McPhee v. Laino
- Vincent Briccetti
- 7:22-cv-10095
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 2
In McPhee v. Laino, Judge Briccetti ordered a service-status report, kept defendants’ response deadline paused, and denied fee-free appeal status.
Aasim McPhee, the newly added defendants, the other defendants, and the New York State Attorney General’s Office were affected by the service and deadline directions.
What happened
In McPhee v. Laino, Aasim McPhee filed a second amended complaint adding seven corrections officers as defendants. Summonses were issued, but service was unsuccessful for Brendan Haberim and Latanya Taylor.
The court ordered the New York State Attorney General’s Office to report by October 5, 2023, whether it would accept service for Haberim and Taylor. If not, the office had to explain why and provide alternative addresses.
Judge Vincent Briccetti also kept all defendants’ deadlines to answer or otherwise respond paused. He certified that an appeal would not be taken in good faith and denied McPhee fee-free status for an appeal.
The detailed version
- McPhee v. Laino · No. 7:22-cv-10095
- Vincent Briccetti
- Sept. 21, 2023
Background
Aasim McPhee, representing himself and proceeding without prepaying filing fees, filed a second amended complaint on July 5, 2023. The complaint added Corrections Officers Ileshema Thomas, Curtis Egloff, Brian Collins, Latanya Taylor, Jacqueline Webber, Brendan Haberim, and Melissa Cuomo as newly identified defendants.
The court had directed the Clerk to issue summonses and provide the United States Marshals Service with the documents needed to serve the new defendants. It extended the service deadline to October 5, 2023, and paused all defendants’ deadlines to answer, make a motion, or otherwise respond to the complaint.
Service of Process
Service was completed for Collins, Cuomo, Egloff, Thomas, and Webber. Service attempts for Collins and Haberim were also returned to sender after a mailing attempt. Later forms stated that Haberim and Taylor were not on the current duty roster, so Green Haven Correctional Facility refused to accept service for them.
Ruling
Judge Vincent L. Briccetti ordered the Office of the New York State Attorney General to file a letter by October 5, 2023. The letter had to state whether the office would accept service for Haberim and Taylor. If it would not, the letter had to explain the reason and provide alternative addresses where they could be served.
The court ordered that all defendants’ deadlines to answer, make a motion, or otherwise respond to the second amended complaint would remain paused until a further court order. The court also certified that any appeal from the order would not be taken in good faith and denied fee-free status for purposes of an appeal. This order addressed service and case management rather than the merits of McPhee’s claims.
Read the full 2-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.