Louis v. Metropolitan Transit Authority

145 F. Supp. 3d 215, 2015 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 151062, 2015 WL 6814739
CourtDistrict Court, E.D. New York
DecidedNovember 6, 2015
DocketNo. 12-CV-6333 (ILG)(JO)
StatusPublished
Cited by5 cases

This text of 145 F. Supp. 3d 215 (Louis v. Metropolitan Transit Authority) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, E.D. New York primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Louis v. Metropolitan Transit Authority, 145 F. Supp. 3d 215, 2015 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 151062, 2015 WL 6814739 (E.D.N.Y. 2015).

Opinion

MEMORANDUM AND ORDER

GLASSER, Senior District Judge:

Plaintiff Maria Louis (“Louis”) brought suit against the Metropolitan Transit Authority Bus Company (“MTA”) and its bus driver, Stephen Wright (collectively “MTA Defendants”), as well as the City of New York (“City”) and its police officer, Crystal Martin (collectively “City Defendants”), under 42 U.S.C. § 1983, asserting claims based on the First, Fourth, and Fourteenth Amendments. Plaintiff, a Muslim woman, claims that she was ejected from a public bus because she was wearing a burqa. After discovery, the MTA Defendants and City Defendants moved for summary judgment. Plaintiff opposed the MTA Defendants’ motion. For the following reasons, the City Defendants’ motion is GRANTED. The MTA Defendants’ motion is DENIED in part and GRANTED in part.1

1. Factual Background

1.1 May 26, 2012 Dispute

On the morning of May 26, 2012, Louis was a passenger on a QUO bus in Queens. Louis Dep. at 68;2 Wright Dep. at 33-34.3 A devout Muslim, Louis was wearing a burqa (a veil that covers the entire body), a symbol of her religion. Louis Dep. at 19, 70. Louis testified that she was standing in the passenger area at the front of the bus, one seat’s length behind Defendant Wright, the bus driver. Id. at 72-74, 76, 83.

Louis claims that during the ride, Wright called her “scary” and said “nobody can see her.” Hrg. at 27; Dep. at 70-71, 81-82. She testified that, in response, she told Wright that she is a Muslim and has a right to practice her religion. Dep. at 82. She claims that Wright then stopped the bus and ordered her to leave. Id.; Hrg. at 27. Louis refused and called [220]*220911 to report discrimination. Louis Dep. at 83-55, 101.

Wright tells a different story. He claims the dispute began when he told Louis to step behind the white line at the front of .the bus. Dep.- at 42-43, 46. Wright swears that Louis was standing on the line, id. (which is unlawful4) — but Louis denies that. Louis Dep. at 76-77. Wright, however, insists that Louis repeatedly refused to step back, became angry, and loudly accused him of discrimination. Dep. at 42-44, 46-48. Wright testified that although he felt threatened by Louis’ behavior, he did not respond. Id. at 47-48, 103-104. He simply got.off the bus and called MTA- dispatch. Id. at 47.5

There is a recording of Wright’s call. At the start, Wright can be heard saying, “I don’t know if she would stab me in the back.” Audio: Call from Stephen Wright to MTA Bus Dispatch (May 26, 2012) (“Call Audio”)6; accord Wright. Dep. at 105, 124. To the dispatcher, Wright says:

I got a situation..... [A passenger] dressed head to toe ... comes standing right up beside me. I was very uncomfortable because I don’t know if it is a man; I don’t know,if it’s a woman; I don’t know what it is. . So I just asked this person ... [to].step to the back [or middle] of the bus or ... [to] a seat on the bus. But [it got] right up on to me ... and I can’t tell what it is ,... So I stopped the bus —

Call Audio.

In response, the dispatcher asks.whether Wright stopped the bus because he could not determine' a passenger’s'gender. Id.

Wright responds, “No. -No. No. The person is right up beside me [and] the driver’s seat. And that -bus is empty ... with seats everywhere ... and [she] is dressed from head to toe ... I can’t distinguish nothing.” Id.

The next few seconds of the call are inaudible. Id. In his deposition, Wright testified that he told the dispatcher that Louis was irate. Dep. at 49-50, 105. But he concedes that during the call he did not mention the white line. Id. at 49-50, 110— 113. At the end, the dispatcher agrees to send a supervisor to assist Wright. See Call Audio.

The police — Defendant Martin and her partner — responded to Louis’ 911 call. They spoke to Louis first. Louis Dep. at 97-99; Wright Dep. at 57. Louis gave a statement and reported that she was a victim of discrimination. Louis Dep. at 98. When the police asked if she.wanted to stay on the bus, Louis said yes. Id. According to Louis, during the exchange, one of the officers said, “I wish I could see [Louis’] face.” Id. at 97.

The officers then spoke to Wright, outside the bus. Louis Dep. at 98-99; Wright Dep. at 59. Wright told them that because of Louis’ reaction to his order to step back, he felt unsafe and wanted her off the bus. Id. at 60-61, 104-105. At the officers’ request, Wright produced a free bus transfer pass for Louis. Id. at 62.

Louis, still on the bus, started to record a video. Louis Dep. at 99. The video shows Martin enter the bus and say “[Wright] wants you off the bus.... If he’s not comfortable with you on the bus, he has every right to express so.” Video: Maria Louis Cellphone Video (May 26, [221]*2212012). Martin gives Louis the transfer pass and tells her to leave. Id. Louis grudgingly complies, walking to a cab. Id.; see Louis Dep. at 99-100.7

Wright drove away before his supervisor arrived. Wright Dep. at 63-64.

1.2 Aftermath

A few days after May 26, 2012, Louis complained to the MTA by phone and in writing. Louis Dep. at ill, 137-40.8 Several weeks later, on June 22, 2012, Louis filed a notice of claim against the MTA (amended July 27, 2012).9 Ultimately, Wright was reprimanded by the MTA for leaving the scene on May 26, 2012 before his supervisor arrived. Wright Dep. at 19-20, 23, 64.

Louis claims that .after May 26, 2012, she stopped, riding the QUO bus, and approximately one year later, in May or June 2013, moved to Philadelphia. She testified that she did not feel safe in New York and that the place to which she was moving has a larger Muslim population. Dep. at 12-13,15; Hrg. at 69-70.

As for physical, mental, emotional, and other injuries, Louis claims-to have suffered trauma, which caused headaches, high blood pressure, depression, anxiety, and weight loss. She testified that she can no longer read, write,, or work, among other things. Dep. at 30, 153-54; Hrg, at 5-8, 30-31, 50-51, 64.,

1.3 MTA Policies

Although there is some evidence of the MTA’s policies regarding training and driver authority, the facts are incomplete.

Wright testified that when he started working for the MTA in 2003, he was trained in customer relations. Wright Dep. at 9.

The record contains excerpts from the MTA Department of Buses Rules and Regulations (“Rules”)10 and Student Bus Operator Instruction' Manual (“Manual”).11 The Rules require, among other things, drivers’ to “treat all customers ,... with courtesy, avoid argument and exercise patience, forbearance and self-control,” and “be attentive without being offensive.” Rule 10(c). They prohibit drivers from using “loud, uncivil, indecent, or profane language even under the greatest provocation.” Rule 10(d).

The Rule governing ejectment states:

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

Related

Lucien v. Williams
S.D. New York, 2023
Defalco v. Mta Bus Co.
333 F. Supp. 3d 191 (E.D. New York, 2018)
Skates v. Incorporated Village of Freeport
265 F. Supp. 3d 222 (E.D. New York, 2017)
Hulett v. City of Syracuse
253 F. Supp. 3d 462 (N.D. New York, 2017)
Jie Yin v. NFTA
188 F. Supp. 3d 259 (W.D. New York, 2016)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
145 F. Supp. 3d 215, 2015 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 151062, 2015 WL 6814739, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/louis-v-metropolitan-transit-authority-nyed-2015.