Cano v. City of New York
- Subramanian
- 1:23-cv-03733
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 15
In Cano v. City of New York, Judge Subramanian requested service waivers, ordered discovery responses, and required identification of unnamed defendants.
Christopher Hiram Cano; the City of New York; the identified Department of Correction defendants; unidentified Department of Correction personnel; the City’s Corporation Counsel; and the Clerk of Court.
What happened
Christopher Hiram Cano v. City of New York is a case brought by Cano, who was held at the George R. Vierno Center on Rikers Island and asserted federal and state-law claims. This order addressed the case’s next steps rather than deciding whether those claims were valid.
The court requested that six identified defendants waive service of the lawsuit: the City of New York, the North Infirmary Command warden, Deputy Warden Booker, Captain Fernandez, Officer Gomez, and Gang Intelligence Officer Chambers. It also required those defendants to answer standard prisoner-case discovery requests within 120 days. The City’s attorney was directed to identify unnamed Department of Correction personnel and provide information needed to serve them; Cano then has 30 days after receiving that information to file an amended complaint naming them.
Judge Arun Subramanian issued the order on August 29, 2023. The court also directed the Clerk to send information to Cano and the City and informed Cano about possible limited assistance from the New York Legal Assistance Group. The order did not resolve the merits of Cano’s claims.
The detailed version
- Cano v. City of New York · No. 1:23-cv-03733
- Subramanian
- Aug. 29, 2023
Background
Christopher Hiram Cano filed an action asserting federal and state-law claims. The opinion states that he was being held at the George R. Vierno Center on Rikers Island and was representing himself. The court had previously allowed him to proceed without paying the filing fee upfront. In a separate order issued the same day, the court denied the defendants’ motion to revoke that status.
This order did not describe or decide the merits of Cano’s underlying claims. It established steps for notifying defendants, obtaining information about unidentified defendants, and beginning discovery.
Identified Defendants and Service
The court directed the Clerk of Court to notify the New York City Department of Correction and the New York City Law Department. The court requested that the following identified defendants waive service of the summonses, if they had not already done so:
- the City of New York; - the warden of the North Infirmary Command; - North Infirmary Command Deputy Warden Booker; - Department of Correction Correction Captain Fernandez; - Department of Correction Correction Officer Gomez; and - Department of Correction Gang Intelligence Officer Chambers.
A waiver of service allows a defendant to accept formal notice of the lawsuit without requiring personal service of the summons.
Discovery
The court held that Local Civil Rule 33.2 applies. That rule requires defendants in certain prisoner cases to answer specified, court-ordered discovery requests. The identified defendants must serve responses to the standard interrogatories and document requests within 120 days of the order. Their responses must quote each request verbatim.
Unidentified Defendants
The court stated that Cano’s complaint provided enough information for the Department of Correction to identify unidentified defendants. The categories included:
- Department of Correction personnel involved in transferring Cano on or about December 15, 2021, from the North Infirmary Command to another Department of Correction facility, including the Bellevue Hospital Prison Ward;
- Department of Correction personnel involved in storing and maintaining Cano’s personal property at the North Infirmary Command from that transfer until January 21, 2022; and
- the Department of Correction Gang Intelligence officer who allegedly returned seven bags of Cano’s personal property with Officer Chambers on or about January 21, 2022.
The court directed the Corporation Counsel of the City of New York, identified as the attorney and agent for the Department of Correction, to determine the identities and, when appropriate, badge numbers of those individuals and provide addresses where they could be served. That information must be given to Cano and the court within 60 days.
Within 30 days after receiving the information, Cano must file an amended complaint naming the newly identified defendants. The amended complaint will replace, rather than supplement, the original complaint. The court stated that it will screen the amended complaint and may later request service waivers and require the newly identified defendants to comply with Local Civil Rule 33.2.
Additional Information and Disposition
The court directed the Clerk to mail Cano an information package, a copy of the order, and the complaint to the City’s Corporation Counsel. The order also informed Cano that he may seek limited-scope assistance from the New York Legal Assistance Group’s clinic for people representing themselves in civil cases. The clinic is a private organization and is not part of the court; Cano would remain responsible for filing documents and meeting deadlines.
Judge Arun Subramanian ordered these service, identification, and discovery-related steps. The order did not grant or deny relief on the underlying federal or state-law claims.
Read the full 15-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.