Hofschneider v. City of Vancouver

182 F. Supp. 3d 1145, 2016 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 53691, 2016 WL 1597117
CourtDistrict Court, W.D. Washington
DecidedApril 21, 2016
DocketCASE NO. 3:15-cv-05903-RBL
StatusPublished
Cited by8 cases

This text of 182 F. Supp. 3d 1145 (Hofschneider v. City of Vancouver) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, W.D. Washington primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Hofschneider v. City of Vancouver, 182 F. Supp. 3d 1145, 2016 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 53691, 2016 WL 1597117 (W.D. Wash. 2016).

Opinion

ORDER ON DEFENDANTS’ MOTION ON THE PLEADINGS

Ronald B. Leighton, United States District Judge

THIS MATTER is before the Court on the. Defendants’ Motion for Judgment on the Pleadings [Dkt. #10].

Plaintiff Marko Hofschneider has high-functioning autism, anxiety, and severe Tourette’s syndrome. In December 2012, when Hofschneider was 16 years old, he got into an argument with his mother when she was dropping him off at Mountain View High School in Vancouver. Fearful that he would get in trouble if she left, Hofschneider pushed his mother against a wall. School staff saw the incident and intervened, placing Hofschneider in an empty office. They called Defendant Brian Schaffer, a City of Vancouver police officer who was assigned to work as the school’s resource officer, for assistance. Schaffer searched and handcuffed Hofschneider in the office, and then left him to further investigate. Schaffer allegedly told Mrs. Hofschneider that her son was going to jail and refused to speak to Hofschneider’s father (by phone) or school staff who could explain his disabilities. The school’s speech pathologist eventually intervened, explaining Hofschneider’s disabilities to Schaffer and advising that he would not do well in jail. Schaffer released Hofschneider without taking him to jail.

Hofschneider sued Schaffer, the school’s principal (Michael Meloy), the City of Vancouver (Schaffer’s employer), and the Evergreen School District (Meloy’s employer), asserting claims under 42 U.S.C. § 1983 (for violation of his Fourth Amendment rights), Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act, and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act. He does not clearly articulate which claims are asserted against which Defendant, but, as the Defendants point out, not all of the claims can be asserted against all of the Defendants.

The Defendants argue the majority of Hofschneider’s claims are fatally flawed, and urge dismissal without leave to amend, claiming any modifications would be inconsistent with his existing allegations.1 Schaf-fer and Meloy seek dismissal of the ADA and Rehabilitation Act claims, arguing that because each is sued in his official—rather [1149]*1149than individual—capacity, any claim against them is redundant since Hofs-chneider is already suing their employers on those claims. Their employers, the City and the District, respectively, argue that Hofschneider’s § 1983 (Monell) claims are flawed because he has not pled, and cannot plausibly plead, any City or District policy or practice was the moving force behind any constitutional violation.

Schaffer contends he did not violate Hofschneider’s Fourth Amendment rights because he had probable cause to detain him after he pushed his mother against the wall. Schaffer also argues that his search and seizure of Hofschneider was conducted reasonably, and that, even if it was not, he is entitled to qualified immunity because any right he did violate was not “clearly established.” Meloy argues that Hofs-chneider has not pled, and cannot plausibly plead, a § 1983 claim against him because Meloy was not involved in this incident in any way. Indeed, Hofschneider makes only a single factual allegation about Meloy— that, after the incident, Meloy suggested Hofschneider transfer to a different school.

Hofschneider argues that his ADA and Rehabilitation Act claims against Schaffer and Meloy should not be dismissed because they are sued in their official capacities, although he does not address the Defendants’ redundancy argument. Hofs-chneider also, curiously, maintains that he plausibly pled Fourth Amendment claims against the City and the District because he sued Schaffer and Meloy in their official capacities.

He argues that Schaffer’s search was unconstitutional because he was not acting violently or threateningly at the time he was detained. He argues that, as his claims are pled, Schaffer is not entitled to qualified immunity because he did not act as a “reasonably prudent officer” when he handcuffed Hofschneider. Hofschneider contends that he has plausibly pled that Meloy was the school’s policy-maker and that he had authority over the manner in which on-campus harm situations were handled by staff, although none of that is included in his Complaint. He similarly does not explicitly allege Meloy implemented an unconstitutional policy, but instead argues Meloy’s alleged authority to do so supports a Fourth Amendment claim against him despite his lack of personal participation. Finally, he seeks leave to amend if the Court concludes that any of his claims are deficient.

DISCUSSION

A. Standard of Review.

The standard applicable to a 12(c) motion for judgment on the pleadings mirrors that of a 12(b)(6) motion to dismiss. See Hal Roach Studios, Inc. v. Richard Feiner and Co., Inc., 896 F.2d 1542, 1550 (9th Cir.1989). Dismissal under Rule 12(b)(6) may be based on either the lack of a cognizable legal theory or the absence of sufficient facts alleged under a cognizable legal theory. Balistreri v. Pacifica Police Dep’t, 901 F.2d 696, 699 (9th Cir.1990). A plaintiffs complaint must allege facts to state a claim for relief that is plausible on its face. See Ashcroft v. Iqbal, 556 U.S. 662, 678, 129 S.Ct. 1937, 173 L.Ed.2d 868 (2009). A claim has “facial plausibility” when the party seeking relief “pleads factual content that allows the court to draw the reasonable inference that the defendant is liable for the misconduct alleged.” Id.

Although the Court must accept as true the complaint’s well-pled facts, conclusory allegations of law and unwarranted inferences will not defeat a Rule 12(c) motion. See Vasquez v. L.A. County, 487 F.3d 1246, 1249 (9th Cir.2007). “[A] plaintiffs obligation to provide the ‘grounds’ of his ‘entitle[ment] to relief requires more than labels and conclusions, and a formulaic rec[1150]*1150itation of the elements of a cause of action will not .do. Factual allegations must be enough to raise a right to relief above the speculative level.” Bell Atl. Corp. v. Twombly, 550 U.S. 544, 555, 127 S.Ct. 1955, 167 L.Ed.2d 929 (2007) (citations and footnotes omitted). This requires a plaintiff to plead “more than an unadorned, the-defendant-unlawfully-harmed-me-accusation.” Ashcroft, 556 U.S. at 678, 129 S.Ct. 1937 (citing Twombly). The Court must construe all allegations in the light most favorable to the nonmoving party. See Bagley v. CMC Real Estate Corp., 923 F.2d 758, 760 (9th Cir.1991).

The court should freely give leave to amend when justice so requires. Fed. R. Civ. P. 15(a)(2). A motion for leave to amend may be denied if it appears to be futile or legally insufficient. Miller v. Rykoff-Sexton, Inc., 845 F.2d 209, 214 (9th Cir.1988).

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Bluebook (online)
182 F. Supp. 3d 1145, 2016 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 53691, 2016 WL 1597117, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/hofschneider-v-city-of-vancouver-wawd-2016.