DiJoseph v. City of Philadelphia

947 F. Supp. 834, 1996 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 15529, 1996 WL 691534
CourtDistrict Court, E.D. Pennsylvania
DecidedOctober 22, 1996
DocketCivil Action 95-1803
StatusPublished
Cited by6 cases

This text of 947 F. Supp. 834 (DiJoseph v. City of Philadelphia) 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
DiJoseph v. City of Philadelphia, 947 F. Supp. 834, 1996 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 15529, 1996 WL 691534 (E.D. Pa. 1996).

Opinion

MEMORANDUM

ANITA B. BRODY, District Judge.

Plaintiffs Andrew and Barbara DiJoseph 1 bring this action under 42 U.S.C. § 1983 against the City of Philadelphia, Police Commissioner Richard Neal, and police officers Deborah Mattiacci, George Hairston, and Carmen Yuotto. DiJoseph alleges violation of his Fourth and Fourteenth Amendment rights under the United States Constitution for the events surrounding the shooting of plaintiff Andrew DiJoseph on September 22, 1993. DiJoseph also alleges supplemental state tort claims against defendants for the same incidents. Pursuant to Rule 56(c) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, each of the defendants has moved for summary judgment. I will grant the motion with respect to Officers Mattiacci and Hairston, Police Commissioner Neal, and the City of Philadelphia. I will deny the motion with respect to certain claims against Officer Vuotto and will grant the motion with respect to others.

I. Facts

As the facts are in dispute, I will recite the material facts in a light most favorable to the plaintiffs. On September 22, 1993, Officers Mattiacci and Hairston of the Philadelphia Police Department responded to a radio report of a burglary at 6524 Dorel Street, Philadelphia, DiJoseph’s residence. Dep. Deborah Mattiacci at 10. When the officers arrived, they were greeted by DiJoseph who was in possession of a gun. 2 Dep. George Hairston at 13. DiJoseph claimed that someone was trying to break into his home. Id. Officer Hairston disarmed DiJoseph, and af-terwards the officers inspected the premises. Id. The officers found no evidence of a break-in. Id. Concerned for DiJoseph’s well-being and anxious demeanor, Officer Hairston telephoned Barbara DiJoseph, Di-Joseph’s wife, at work regarding the sensibility of DiJoseph’s possession of a handgun. Id. at 14. Ms. DiJoseph told the officers that it was safe for her husband to possess a gun despite his behavior and that her husband had a permit for the gun. Id. at 18. Ms. DiJoseph also advised the officers, however, that DiJoseph suffered from psychological problems, was on medication 3 and in therapy, and that he had been carjacked approximately one week before and that he had been acting more paranoid ever since. Barbara DiJoseph Aff. ¶ 2. Although the officers returned the gun to DiJoseph before leaving, they nevertheless visited Ms. DiJoseph at her workplace to discuss further the anxious behavior of her husband. Dep. George Hair-ston at 19.

Shortly after speaking to Ms. DiJoseph in person, Officers Mattiacci and Hairston re- *837 eeived a police radio call of a man holding hostages at the DiJosephs’ residence. Id. at 21-22. When Officers Mattiacci and Hair-ston returned to the scene, they could hear DiJoseph yelling from upstairs telling them to enter his home. Dep. Deborah Mattiacci at 26. The officers, however, discovered the door was locked. Id. DiJoseph yelled down that they should try to enter through the back door, but the officers found it locked as well. Id. When Officer Hairston instructed DiJoseph to open the door, DiJoseph responded that he could not because he was holding someone on the second floor. Dep. George Hairston at 23. Shortly thereafter, Lt. Anthony Guidice, a supervisor, arrived at the scene. 4 Id. at 24.

Based upon DiJoseph’s irrational behavior, Lt. Guidice declared DiJoseph to be a “barricaded man.” 5 Dep. Anthony Guidice at 23. As a result, the StakeOut Unit of the Philadelphia Police Department was called for reinforcement, and Officers Carmen Vuotto and Thomas Dorsey of StakeOut Unit Sam 101 responded. The StakeOut Unit is a support unit that responds to barricaded person, hostage, and high-risk warrant situations. Dep. Corporal DeJamette at 8.

Upon arriving at the scene, Officers Vuotto and Dorsey were assigned to cover the rear of DiJoseph’s residence for containment purposes. Id. at 21. Officer Vuotto took cover behind a tree, one hundred and eight (108) feet from the rear of DiJoseph’s house. 6 Pis.’ Police Diagram. About fifteen minutes later, DiJoseph appeared at the rear, third floor window, approximately twenty feet above the ground. Dep. Carmen Vuotto at 84. Officer Vuotto observed a white, heavyset male,'Andrew DiJoseph, holding a stainless steel revolver in his right hand. Id. at 90. . DiJoseph opened the window with both hands — palms up — with the gun beneath the window frame. Id. at 88. As the window did not have a screen or storm window attached, there was nothing separating DiJoseph from the outside. Id. at 89. From the window, DiJoseph advised the officers that he could not leave his house because he was detaining an intruder. Id. at 107. The officers unsuccessfully attempted to persuade DiJoseph to put his gun down. Id. at 108. DiJoseph repeatedly told the officers that he would not come out of his house but rather they would have to come into his home. Id. at 109. The officers believed, however, that DiJoseph wanted their help. Dep. Thomas Dorsey at 26.

Soon thereafter, DiJoseph started swinging his gun around, with his arm extended out the window. Id. at 27-28. At the same timé, DiJoseph positioned himself in the window such that Officer Dorsey could not see him very well, and ultimately, Dorsey could only see DiJoseph’s gun extended out from his arm. Id. at 30-31. DiJoseph aimed his gun at what appeared to be Officer Vuotto’s position. 7 Id. at 32. At that point, Officer Vuotto fired one shot. Id. at 32. DiJoseph retreated into the room and then swung his gun around again out the window. Id. Officer Vuotto then fired the second shot and the third shot within a couple seconds of each other. Id.

*838 Based upon Officer Dorsey’s testimony, DiJoseph alleges that Officer Vuotto used excessive force against DiJoseph in violation of the Fourth Amendment. More specifically, DiJoseph contends that Officer Vuotto could not have seen his face at the time he shot DiJoseph, and therefore Vuotto could not have observed him look down his right arm — seemingly aiming through a rifle scope — and point the gun directly at the officer. 8 DiJoseph relies upon the fact that the officers stood approximately one hundred and eight (108) feet away from DiJoseph and twenty (20) feet below him, and furthermore, that the medical evidence reveals that DiJo-seph had a gunshot wound in his right lower back, just above the buttocks — which seemingly contradicts Officer Vuotto’s account of the incident.

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Bluebook (online)
947 F. Supp. 834, 1996 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 15529, 1996 WL 691534, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/dijoseph-v-city-of-philadelphia-paed-1996.