Alli v. Falconer
- Paul Gardephe
- 1:23-cv-10519
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 5
In Alli v. Falconer, Judge Gardephe ordered service and identification steps for defendants in Umar Alli’s civil-rights case.
Umar Alli; the named individual defendants; the City of New York; the unnamed correctional and medical defendants; the New York City Department of Correction; the New York City Law Department; NYC Health+Hospitals; and Physician Affiliate Group of New York, P.C.
What happened
In Alli v. Falconer, Umar Alli, who is incarcerated and representing himself, seeks damages under federal and state law based on alleged events involving correctional officers and medical providers. The court understood his complaint to raise claims under the Civil Rights Act, the Americans with Disabilities Act, the Rehabilitation Act, and state law.
The order asks several named defendants and New York City to accept service, requires them to answer standard prisoner-case discovery requests within 120 days, and directs government and health-care counsel to identify the unnamed defendants within 60 days. After receiving that information, Alli must file an amended complaint within 30 days; the court will then screen it and decide what further service is needed.
Judge Gardephe’s order did not decide whether Alli’s claims were legally valid or whether he should win damages. It set procedures for moving the case forward, so the ruling is classified as a procedural order.
The detailed version
- Alli v. Falconer · No. 1:23-cv-10519
- Paul Gardephe
- Jan. 8, 2024
Background
Umar Alli, who is incarcerated and proceeding without a lawyer, filed an action seeking damages. The complaint names ESU officers and captains, the City of New York, numerous unnamed “John Doe” officers and medical providers, and other medical personnel. The court understood the complaint to assert claims under 42 U.S.C. § 1983, Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act, the Rehabilitation Act, and state law.
The court had previously allowed Alli to proceed without prepaying filing fees. This order is an order of service. It does not determine whether the claims succeed.
What the Court Ordered
The court requested that ESU Officers Falconer, Reyes, Gillispie, and Smith; ESU Captains Slack and Bellow; and the City of New York waive service of the summonses. It also directed the Clerk of Court to notify the New York City Department of Correction and the New York City Law Department about the order.
The court ruled that Local Civil Rule 33.2 applies. That rule requires defendants in certain prisoner cases to respond to specified court-ordered discovery requests. The identified defendants and the City must serve responses within 120 days of the order and must quote each request verbatim in their responses.
The complaint provided enough information for the relevant attorneys to identify the unnamed defendants. The Corporation Counsel of the City of New York, counsel for NYC Health+Hospitals, and counsel for Physician Affiliate Group of New York, P.C., must determine the identities and, when appropriate, badge numbers and service addresses of the unnamed defendants. They must provide that information to Alli and the court within 60 days.
After receiving the identifying information, Alli must file an amended complaint within 30 days. The amended complaint will replace, rather than supplement, the original complaint. The court will then screen the amended complaint and, if necessary, issue further directions about service and compliance with Local Civil Rule 33.2.
Disposition and Classification
The court entered procedural directions concerning service, discovery, identification of unnamed defendants, and amendment of the complaint. It did not rule on the merits of Alli’s claims or award damages. The opinion text identifies Jennifer L. Rochon as the judge in the body and contains a signature reading “Keak Kechoe,” while the supplied case metadata identifies Paul Gardephe; this judge information should be reviewed.
Read the full 5-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.