Boyd v. Guthrie
- Nelson Roman
- 7:22-cv-08549
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 5
In Boyd v. Guthrie, Magistrate Judge Victoria Reznik arranged service on four new defendants and required their discovery responses.
Nyjee Boyd, the four newly added defendants, the Clerk of Court, and the U.S. Marshals Service.
What happened
In Boyd v. Guthrie, Nyjee Boyd, who is representing himself, brought a damages lawsuit under a federal civil-rights law based on events at Sing Sing Correctional Facility. He later filed an amended complaint adding Albert T. Helms, Marlyn Kopp, Babu Thumpayil, and David Brown as defendants.
The court directed the Clerk to issue summonses, complete service forms, and send the necessary papers to the U.S. Marshals Service so the four new defendants could be served. The order also stated that those defendants must respond to specified discovery requests within 120 days after service of the amended complaint.
Magistrate Judge Victoria Reznik issued the amended service order on February 15, 2024. The order addressed service and discovery procedures and did not decide the underlying claims.
The detailed version
- Boyd v. Guthrie · No. 7:22-cv-08549
- Nelson Roman
- Feb. 15, 2024
Background
Nyjee Boyd, who is incarcerated and proceeding without a lawyer, brought this damages action under 42 U.S.C. § 1983. The claims arise from alleged events at Sing Sing Correctional Facility. The original complaint named 15 defendants. After a December 6, 2023 status conference, Boyd requested more time to amend his complaint and filed an amended complaint on December 18, 2023.
The amended complaint added four defendants: Albert T. Helms, Marlyn Kopp, Sing Sing DSS Babu Thumpayil, and Correctional Sergeant David Brown. Boyd had previously been allowed to proceed without prepaying the filing fee, so the court and U.S. Marshals Service were responsible for helping complete service of process.
Court’s directives
The court directed the Clerk of Court to issue a summons for each newly added defendant, complete a U.S. Marshals Service Process Receipt and Return form for each, and provide the necessary paperwork to the U.S. Marshals Service for service. The court noted that service generally must be completed within 90 days after the summons is issued and that Boyd must request an extension if necessary. It also instructed Boyd to notify the court in writing of any address change.
The court determined that Local Civil Rule 33.2 applies. That rule requires defendants in certain prisoner cases to respond to specified court-ordered discovery requests. The four newly added defendants must serve responses to those requests within 120 days after service of the amended complaint and must quote each request word for word in their responses.
Disposition
The court directed the Clerk to issue the summonses, complete the service forms, and send the service materials to the U.S. Marshals Service. It directed the newly added defendants to comply with Local Civil Rule 33.2 within 120 days after service of the amended complaint. The court also directed the Clerk to mail Boyd a copy of the order. The order did not reach the merits of Boyd’s claims. Victoria Reznik, United States Magistrate Judge, signed the order.
Classification basis
This is a procedural order because it concerns service of process and discovery administration rather than deciding whether Boyd’s underlying claims are legally valid.
Read the full 5-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.