Betances v. Fischer

304 F.R.D. 416, 2015 WL 363174
CourtDistrict Court, S.D. New York
DecidedJanuary 28, 2015
DocketNo. 11 Civ. 3200(SAS)
StatusPublished
Cited by18 cases

This text of 304 F.R.D. 416 (Betances v. Fischer) 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
Betances v. Fischer, 304 F.R.D. 416, 2015 WL 363174 (S.D.N.Y. 2015).

Opinion

OPINION AND ORDER

SHIRA A. SCHEINDLIN, District Judge:

I. INTRODUCTION

Beginning in 1998, New York mandated that certain violent felonies be punished by a determinate prison sentence followed by a mandatory term of parole, known as post-release supervision (“PRS”).1 The governing statute did not require that the term of PRS be announced by the judge at sentencing. In thousands of cases where the judge did not impose a term of PRS at sentencing, the New York State Department of Correctional Services (“DOCS”) imposed PRS on convicted felons either before or as they were released from prison and the Department of Parole (“DOP”) then enforced those terms.

On June 9, 2006, in Earley v. Murray,2 the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit held that the administrative imposition of PRS by DOCS violates the federal

constitutional right to Due Process. The court explained that “[o]nly the judgment of a court, as expressed through the sentence imposed by a judge, has the power to constrain a person’s liberty,” and that “[t]he additional provision for post-release supervision added by DOCS is a nullity.”3

Plaintiffs in two related actions brought claims pursuant to section 1983 of Title 42 of the United States Code against current and former high-ranking officials at DOCS and DOP. Plaintiffs claim that in the years following Earley, state officials subjected them to various unlawful conditions and custody by continuing to impose the terms of PRS that had been declared unlawful.

Defendants moved to dismiss the complaint on the grounds that because plaintiffs’ constitutional rights were not “clearly established” at the time that those rights were allegedly violated, state officials were entitled to qualified immunity for their actions. On February 10, 2012, I held that though some New York state courts were in disagreement over the reach of the Earley decision, there was never any disagreement or confusion about the core constitutional holding announced by Earley: terms of PRS imposed by the executive branch were nullified and if the State wished to re-impose them, it could seek resentencing before a judge. Therefore the defendants were not entitled to qualified immunity. Defendants appealed this ruling, and the Second Circuit affirmed.4

Plaintiffs now move to certify a class pursuant to Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 23(b)(3) on behalf of individuals who were convicted of various crimes in New York State courts on or after September 1, 1998; were sentenced to terms of incarceration but not to terms of PRS; but were nonetheless subjected to enforcement by defendants of PRS terms after the maximum expiration dates of their determinate sentences after June 9, 2006.

[422]*422II. BACKGROUND

At the class certification stage, district courts must engage in a rigorous analysis of the underlying facts in order to determine whether the plaintiffs have satisfied the requirements of Rule 23. The following factual findings, based on a preponderance of the evidence, are made only for the purpose of adjudicating this motion and will not be binding on the jury at trial.5

A. Lead Plaintiffs

1. Paul Betances

On July 20, 2004, Paul Betances pleaded guilty to robbery in the first degree and a violation of probation, and was sentenced to a determinate term of five years for the robbery, and a concurrent term of one to three years for the violation of probation.6 He was not sentenced to any term of PRS.7 He was released from prison on April 24, 2008 after serving six-sevenths of his sentence, and a five-year term of PRS was administratively imposed.8 The maximum expiration date of his sentence was January 14, 2009.9 On November 8, 2008, he was arrested on a drug charge.10 On December 15, 2008, while awaiting trial on this charge, he was charged with violating the terms of his PRS based on his alleged drug possession and violation of curfew.11 He pleaded guilty to a misdemean- or and was sentenced to a term that expired on July 9, 2009.12 Additionally, on February 23, 2009, DOP imposed a sentence of twelve months incarceration based on the violation of the terms of his PRS.13 On June 26, 2009, he filed a Petition for a Writ of Habeas Corpus seeking to vacate the administratively-imposed five-year term of PRS, as well as the twelve-month sentence of incarceration based on the violation of his PRS.14 While this Petition was pending, on July 6, 2009, counsel for DOP sent a notice to the sentencing court, seeking resentencing.15 However, on July 24, 2009, the habeas court granted relief and ordered him to be immediately released.16 He was released on July 29, 2009.17 Thus, Betances was incarcerated for twenty days solely for the violation of administratively-imposed PRS.

2. Lloyd Barnes

On August 15, 2000, Lloyd Barnes pleaded guilty to attempted burglary and attempted assault and was sentenced to concurrent sentences of five years and six years incarceration.18 He was not sentenced to any term of PRS.19 He was released on October 19, 2005, at the maximum expiration date of his sentence, and a five-year term of PRS was administratively imposed.20 On December 12, 2007, he was arrested on a drag charge and remanded to custody.21 He pleaded guilty on January 7, 2008 and was sentenced to thirty days in local custody, which would have resulted in his release on January 12, 2008.22 However, because he was also charged with violating his parole, he was not [423]*423released until approximately February 19, 2008.23 He was then restored to PRS.24 On October 20, 2008, counsel for DOP sent a notice to the sentencing court requesting re-sentencing. The sentencing court resen-tenced Barnes on November 14, 2008 to the same determinate sentences imposed in 2000, and declined to impose any term of PRS.25 He was released from parole supervision shortly after November 20, 2008.26 Thus, Barnes was incarcerated for approximately thirty-eight days based solely on a violation of administratively-imposed PRS.

3. Gabriel Velez27

Gabriel Velez pleaded guilty on February 20, 2001 to attempted robbery and was sentenced to a five-year determinate term of incarceration.28 He was not sentenced to any term of PRS.29 He was released from prison on July 2, 2004, after serving six-sevenths of his sentence, and subjected to an administratively-imposed PRS term of five years.30

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
304 F.R.D. 416, 2015 WL 363174, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/betances-v-fischer-nysd-2015.