Alicea v. City of New York

272 F. Supp. 3d 603
CourtDistrict Court, S.D. New York
DecidedAugust 8, 2017
Docket13-cv-7073 (JGK)
StatusPublished
Cited by32 cases

This text of 272 F. Supp. 3d 603 (Alicea v. City of New York) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, S.D. New York primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Alicea v. City of New York, 272 F. Supp. 3d 603 (S.D.N.Y. 2017).

Opinion

OPINION AND ORDER

JOHN G. KOELTL, District Judge:

This action began in 2013 when the plaintiff, Edmin Alicea, principally alleged pursuant to 42 U.S.C. § 1983 that Officer Alejandro Rivas and a John Doe Officer had violated his constitutional rights under the Fourteenth Amendment by falsely arresting him and by using excessive force in the process by striking and choking him and using excessively tight handcuffs. The [606]*606defendants denied . the allegations. Over the next two years, the plaintiffs allegations morphed and the claims and the defendants multiplied. Defendants and claims were added; defendants and claims were dismissed. By the time of trial, the plaintiffs theory was principally that a different Officer, Officer Paul Arico, had used excessive force on him by handcuffing the plaintiff from behind, then pulling the plaintiffs arms back and yanking them upward, which severely injured the plaintiffs shoulder. The plaintiff also claimed that arresting Officers Rivas and Brendan Regan were liable for failing to intervene. In addition, the plaintiff claimed that Officer Rivas was liable for malicious prosecution.

Following a trial, the jury found Officer Arico liable on the excessive force claim in the amount of $150,000.00 in compensatory damages and $25,000.00 in punitive damages. However, the jury found that Officers Rivas and Regan were not liable on any Count.

Pursuant to 42 U.S.C. § 1988 and Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 54(d)(2), the plaintiff has moved for $847,060.00 in attorney’s fees, and $11,944.91 in costs. The defendants oppose the motion, arguing that the plaintiffs recovery should be limited to $156,730.00 in attorney’s fees, and $3,443.87 in costs.

I.

The underlying facts are not generally in dispute. Many of the relevant facts -underlying the plaintiffs claims are discussed in Alicea v. City of New York, No. 13-CV-7073 (JGK), 2016 WL 2343862 (S.D.N.Y. May 3, 2016). Familiarity with that decision is presumed..

The plaintiff was represented by the law firm Reibman & Weiner (the “Firm”); the defendants were represented by the New York City Law Department and the Office of the Corporation Counsel of the City of New York.

On October 4, 2013, the plaintiff initiated this action by filing a Complaint. The plaintiff asserted, among other things, claims against Officer Rivas and a John Doe Officer for excessive force, false arrest, false imprisonment, malicious prosecution, and the denial of the right to a fair trial, and a Monell claim against the City of New York (the “City”). The Complaint alleged with respect to excessive force that the arresting officers had struck and choked the plaintiff and used excessively tight handcuffs. See Compl. ¶¶ 12,16.

On April 23, 2014, the plaintiff filed a First Amended Complaint (the “FAC”) adding claims against Officer Richard Ba-boolal and Sergeant Fredy Cruz. The FAC alleged that Officers Baboolal and Rivas and Sergeant Cruz had struck and choked the plaintiff.' FAC ¶ 13.

On October 16, 2014, the plaintiff filed a Second Amended Complaint (the “SAC”) adding claims against Officers Regan, Ari-co, and Terrance McGrath. The plaintiff had now alleged multiple claims against seven defendants, With respect to excessive force, the plaintiff alleged that Officer Rivas struck and choked him, while Officers McGrath, Arico, and Regan “participated in this forcé, or otherwise stood by and observed, and did nothing to intervene and stop the force being used by defendant Rivas against plaintiff.” SAC ¶¶ 18-19. The plaintiff at this point alleged that Officer Rivas “pulled [plaintiffs] arms behind his back multiple times while he was handcuffed, intentionally injuring and damaging plaintiffs rotator cuff and wrists.” SAC ¶ 26.

On October 2, 2015, the defendants filed a motion for partial summary judgment to dismiss some of the plaintiffs claims. See Dkt. 71. On April 13, 2016 — the day before oral argument on the summary judgment [607]*607motion — the plaintiff voluntarily dismissed with prejudice all of his claims against Officer McGrath because Officer McGrath was not present at his arrest, his excessive force claim against Officer Baboolal, and his Monell claim against the City. Dkt. 91; see also Alicea, 2016 WL 2343862, at *3. During oral argument, the plaintiff also withdrew, his claims for the denial of the right to a fair trial against all the defendants. In addition, he withdrew his claims for malicious prosecution against all the defendants except the claim against Officer Rivas. See Alicea, 2016 WL 2343862, at *3.

In a Memorandum Order and, Opinion dated May 3, 2016, this Court dismissed the plaintiffs false arrest claims against Officers Regan, Arico, Rivas, and Sergeant Cruz because the, arresting officers at least had probable cause to arrest the plaintiff. Id. at *6. This Court also dismissed the excessive force/failure to intervene claim against. Sergeant Cruz. Id. at *7.

On June 11, 2016, the plaintiff voluntarily withdrew all of his claims against Officer Baboolal. Dkt. 104.

Officers Arico, Regan, and Rivas remained defendants in the action, as did the City on a theory of respondeat superior, The parties filed motions in limine and other documents in preparation for trial.

On July 12, 2016 — less than a' month beforé 'the start of trial — the plaintiff changed his theory of the case. The plaintiff filed a Third Amended Complaint (the “TAC”) alleging that Officer “Arico [had] choked plaintiff, forced plaintiffs wrists behind his back and placed excessively tight handcuffs on plaintiffs wrists, and then lifted plaintiffs handcuffed arms upwards with such force and to such a height that plaintiff stood on his tip toes and suffered 'a permanent injury to his left shoulder.” TAC ¶ 16. The plaintiff now directed the failure to intervene claims against' Officers Rivas and Regan. TAC ¶ 16. Officer Rivas was no longer the target of an excessive force claim. Gone was •any allegation that an officer had struck the plaintiff.

Trial began on August 8, 2016. The case was primarily tried by Marc Reibman, a partner at Reibman & Weiner, and James Sanborn, a then-associate at the Firm.1 Aissatou Barry, a first-year associate, also sat at counsel’s table. Steven Weiner, another partner at Reibman & Weiner, observed the proceedings from the gallery. Weiner did not enter a notice of appearance in this action until oral argument on the present motion; long after trial had ended. See Dkt. 176.

The trial lasted four days. Reibman and Sanborn ably tried the case. Unlike many civil rights cases, the medical evidence was important in determining not only damages, but also liability. In particular, Reib-man and Sanborn undermined the defendants’ theory that the medical evidence showed that the plaintiffs injuries were caused by something other than force.

On August 11, 2016, the jury found Officer Paul Arico liable on the excessive force claim in the amount of $150,000.00 in compensatory damages and $25,000.00 in punitive damages. Dkt. 139. However, the jury found that Officers Rivas and Regan were not liable on any Count.

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Bluebook (online)
272 F. Supp. 3d 603, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/alicea-v-city-of-new-york-nysd-2017.