Sowell v. Annucci

Background

Randy Sowell filed this self-represented civil-rights action under 42 U.S.C. § 1983 on behalf of himself and his minor daughter, D.D.S.S. He alleged, among other things, that officials improperly kept him on parole, detained him at Rikers Island based on parole warrants, housed him in unsafe conditions, and separated him from his daughter. He also alleged events involving New Jersey criminal proceedings, New York City shelters, correctional staff, the New York City Police Department, and a Public Assistance Office.

The court had previously allowed Sowell to amend his complaint to provide more facts about possible claims for detention beyond his required release date or detention without legal justification. In the amended complaint, however, he added claims involving many unrelated events and defendants. The court grouped the allegations into five sets: New Jersey arrest and criminal-proceeding claims; parole and parole-warrant detention claims; conditions-of-confinement and retaliation claims against correctional staff; claims involving shelters and Department of Homeless Services police; and claims involving the May 6, 2022 incident, the May 19, 2022 arrest, and the resulting detention.

Court's Analysis

Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 20 allows multiple defendants to be joined in one case when the claims arise from the same transaction or related series of events and share a common legal or factual question. Rule 21 allows a court to separate claims when those requirements are not met. The court found that Sowell's claims arose from separate events, involved different defendants, and did not share the required common questions. It also concluded that separating the claims would not unfairly harm Sowell because he would have an opportunity to litigate them in separate cases.

The court separated the claims arising from Sowell's New Jersey arrest and criminal proceedings against Eric Shenkus, Megan Donnovan, Kathrin S. Weigel, Emily Buonadonna, and the Cape May Courthouse. Because the alleged events occurred in Cape May County, New Jersey, the court found that the Southern District of New York was not the proper venue for those claims and transferred them to the United States District Court for the District of New Jersey under 28 U.S.C. § 1406(a).

The court also separated three other groups of claims and directed the Clerk of Court to open three new civil actions: claims against Captain Kelly, Officer Guzman, Deputy Warden Harvey, Officer Caruso, Captain Smart, Deputy Warden Leiter, and the New York City Department of Correction concerning conditions and retaliation at correctional facilities; claims against the New York City Department of Homeless Services concerning shelter-related events; and claims against the New York City Police Department and Public Assistance Office 14th Street concerning the May 6, 2022 incident, the May 19, 2022 arrest, and the resulting detention.

Disposition

Judge Laura Taylor Swain ordered the unrelated claims severed under Rule 21. The New Jersey claims were transferred to the District of New Jersey. The Clerk was directed to open three separate civil actions for the other severed claims. The present action continues only on claims concerning Sowell's parole, parole revocation, alleged detention under parole warrants, and claims he seeks to bring on behalf of D.D.S.S. The remaining defendants in this action are Anthony Annucci, Cynthia Brann, Hubert Brown, the New York State Department of Corrections and Community Supervision, the New York City Department of Correction, and the New York City Housing Authority Albany Houses. The court also certified that an appeal would not be taken in good faith and denied fee-free status for an appeal.