Doe v. City of Cleveland

788 F. Supp. 979, 1991 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 19925, 1991 WL 328778
CourtDistrict Court, N.D. Ohio
DecidedJune 28, 1991
DocketC86-696
StatusPublished
Cited by7 cases

This text of 788 F. Supp. 979 (Doe v. City of Cleveland) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, N.D. Ohio primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Doe v. City of Cleveland, 788 F. Supp. 979, 1991 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 19925, 1991 WL 328778 (N.D. Ohio 1991).

Opinion

MEMORANDUM AND ORDER

ANN ALDRICH, District Judge.

John Doe brings this action alleging a deprivation of constitutionally protected rights and defamation against the City of Cleveland, Chief of Police Hanton, Officer Zaller, Officer Porter and Officer Weiss. 1 Doe alleges that his fourth amendment right to be free from unreasonable seizure, his fourteenth amendment right to privacy and his fourteenth amendment right to due process have all been violated. He also brings a state law claim for defamation. Jurisdiction is based on 28 U.S.C. § 1331.

The defendants have moved for summary judgment on all of the claims, and Doe has moved for partial summary judgment on his claim of defamation. For the reasons stated, Doe’s motion for summary judgment is denied, and defendants’ motion for summary judgment is granted.

I.

On October 17, 1985, Doe and Marvin Wynn spent the evening together at clubs and arrived at their apartment complex 2 at about 4:30 a.m. on October 18. An altercation began. Wynn received a stab wound and the Cleveland Police were summoned. *981 Officers Zaller and Porter arrived at the scene.

The officers saw that Wynn was bleeding from his thigh. Wynn stated that Doe had stabbed him. He told the officers where Doe lived and also told them that Doe was a homosexual and that he had AIDS. The officers found Doe and Wynn identified him as his assailant. The officers then arrested Doe for felonious assault and took him to the Sixth Police District Headquarters.

At headquarters, Doe was booked by Officer Weiss. Booking involves taking personal property from a prisoner, as well as searching, fingerprinting and obtaining information from him. Zaller and Porter told Weiss that Wynn had stated that Doe had AIDS. Weiss conveyed that information to the officer in charge and also typed “Suspected AIDS” on Doe’s booking card.

Officers Zaller, Porter, and Weiss believed that their action in reporting this information was not only lawful, but also required by departmental policy. All three officers knew that police records were to be kept confidential. - Zaller and Porter then went to the hospital to interview Wynn. At this time Wynn recanted his accusation and stated that he had stabbed himself. Doe was then transferred to the Central Prison Unit. The booking card, which has been maintained since that time at the Central Prison Unit, has the entry “AIDS — 2-10”.

Detective Minor, who was assigned to the case, also attempted to contact and interview Wynn to obtain a signed statement which could form the basis for criminal charges. After several attempts, Minor was unable to contact Wynn. Doe was then released at 9:30 a.m. on October 19, 1985. No charges were ever brought against him, nor was he ever brought before a judge. Doe spent about 27 hours in custody.

During the time in question, Doe was employed at a McDonald’s restaurant. On October 21,1985, while he was at work, his manager called him into the office. An assistant was also present. The manager showed Doe a document which had a handwritten notation of “AIDS — 2-10” on it, and told Doe that because he was suspected of having AIDS, he was being terminated from his employment. On this paper, the following note was also written:

Even though AIDS cannot be transmitted by contact it is unfortunate that he is associated with McDonald’s. I feel the person in charge should know in case it can help you in any way. Please; [sic] and I trust you will keep this information confidential.

Doe was not reinstated by McDonald’s until January 1986.

Porter, Zaller, and Weiss state that they never saw the “AIDS — 2-10” booking card until after the lawsuit was filed. All deny either sending the booking card to McDonald’s or knowing who did. Doe did not authorize the release of the information on his booking card. At the time of the incident, he did not have AIDS, nor does he now.

The Cleveland Police Department have the following rules concerning the disclosure of arrestees’ private information. Departmental Rule 5.22, in effect on October 1985, stated:

Treat as confidential all business, orders, and reports of the Division of Police, and all information imparted to them as personnel of the Division; and reveal them to no one for whom they are not intended.

General Police Order 34-70 provides:

Arrest records of this Department may not be given to any other agency, business firm or person unless expressly requested by affidavit by an individual who wishes to release information concerning himself to a third party. This affidavit will be the only exception to the rule ...

The General Police Order governing booking, G.P.O. 52-79, required that the following be included on the booking card:

# 16 Mental & Physical Condition— Record any injuries or illnesses....
# 18. Special Medical Needs — Note if inmate is taking any medication and if it is a prescribed drug.

*982 On September 6, 1985, the police department promulgated G.P.O. 21-85 “Arrest of Persons with Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome.” The order provided:

[T]he following interim procedure shall be adhered to by all personnel who become exposed to persons suspected of, or found to be suffering from ... AIDS.
Any individual who is arrested and detained in a jail facility ... is to be isolated in the detention area ... In all cases, the City of Cleveland Health Department shall be notified as soon as practicable ... of the prisoner’s suspected condition.
If a suspected AIDS victim is transferred to the custody of another agency, the agency shall be notified of that fact at the time of transfer.
In addition, the officer responsible for the arrest shall ensure that the prosecutor and judge assigned to the case are notified of the defendant’s condition.

II.

Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 56(c) governs summary judgment motions and provides:

The judgment sought shall be rendered forthwith if the pleadings, depositions, answers to interrogatories, and admissions on file, together with the affidavits, if any, show that there is no genuine issue as to any material fact and that the moving party is entitled to a judgment as a matter of law ...

The nature of materials properly presented in a summary judgment pleading is set forth in Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 56(e):

Free access — add to your briefcase to read the full text and ask questions with AI

Related

Herring v. Keenan
218 F.3d 1171 (Tenth Circuit, 2000)
Cutshall v. Sundquist
980 F. Supp. 928 (M.D. Tennessee, 1997)
Doe v. Town of Plymouth
825 F. Supp. 1102 (D. Massachusetts, 1993)
Mann v. University of Cincinnati
824 F. Supp. 1190 (S.D. Ohio, 1993)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
788 F. Supp. 979, 1991 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 19925, 1991 WL 328778, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/doe-v-city-of-cleveland-ohnd-1991.