Dorlette v. City of Stamford

CourtDistrict Court, D. Connecticut
DecidedJuly 23, 2025
Docket3:23-cv-01589
StatusUnknown

This text of Dorlette v. City of Stamford (Dorlette v. City of Stamford) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, D. Connecticut primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Dorlette v. City of Stamford, (D. Conn. 2025).

Opinion

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT DISTRICT OF CONNECTICUT

FAROULH DORLETTE, Plaintiff,

v. No. 3:23cv1589 (OAW)

CITY OF STAMFORD, et al., Defendants.

INITIAL REVIEW ORDER

Plaintiff Faroulh Dorlette, an inmate in the custody of the Connecticut Department of Correction (“DOC”), is proceeding pro se in this action. He has filed this civil rights action pursuant to 42 U.S.C. § 1983 (“Section 1983”), alleging violations of his rights under the Constitution of the United States of America in connection with his arrest on March 23, 2023. He also asserts state tort claims. See generally ECF No. 10. Plaintiff has sued the City of Stamford and the following officials within the Stamford Police Department: Chief of Police Doe; Assistant Chief of Police Conklin; Sergeants Phillips, Cooper, Malanga, Alvarez, Rosa, and Petrizzi (“Sergeant Defendants”); Officers Pennoyer, Derisne, Romano, Lavigne, Cooper, Rosado, Montanaro, Linnehan, Spinosa, Califano and Kane (“Officer Defendants”); Lieutenants Baker and O’Brien (“Lieutenant Defendants”); and Stamford Police Department Freedom of Information Act (“FOIA”) Officer Doe 2. He sues Chief Doe and Assistant Chief Conklin in their individual and official capacities, and the remaining individual defendants in their individual capacities. The Prison Litigation Reform Act requires that federal courts review complaints brought by prisoners seeking relief against a governmental entity, or against an officer or employee of a governmental entity. 28 U.S.C. § 1915A(a). Upon review, the court must dismiss the complaint, or any portion thereof, that is frivolous or malicious, that fails to state a claim upon which relief may be granted, or that seeks monetary relief from a defendant who is immune from such relief. 28 U.S.C. §§ 1915(e)(2)(B), 1915A(b). The court thoroughly has reviewed all factual allegations in the operative complaint and has conducted an initial review of the allegations therein.

I. Allegations1 Plaintiff alleges he was sitting in his parked vehicle at 4 p.m. on March 23, 2023, when he was rammed from behind by a Stamford Police Department vehicle. The collision caused him pain in and around his neck. Shortly after the collision, Plaintiff heard four loud sounds and saw flashes and smoke that appeared to come from explosive devices. Plaintiff alleges that Defendants Alvarez, Baker, Romano, and Rosa had each deployed flashbang grenades toward him. The grenades shattered Plaintiff’s car windows and caused Plaintiff emotional distress

and extreme pain to his ears and eyes. Although Plaintiff offered no resistance, Defendants Phillips, Alvarez, Lavigne, Pennoyer, Rosa, Romano, and Baker trained high powered assault rifles on Plaintiff and threatened to blow off his head, kill him, or shoot him. Shortly thereafter, Plaintiff was tased, although he had not resisted and he did not pose any threat to the officers. Defendant Alvarez removed Plaintiff from his vehicle and placed him in tight handcuffs that pained Plaintiff and cut off his circulation.

1 All factual allegations are drawn from the operative complaint, ECF No. 10, and are presumed true for the purpose of initial review. Plaintiff pleaded that the handcuffs were too tight and begged them for adjustment, but his pleas were ignored. Plaintiff now suffers from “possible” permanent physical and psychological damage. Plaintiff alleges that all the Officer Defendants, the Sergeant Defendants, and the Lieutenant Defendants were involved in these events. After being placed in restraints, Defendant Phillips asked Plaintiff if he remembered

him and explained the police action as Phillips and his “buddies” retaliating against Plaintiff for a prior civil lawsuit in federal court2 and also because Plaintiff tried to make him look stupid while Defendant Phillips testified during a suppression hearing in a federal criminal proceeding in which Plaintiff had been the defendant.3 Plaintiff sent a request to Stamford Police Department FOIA Officer Doe 2 seeking a police report, and also sent a complaint letter to Chief Doe describing these events. In reply to his FOIA request, Plaintiff received a one-page supplemental report, which appeared to be only part of the police report he had requested. He never received a response to his letter of complaint.

II. DISCUSSION Plaintiff asserts claims for violation of his constitutional rights under 42 U.S.C. § 1983 and state tort laws. A. Chief Doe and Assistant Chief Conklin A plaintiff seeking damages from a defendant must allege facts that establish the personal involvement of that defendant in the alleged constitutional violations. See Wright

2 Dorlette v. Edson, 09cv414 (AWT). 3 Specifically, Defendant Phillips’s credibility was impeached at a suppression hearing in United States v. Dorlette, Case No. 3:09cr173 (JBA). v. Smith, 21 F.3d 496, 501 (2d Cir. 1994) (“[P]ersonal involvement of defendants in alleged constitutional deprivations is a prerequisite to an award of damages under § 1983.”); (quoting Moffitt v. Town of Brookfield, 950 F.2d 880, 885 (2d Cir.1991); see also Tangreti v. Bachmann, 983 F.3d 609, 618–19 (2d Cir. 2020) (noting that a plaintiff must “plead and prove that ‘each Government-official defendant, through the official’s own

individual actions, has violated the Constitution.’”) (quoting Ashcroft v. Iqbal, 556 U.S. 662, 676 (2009)). Plaintiff has not alleged any facts that establish either the Chief’s or the Assistant Chief’s personal involvement in the relevant conduct. There are no facts alleged as to the Assistant Chief, and the only action attributable to the Chief is apparent neglect of Plaintiff’s letter of complaint. But that omission is insufficient to carry any claims against the Chief. “[A]s a matter of law, a defendant’s mere ‘receipt of a letter or grievance, without personally investigating or acting [thereon], is insufficient to establish personal involvement.’” Alvarado v. Westchester Cnty., 22 F. Supp. 3d 208, 215 (S.D.N.Y. 2014)

(quoting Burns v. Fischer, 2014 WL 1413387, at *5 (W.D.N.Y. Feb. 3, 2014)) (second alteration in original); see also Jones v. Annucci, No. 16-cv-3516, 2018 WL 910594, at *11–12, (S.D.N.Y. Feb. 14, 2018) (noting that acting commissioner’s failure to respond to the plaintiff's letter complaint “without more, does not plausibly allege his personal involvement . . . .”). Accordingly, all claims against the Chief and the Assistant Chief in their personal capacities must be dismissed. B. Excessive Force The Fourth Amendment protects people’s right “to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures.” U.S. Const., amend. IV. Because the Fourth Amendment protects against unreasonable seizures, it has long been recognized that the Fourth Amendment is violated if the police use excessive force against a free person for the purpose of arresting or restraining his or her freedom of movement. See, e.g., Graham v. Connor, 490 U.S. 386, 394 (1989) (holding that excessive force claims “aris[ing] in the context of an arrest” should be analyzed under

the Fourth Amendment); see also Gerstein v. Pugh, 420 U.S. 103

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