Holmes v. City of Chicago

63 F. Supp. 3d 806, 2014 WL 3864570, 2014 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 107657
CourtDistrict Court, N.D. Illinois
DecidedAugust 6, 2014
DocketCase No.: 09-CV-2481
StatusPublished
Cited by5 cases

This text of 63 F. Supp. 3d 806 (Holmes v. City of Chicago) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, N.D. Illinois primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Holmes v. City of Chicago, 63 F. Supp. 3d 806, 2014 WL 3864570, 2014 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 107657 (N.D. Ill. 2014).

Opinion

MEMORANDUM OPINION AND ORDER

Robert M. Dow, Jr., United States District Judge

Plaintiff Hugo Holmes sued the City of Chicago and Chicago Police Officers Michelle Acosta, Eugene Herrera, Jr., Jonathan Matich, Veronica Coffee, Marilyn Drish, and Patricia Ferraro for violations of state and federal law stemming from his arrest on April 25, 2008. On November 12, 2013, Officers Marilyn Drish and Patricia Ferraro were dismissed from this case pursuant to stipulation by the parties. The remaining Defendants have moved for summary judgment on all counts (Counts II- and III) against Officers Herrera, Ma-tich, and Coffee, but concede that factual issues exist with respect to certain of Plaintiffs claims against Officer Acosta (also Counts II and III).1 For the reasons set forth below, the Court grants in part Defendants’ motion for summary judgment [178] and also grants Plaintiffs motion for leave to file a sur-reply [208].

I. Factual Background2

On the morning of April 25, .2008, Plaintiff Hugo Holmes was arrested and charged with solicitation of a sex act. At the time of Plaintiffs arrest, Officers Michelle Acosta, Eugene Herrera, Jonathan Matich and Veronica Coffee were eonduct-[810]*810ing a “prostitution solicitation sting,” in which the officers make arrests of persons who are alleged to have solicited a sex act from a police officer who is impersonating a prostitute. Officer Acosta’s role was to act as a “decoy” prostitute and signal in the event that a person solicited her for a sex act. Officer Acosta testified that she would have “flagged” Officer Herrera if a deal had been made, and Officer Herrera testified that Officer Acosta “would wave her hand, take her hat off, blow a kiss, whatever we determined that day we were going to do” to signal that she had probable cause to arrest an individual for solicitation. Officer Acosta testified that she did not wear a wire or have a radio on her person on the morning of April 25.3 Officer Herrera’s role was to watch for Officer Acosta’s signal in the event a person solicited a sex act.4 His role was also to protect Officer Acosta’s safety. Although he does not recall where he stood during this incident, Officer Herrera typically would position himself so that he could see Officer Acosta while at the same time not be detected as a police officer by a person who might solicit a sex act from Officer Acosta. Officers Matich and Coffee were to park-in their unmarked police car out of sight of a potential offender and wait for a radio transmission from Officer Herrera indicating that a person had solicited a sex act from Officer Acosta.

On April 25, 2008, at approximately 8:30 a.m., Plaintiff Hugo Holmes was driving his 2006 GMC pickup truck eastbound on 47th Street. Plaintiff was a Field Service Supervisor of the Chicago Department of' Transportation’s (CDOT’s) Division of Infrastructure Management, for CDOT’s ■ Central District. In the course of performing his field monitoring and inspections, Plaintiff used his own vehicle and was reimbursed by CDOT for his mileage. Op April 25, 2008, Plaintiff was working in the Central District, which included the intersection of 47th Street and Washtenaw Avenue. After passing the intersection of 47th and Washtenaw, Plaintiff drove around the block as follows: he took a left turn on Taiman Avenue (the next block east from Washtenaw) and proceeded one block north to 46th Street, Plaintiff turned left and proceeded one block west on 46th Street to Washtenaw Avenue, and Plaintiff then took another left turn and proceeded one block southbound on Washtenaw Avenue until he came to a stop at approximately 4658 S. Washtenaw Avenue.

Plaintiff testified that a woman walked toward his pickup truck while he was stopped on Washtenaw and 47th Street and stated “$20 for a blowjob?” Plaintiff denies that he solicited a sex act and further testified that he ignored Officer Acosta’s solicitation with disgust and a dismissive gesture, telling her “I’m working.” Officer Acosta testified that Plaintiff offered her $20 in exchange for “head” and to “lick her titty.” Plaintiff did not see Officer Acosta wave or gesture with her hand when he was stopped and he did not look back at her when he drove away. Officer Acosta testified that she signaled to Officer Herrera that Plaintiff had solicited her for a sex act. Officer Herrera then told Officers Matich and Coffee over the radio that Officer Acosta was solicited for a sex act by Plaintiff (although they did not know Plaintiffs name at the time). [811]*811According to Defendant Officers, Herrera would have identified Plaintiffs vehicle.

Officers Matich and Coffee had backed their unmarked police car into an alley off of Washtenaw south of 47th Street. Plaintiff drove his pickup truck across 47th Street and southbound on Washtenaw. Officers Matich and Coffee pulled then-unmarked police car out of the alley and stopped Plaintiff. Officers Matich and Coffee advised Plaintiff that he was under arrest, and Officer Matich put the handcuffs on Plaintiff and placed him into the back seat of the police car. Plaintiff was transported to the 9th District Police Station by Officers Marilyn Drish and Patricia Ferraro. Plaintiff was charged with solicitation of a sex act in violation of 720 ILCS 5/11-14.1-A, and his car was impounded pursuant to Chapter 8-8-060 of the Chicago Municipal Code. Plaintiff remained in police custody until he posted bond at approximately 4:00 p.m. on April 25, 2008.

Officer Acosta prepared and signed the vice case report. Officer Matich is listed as the attesting officer on the arrest report. Officer Acosta was identified as the “first arresting officer” on the arrest report and Officer Herrera was identified as the “second arresting officer.” Officers Matich and Coffee are identified as “assisting arresting officers.” Officer Matich relied upon Officer Acosta’s statement as to the communication between her and Plaintiff to complete the substantive part of the narrative of the arrest report relative to the solicitation of a sex act. Subsequent to the arrest of Plaintiffs, Defendant Officers’ supervisors instructed Defendant Officers to discontinue prostitute solicitation sting operations.

On September 29, 2008, the case of People v. Hugo Holmes, No. 08-1-222-705-01 was called in Branch 46 of the Circuit Court of Cook County, Municipal Department, 555 W. Harrison Street, Chicago, Illinois. The case was passed by the Court after a discussion on the record. The docket indicates the case was recalled and stricken with leave to reinstate later that same day. Officer Acosta testified she was present in court that morning.

II. Standard of Review

Summary judgment is proper where “the pleadings, the discovery and disclosure’ materials on file, and any affidavits show that there is no genuine issue as to any material fact and that the movant is entitled to judgment as a matter of law.” Fed. R. Civ. P. 56(c). Factual disputes that are irrelevant to the outcome of the suit “will not be counted.” Palmer v. Marion County, 327 F.3d 588, 592 (7th Cir.2003) (quotation marks and citations omitted). In determining whether there is a genuine issue of fact, the Court “must construe the facts and draw all reasonable inferences in the light most favorable to the nonmoving party.” Foley v. City of Lafayette,

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
63 F. Supp. 3d 806, 2014 WL 3864570, 2014 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 107657, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/holmes-v-city-of-chicago-ilnd-2014.