Monsky v. Moraghan

47 F. Supp. 2d 280, 1999 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 5984, 1999 WL 258492
CourtDistrict Court, D. Connecticut
DecidedApril 19, 1999
DocketNo. 3:97CV01616PCD
StatusPublished
Cited by1 cases

This text of 47 F. Supp. 2d 280 (Monsky v. Moraghan) 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
Monsky v. Moraghan, 47 F. Supp. 2d 280, 1999 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 5984, 1999 WL 258492 (D. Conn. 1999).

Opinion

MEMORANDUM OF DECISION ON MOTION FOR SUMMARY JUDGMENT

DORSEY, District Judge.

In an earlier suit (“Monsky I ”) plaintiff alleged that, by virtue of his dog’s conduct in the Danbury Superior Courthouse, defendant violated her rights by infringing her constitutional right of access to the courts.1 That case was dismissed, Monsky v. Moraghan, 947 F.Supp. 53 (D.Conn.1996), Motion to Amend den., 950 F.Supp. 476 (Goettel, J.), aff'd, 127 F.3d 243 (2d Cir.), cert. den., — U.S. -, 119 S.Ct. 66, 142 L.Ed.2d 52 (1998). The complaint was found not to have alleged infringement of that right.

While Monsky I was pending this action was brought alleging retaliatory conduct by defendant for plaintiffs having brought Monsky J.2 Her Summary of Complaint describes her claim here:

... that the defendant has engaged in retaliatory conduct intended to interfere with and obstruct the due administration of justice and plaintiffs exercise of First Amendment rights in her suit entitled Barbara Monsky v. Howard J. Moraghan, pending on appeal to the Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit and scheduled for presentation of oral argument on September 11,1997.

The “First Claim for Relief: 42 U.S.C. § 1983” recites a deprivation of “constitutionally protected rights including the rights to due process of law, equal protection of the law and First Amendment liberties.” No other allegation of the Complaint can be reasonably construed to substantiate a due process or equal protection claim. Nothing is alleged, shown, nor briefed to sustain plaintiffs claim of denial of due process. The conduct was allegedly directed at plaintiff alone or through her attorney and thus cannot constitute an equal protection violation. Nothing in Ms. Monsky’s affidavit sustains a finding of the class discrimination required for an equal protection action. As noted at oral argument, due process and equal protection were treated as unfounded, both as a matter of pleading and as factually unsupported after considering plaintiffs discovery compliance, her response to the Court’s Trial Preparation [282]*282Order and her response to the defendant’s Motion for Summary Judgment. Plaintiff then offered no additional substantiation of either claim. See Tr. of Oral Argument on Motion for Summary Judgment, April 5, 1999.

The “Second Claim for Relief: 42 U.S.C. § 1985” asserts a conspiracy by defendant and others to deny equal protection, broadly alleging retaliatory interference with the “due course of justice in the State of Connecticut ... to injure [plaintiff] or her property ...” The assertions as to equal protection and injury to plaintiff or her property are also unfounded in the pleadings and factually as noted above. A § 1985 claim requires proof of class-based discrimination, Gagliardi v. Village of Pawling, 18 F.3d 188, 194 (1994), of which there is no proof in the record.

The “Third Claim for Relief: Intentional Infliction of Emotional Distress” states, conclusorily, a state law claim without further factual allegations.

The “Fourth Claim for Relief: 42 U.S.C. § 1988” invokes that section for any “remedies available,” here the recovery of attorney and expert fees by a prevailing party. Dismissal of the First and Second Claims require dismissal of this Fourth Claim.

Plaintiff sought, in oral argument, to broaden the claim of impairment of her right to prosecute litigation to unspecified litigation other than Monsky I. Based on the noted Claim Summary, the repeated references to Monsky 1 in the Complaint, the lack of any reference in the Complaint to litigation other than Monsky I involving plaintiff, and the absence of any reference other than to Monsky I in any other pleading which might be argued to have defined its scope, her claim is deemed limited to adverse impact on her prosecution of Mon-sky I. In the Ruling on Motion to Dismiss, dated April 23, 1998, the contemplation that the claims herein were limited to impairment of the prosecution of Monsky I was clearly stated. See Id. at 281-82. Plaintiff has never taken exception to that reading of the Complaint until the argument on April 5, 1999. No pleading by plaintiff, after the Ruling, took issue with the stated contemplation of the intended scope of the claim in this case or alerted the court and counsel to any intended greater scope of the claimed impairment other than to Monsky I.

Claims:

The history of Monsky I is articulated in the cited rulings to which the reader may refer.

The conduct of defendant cited as retaliatory is as follows:

a) He falsely denied to the media the accusations in Monsky I. Compl. ¶ 11.
b) He participated with court personnel in publishing letters in a Danbury newspaper derogatory of plaintiff and her attorney for bringing Monsky I. Compl. ¶¶ 14-17.
c) He enlisted unidentified people, including attorneys, to write to the newspaper, commenting negatively as to plaintiff and her attorney for Monsky I. Compl ¶ 18-19.
d) He conspired with:
1) Superior Court Judges to issue erroneous rulings prejudicial to plaintiff and her attorney. Compl. ¶ 21.
2) the staff (sic) prosecutor to harass. Compl. ¶ 21.
e) He attended a trial where Atty. Burton was counsel, acted so as to distract and intimidate a witness and commiserated with Atty. Burton’s opponent. Compl. ¶ 22.
f) He directly or indirectly submitted information ex parte to Judge Goettel. Compl. ¶ 23. A speculation in the dismissal of Monsky I that the motive for that suit was perhaps dissatisfaction with defendant’s decisions is noted in Compl. ¶24. Plaintiff alleges that any facts on which such a speculation may have been founded must have been communicated to Judge Goettel ex parte by defendant.
[283]*283g) He and Superior Court Judge Miha-lakos grieved Atty. Burton to the Connecticut Grievance Committee, he testified falsely at the hearing and he urged severe discipline for Atty. Burton. Compl. ¶¶ 26-30.
h) His retaliatory conduct was directed “most particularly” at Atty. Burton’s oral argument of Monsky I at the Second Circuit on September 11, 1997. Compl. ¶ 31.

FACTS:

Plaintiff was the litigant in Monsky I and has been a litigant in the Danbury Superior Court. Defendant is a Superior Court Judge and was the defendant in Monsky I. He owns a dog which he brought to the Superior Courthouse in Danbury. He denied conduct by his dog offensive to plaintiff and other women as claimed in Monsky I.

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Bluebook (online)
47 F. Supp. 2d 280, 1999 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 5984, 1999 WL 258492, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/monsky-v-moraghan-ctd-1999.