, known as LEVITICUS LUCFER, sued C.O. John Doe, C.O. John Doe, C.O. Jane Doe, and OMH Jane Doe under a federal civil-rights law. He alleges that, in January 2022, the defendants assaulted him, sprayed him with mace, interfered with his food, denied him a shower, and placed him in a wheelchair-inaccessible cell in retaliation for filing lawsuits.
The court had already allowed Murray to proceed without paying the filing fee at the start of the case. Because the complaint did not identify the defendants by name but appeared to contain enough information for the New York City Department of Correction to identify them, the court ordered the New York City Law Department to investigate.
Judge J. Paul Oetken ordered the Law Department to provide the defendants’ identities, badge numbers, and service addresses within 60 days. Murray must then file an amended complaint naming the defendants within 30 days after receiving that information; the court will screen that complaint later.
The detailed version
- Murray v. C.O. John Doe · No. 1:22-cv-00973
- James Oetken
- Mar. 31, 2022
Background
Robert Murray, known as LEVITICUS LUCFER, brought this action without a lawyer under 42 U.S.C. § 1983, a federal law allowing claims for violations of constitutional rights by officials acting under state law. He alleges that the defendants assaulted him, sprayed him with mace, encouraged other detainees to “violate” his food, denied him access to a shower, and housed him in a cell that could not accommodate his wheelchair. He alleges that these actions occurred in “C-95” in the George R. Vierno Center, “19 Building,” from January 2 through January 27, 2022, and were retaliation for filing lawsuits.
The court previously granted Murray permission to proceed without paying the filing fee at the beginning of the case. The defendants remained unidentified in the complaint as two C.O. John Does, one C.O. Jane Doe, and OMH Jane Doe, Supervisor of the Pace Program at GRVC. The opinion states that the complaint appeared to provide enough information for the New York City Department of Correction to identify the two C.O. John Does and the C.O. Jane Doe whom Murray sought to sue.
Court’s Order
The court ordered the New York City Law Department, as attorney and agent for the New York City Department of Correction, to determine the identity and badge number of each Doe defendant Murray sought to sue and the addresses where those defendants could be served. The Law Department must provide that information to Murray and the court within 60 days of the order. The Clerk was directed to send the order and complaint to the Law Department and to send Murray the order and an information package.
Within 30 days after receiving the identifying information, Murray must file an amended complaint naming the John Doe defendants. The amended complaint will replace, rather than supplement, the original complaint. The court stated that it will screen the amended complaint and, if necessary, later issue an order asking the defendants to waive service. The order did not decide whether Murray’s allegations establish a violation of his rights.
Read the full 9-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.