Buesgens v. Brown

567 F. Supp. 2d 26, 2008 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 44975, 2008 WL 2376613
District Court, District of Columbia·Decided June 11, 2008·No. Civil Action 06-1964 (RBW)·Published·Cited by 12 cases

Opinion

MEMORANDUM OPINION

REGGIE B. WALTON, District Judge.

On November 15, 2006, the plaintiff 1 , proceeding pro se, filed his Complaint in this action, inartfully alleging that the defendant, Charles E. Brown, violated, inter alia, the Americans with Disabilities Act (“ADA”), the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, the Fair Housing Act, and 42 U.S.C. § 1983 (2000). 2 Complaint (“Compl.”) at 15-27. Although the plaintiff alleges violations of these several statutes, the plaintiff does not set forth the specific sections of the statutes upon which he bases his claims. 3 The plaintiff also alleges other claims against the defendant that are incoherent. 4 Id.

Currently before this Court is the defendant’s motion to dismiss, filed on *30 March 19, 2007, pursuant to Federal Rules of Civil Procedure 12(b)(2) (lack of personal jurisdiction). 5 Defendant’s Motion To Dismiss, or in the Alternative Motion to Transfer (“Def.’s Mot.”). 6 For the reasons set forth below, the defendant’s motion must be granted.

I. Standards of Review

Personal jurisdiction “ ‘is an essential element of the jurisdiction of a district ... court,’ without which the court is ‘powerless to proceed to an adjudication.’ ” Ruhrgas AG v. Marathon Oil Co., 526 U.S. 574, 584, 119 S.Ct. 1563, 143 *31 L.Ed.2d 760 (1999). A plaintiff bears the burden of establishing personal jurisdiction, and must allege specific facts on which personal jurisdiction is based; he cannot rely on merely conclusory allegations. See Mwani v. bin Laden, 417 F.3d 1, 7 (D.C.Cir.2005); Crane v. N.Y. Zoological Soc’y, 894 F.2d 454, 456 (D.C.Cir.1990). Accordingly, the “plaintiff must allege specific acts connecting the defendant with the forum.” See Second Amendment Found. v. U.S. Conference of Mayors, 274 F.3d 521, 524 (D.C.Cir.2001). When considering whether personal jurisdiction exists, the Court need not treat all of the plaintiffs allegations as true. Atlantigas Corp. v. Nisource, Inc., 290 F.Supp.2d 34, 42 (D.D.C.2003). Instead, the Court “may receive and weigh affidavits and other relevant matter to assist it in determining the jurisdictional facts.” United States v. Philip Morris Inc., 116 F.Supp.2d 116, 120 n. 4 (D.D.C.2000); see also Capital Bank Int’l, Ltd. v. Citigroup, Inc., 276 F.Supp.2d 72, 74 (D.D.C.2003). However, the Court must resolve “factual discrepancies appearing in the record ... in favor of the plaintiff.” Crane, 894 F.2d at 456. But, the “plaintiff cannot aggregate factual allegations concerning multiple defendants in order to demonstrate personal jurisdiction over any individual defendant.” Atlantigas Corp., 290 F.Supp.2d at 42.

II. Background 7

This action arises out of the plaintiffs eviction from the Falcon Ridge Apartments located in Austin, Texas. Pl.’s Opp’n, Exhibit (“Ex”) 4 8 (Letter from Charles E. Brown to Michael Buesgens dated December 15, 2005) (“Warning Letter”). The plaintiff had been a resident of Falcon Ridge Apartments and defendant Brown is an attorney who at one time represented the apartment complex in the legal proceedings surrounding the plaintiffs eviction from the complex. Id. On December 15, 2005, defendant Brown sent the plaintiff a letter advising him to stop harassing the management personnel of the apartment complex and its residents because the plaintiff was allegedly being disturbed by another resident’s dog. Id. at 1. Defendant Brown further advised the plaintiff that (1) “the Austin Police Department [had] investigated [the plaintiffs] claims and [had] not found that [his] neighbor’s dog [was] causing excessive noise as [the plaintiff had] alleged,” id., (2) “[t]he [possession of the] dog [was] within the regulations and policies adopted by [the Falcon Ridge Apartments],” id., (3) “[the apartment management’s decision to] *32 allow[ ] [the plaintiffs] neighbor to have a pet d[id] not constitute discrimination,” id. at 2, and (4) that if he did not cease harassing the “management and other residents and other disruptive behavior immediately [he] w[ould] be evicted,” id. Further, defendant Brown informed the plaintiff that he was “a valued resident at Falcon Ridge Apartments”, id., and made several “proposals to [the plaintiff] in an effort to settle [the] matter to [the plaintiffs] satisfaction,” id. at 2. Defendant Brown offered the plaintiff three options: (1) the plaintiff could terminate his lease early without penalty and pay rent until he vacated the property; (2) the plaintiff could move to another unit within the complex, possibly a third floor unit, so that he would not have anyone living above him; or (3) the plaintiff could stay in his assigned apartment and the neighbor living above the plaintiff would be moved the following month, January 2006. Id. at 2.

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Buesgens v. Brown, 567 F. Supp. 2d 26, 2008 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 44975, 2008 WL 2376613 (D.D.C. 2008).

567 F. Supp. 2d 26 (Buesgens v. Brown) — published by Counsel Stack Legal Research, free access to 12M+ legal documents.

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