Taylor v. New York State Dept. of Correction Employees

Background

Roy Taylor, who was incarcerated at Auburn Correctional Facility and proceeded without a lawyer, brought claims alleging federal constitutional and state-law violations. He sought damages from 13 listed or unidentified defendants, including the New York State Department of Correction employees, New York City Correction Commissioner Molina, correction officers Whyte and Carter, medical providers, and other unidentified personnel. The court construed the federal claims as arising under 42 U.S.C. § 1983, a statute allowing claims for certain constitutional violations by people acting under state law, along with related state-law claims.

The court had previously allowed Taylor to proceed without prepaying the filing fee. This order addressed service of the lawsuit, discovery, identification of unnamed defendants, and the proper venue for claims concerning events at Auburn. It did not decide the merits of Taylor’s underlying claims.

Service and discovery

The court asked New York City Correction Commissioner Molina and Correction Officers Whyte and Carter to waive service of summonses. It directed the Clerk of Court to issue a summons for Allan Goldberg, MD, complete the required U.S. Marshals Service form, and send the necessary papers to the Marshals Service so it could serve Goldberg. The court stated that if Goldberg was not served within 90 days after the summons was issued, Taylor should request more time.

The court directed Molina, Whyte, Carter, and Goldberg to comply with Local Civil Rule 33.2 within 120 days after service or other notice of the complaint. That rule requires responses to specified discovery requests in certain prisoner cases.

Severance and transfer

The court ruled that Taylor’s claims arising from events at Auburn—including claims against “New York State Dept of Correction Employees” and “John Doe 4 Auburn Medical ADM”—should be separated from the other claims and transferred to the United States District Court for the Northern District of New York. The court relied on Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 21 and 28 U.S.C. § 1406(a). It explained that Auburn is in Cayuga County, which is within the Northern District of New York, and that Taylor had not alleged facts showing why the Southern District of New York was the proper venue for those claims.

Identifying unnamed defendants

The court concluded that Taylor had provided enough information for the New York City Corporation Counsel, counsel for NYC Health + Hospitals, and counsel for Physician Affiliate Group of New York, P.C. to identify unnamed defendants involved in claims for which the Southern District of New York was a proper venue. The information concerned correctional and medical personnel involved in alleged events at AMKC, treatment for a hand cyst or lump, the handling of bail payments, and the seizure of clothing.

Those counsel were ordered to provide the unnamed defendants’ identities, service addresses, and, when applicable, badge numbers to Taylor and the court within 60 days of the order. Taylor was then given 30 days after receiving that information to file an amended complaint naming the newly identified defendants. The amended complaint would replace, rather than supplement, the original complaint. The court stated that it would screen the amended complaint after it was filed.

Disposition

The court directed the Clerk of Court to send the order and related materials to Taylor and to notify the relevant New York City agencies and counsel. It certified that any appeal from the order would not be taken in good faith and denied Taylor permission to proceed without prepaying fees for purposes of an appeal. The order was signed by Judge Andrew L. Carter, Jr. on January 5, 2023.