Atkins v. Borough of Phoenixville, Michael Bauerly, David Boelker, E. Jean Krack Michael Speck, Phoenixville Police Dep't, William Mossman, Peco Energy Co.

336 F. Supp. 3d 511
CourtDistrict Court, E.D. Pennsylvania
DecidedAugust 27, 2018
DocketCIVIL ACTION NO. 16-4503
StatusPublished
Cited by4 cases

This text of 336 F. Supp. 3d 511 (Atkins v. Borough of Phoenixville, Michael Bauerly, David Boelker, E. Jean Krack Michael Speck, Phoenixville Police Dep't, William Mossman, Peco Energy Co.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, E.D. Pennsylvania primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Atkins v. Borough of Phoenixville, Michael Bauerly, David Boelker, E. Jean Krack Michael Speck, Phoenixville Police Dep't, William Mossman, Peco Energy Co., 336 F. Supp. 3d 511 (E.D. Pa. 2018).

Opinion

WENDY BEETLESTONE, District Judge.

"The Court has consistently held that some kind of hearing is required at some time before a person is finally deprived of his property interests." Wolff v. McDonnell , 418 U.S. 539, 557-58, 94 S.Ct. 2963, 41 L.Ed.2d 935 (1974). This civil rights case requires determining what "some kind of hearing" looks like when a town deems property uninhabitable. See 42 U.S.C. § 1983. Plaintiffs Craig Atkins, Andrew Duren, and Joel Davenport claim that the Borough of Phoenixville and its officials violated their due process rights in concluding that their building, the Pennsylvania House Hotel, was unfit for human habitability. As the Borough's officials discovered, the Hotel suffered from a litany of fire hazards, ranging from gas leaks to broken fire extinguishers. Plaintiffs allege, however, that the Borough failed to give them adequate pre-deprivation notice in deeming the Hotel unfit for habitability and, in any event, failed to provide a post-deprivation remedy. Plaintiffs further aver that PECO, a private utility company, violated their constitutional rights in a similar way by shutting off the Hotel's utilities. Plaintiffs and Defendants have filed motions for summary judgment. For the reasons that follow, Plaintiffs motion shall be denied, and Defendants' motion shall be granted.

I. LEGAL STANDARD

"[S]ummary judgment is appropriate where there is 'no genuine dispute of material fact' and the moving party is 'entitled to judgment as a matter of law.' " Alabama v. North Carolina , 560 U.S. 330, 344, 130 S.Ct. 2295, 176 L.Ed.2d 1070 (2010) (quoting Fed. R. Civ. P. 56(c) ). "A genuine issue is present when a reasonable trier of fact, viewing all of the record *515evidence, could rationally find in favor of the non-moving party in light of his burden of proof." Doe v. Abington Friends Sch. , 480 F.3d 252, 256 (3d Cir. 2007) (citing Celotex Corp. v. Catrett , 477 U.S. 317, 322-26, 106 S.Ct. 2548, 91 L.Ed.2d 265 (1986) ); Anderson v. Liberty Lobby, Inc. , 477 U.S. 242, 248-52, 106 S.Ct. 2505, 91 L.Ed.2d 202 (1986). "The non-moving party may not merely deny the allegations in the moving party's pleadings; instead he must show where in the record there exists a genuine dispute over a material fact." Doe , 480 F.3d at 256 (citing Celotex , 477 U.S. at 322-26, 106 S.Ct. 2548 ). And a court must "view the facts in the light most favorable to the non-moving party and draw all reasonable inferences in that party's favor." Burton v. Teleflex Inc. , 707 F.3d 417, 425 (3d Cir. 2013).

Counsel for Plaintiffs failed to comply with the procedural requirements in moving for summary judgment and in opposing Defendants' motions for summary judgment. Rule 56(c) requires that a "party asserting that a fact cannot be or is genuinely disputed must support the assertion" by either "citing to particular parts of materials in the record" or "showing that the materials cited do not establish the absence of presence of a genuine dispute, or that an adverse party cannot produce admissible evidence to support the fact." Fed. R. Civ. P. 56(c). All of Plaintiffs' briefing lack citations to the Joint Appendix submitted by the parties. Plaintiffs furthermore did not submit a statement of undisputed material facts for their motion for summary judgment or a statement of disputed material facts for their opposition briefing. Accordingly, insofar as Defendants have substantiated their factual contentions with correct references to the Joint Appendix, those contentions will be considered undisputed. Fed. R. Civ. P. 56(e)(2).

"[I]t is the attorney's job (not the court's) to closely examine the record to determine if sufficient issues of fact exist to warrant a trial." Russell v. City of Phila. , 698 F. App'x 709, 710-11 (3d Cir. 2017) (affirming grant of summary judgment based on plaintiffs' technical deficiencies in their opposition briefing); see also Schoch v. First Fidelity Bancorporation , 912 F.2d 654, 657 (3d Cir. 1990) ("[U]nsupported allegations ... are insufficient to repel summary judgment."). With this in mind, the Court now turns to the undisputed facts of this case.

II. FACTUAL BACKGROUND

From 2003 to 2015, Atkins, Davenport, and Duren owned the Pennsylvania House Hotel in Phoenixville. The Hotel has five levels, including four stories and a basement.

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