Alli v. Lue
- Paul Gardephe
- 1:23-cv-05263
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 15
In Alli v. Lue, Judge Failla ordered service and discovery steps while unidentified defendants were being identified.
Umar Alli, the identified defendants, the City of New York, the unnamed defendants, and the New York City Department of Correction and its Corporation Counsel.
What happened
In Alli v. Lue, Umar Alli, who is incarcerated and representing himself, brought claims under federal civil-rights law and state law against ESU Captain Lue, ESU Officer Nwosu, unidentified officers and a doctor, and the City of New York.
The court asked Lue, Nwosu, and the City to waive formal service of the lawsuit and required them to answer standard prisoner-case discovery requests within 120 days. It also directed the City’s attorney to identify the unnamed officers and doctor within 60 days, after which Alli must file an amended complaint naming them within 30 days.
Judge Katherine Polk Failla issued an order of service and did not resolve whether Alli’s underlying claims were valid. The court also directed the Clerk to send materials to Alli and provided information about a legal clinic offering limited assistance to people representing themselves.
The detailed version
- Alli v. Lue · No. 1:23-cv-05263
- Paul Gardephe
- July 18, 2023
Background
Umar Alli, who is incarcerated at Attica Correctional Facility and is proceeding without a lawyer, filed a civil action under 42 U.S.C. § 1983, a federal law that permits certain claims against state or local officials, and under state law. The court construed the complaint as asserting those claims against ESU Captain Lue, ESU Officer Nwosu, unidentified ESU officers, an unidentified doctor, and the City of New York.
The court had previously granted Alli permission to proceed without paying the filing fee in advance. The opinion notes that prisoners still must pay the full filing fee over time under 28 U.S.C. § 1915(b)(1).
Service and discovery
The court requested that Lue, Nwosu, and the City waive service of summonses. It also directed those defendants to comply with Local Civil Rule 33.2, which requires responses to specified court-ordered discovery requests in certain prisoner cases. Their responses must be served within 120 days of the order, and the defendants must quote each discovery request verbatim in their responses.
Identifying unnamed defendants
The court stated that a self-represented litigant is entitled to the court’s assistance in identifying unnamed defendants. It found that Alli had provided enough information for the New York City Department of Correction to identify the ESU officers who encountered him with Officer Nwosu on August 22, 2020, and the doctor on duty for his medical visit after the alleged assault that day.
The court directed the Corporation Counsel of the City of New York, as the attorney for and agent of the Department of Correction, to determine the identities and, when appropriate, badge numbers and service addresses of those defendants. That information must be provided to Alli and the court within 60 days. Within 30 days after receiving it, Alli must file an amended complaint naming the newly identified defendants. The amended complaint will replace, rather than add to, the original complaint. The court will then screen the amended complaint and may issue further service and discovery directions.
Additional assistance and disposition
The court informed Alli that he may seek limited assistance from the New York Legal Assistance Group’s clinic for people representing themselves in civil cases. The clinic is not part of the court, and Alli would remain responsible for filing documents and meeting deadlines.
The court directed the Clerk to mail Alli an information package and a copy of the order, notify the Department of Correction and the City’s Law Department, and send the Corporation Counsel a copy of the order and complaint. This was an order of service and case-management directions; it did not decide the merits of Alli’s claims.
Outcome
The court granted no merits judgment and dismissed no claims in this order. It requested service waivers, required specified discovery, ordered assistance in identifying unnamed defendants, and directed Alli to file an amended complaint after receiving that identifying information.
Read the full 15-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.