Murphy v. City of Tulsa

295 F. Supp. 3d 1221
CourtDistrict Court, N.D. Oklahoma
DecidedMarch 13, 2018
DocketCase No. 15–CV–528–GKF–FHM
StatusPublished
Cited by2 cases

This text of 295 F. Supp. 3d 1221 (Murphy v. City of Tulsa) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, N.D. Oklahoma primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Murphy v. City of Tulsa, 295 F. Supp. 3d 1221 (N.D. Okla. 2018).

Opinion

GREGORY K. FRIZZELL, CHIEF JUDGE

This matter comes before the court on the defendant City of Tulsa's Motion for Summary Judgment [Doc. # 175]. For the reasons discussed below, the motion is granted.

I. Background

On September 12, 1994, Travis Wood, the three-month-old son of Michelle Murphy, was found dead as a result of a stab wound to the chest and incised wound to the neck. The Tulsa Police Department, headed by then Chief Ron Palmer, oversaw the investigation of infant Wood's murder. That same day, Murphy made a statement to TPD detective Michael Cook.

On September 15, 1994, Murphy was charged with murder in the first degree in the District Court in and for Tulsa County. Murphy was convicted of the charge in November of 1995 and served twenty (20) years of a sentence of life without parole. On May 30, 2014, Tulsa County District Court Judge William Kellough vacated and set aside Murphy's conviction and, on September 12, 2014, the charge against Murphy was dismissed with prejudice.

Murphy now brings this case against the City of Tulsa pursuant to 42 U.S.C. § 1983, the federal civil rights statute.1

*1227Murphy seeks section 1983 relief on the basis of two constitutional violations: (1) violation of Murphy's Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination, and (2) violation of the Fourteenth Amendment due process clause's right to a fair trial.2 The City moves for summary judgment in its favor.

II. Procedural History and Evidentiary Issues

Before considering the City's motion for summary judgment, however, the court must first address four evidentiary issues associated with Murphy's response.

In support of its motion, the City offers eighty-three (83) material facts to which it asserts there is no dispute. These facts are divided into six categories: (1) "The Tulsa Police Department's Murder Investigation," fact nos. 1-28; (2) "Murphy's Confession And Probable Cause," fact nos. 29-36; (3) "Murphy's Confession was Given Knowingly and Voluntarily," fact nos. 37-46; (4) "Causation and Waiver," fact nos. 47-54; (5) "TPD Policies, Practices, Training, and Supervision," fact nos. 55-71; and (6) "The 'Earlier' Case-LaRoye Hunter," fact nos. 72-83.

Murphy's response to the motion includes over 1,000 pages of exhibits. The City subsequently moved to strike the exhibits attached to Murphy's response, arguing that the exhibits did not comply with Local Civil Rule 56.1. In an order dated August 29, 2017, the court concluded that Murphy's response failed to comply with LCvR 56.1(c) and Fed. R. Civ. P. 56(c)(1) for five separate reasons. First, the court concluded that Murphy "frequently fail[ed] to 'refer with particularity' to those portions of the record upon which she relies," offering as an example Murphy's collective response to the City's first twenty-eight (28) statements of undisputed material facts. In response to the City's first 28 facts, Murphy responded with the statement "[t]he investigation was woefully inadequate, not 'thorough' or 'constitutionally sound' as asserted ..." and cited to 140 of her own additional statements of undisputed fact, seventeen pages of an expert report prepared on her behalf by Dr. Michael D. Lyman, and twelve pages of deposition testimony from the unnamed "scene investigator." Second, Murphy did not use a consistent format for her references. Third, Murphy referenced missing exhibits. Fourth, Murphy occasionally referred to multi-page exhibits as a whole, without reference to page and line numbers. Finally, for some of the exhibits containing excerpts of testimony, Murphy did not identify the individual whose testimony was presented. In order to correct these identified deficiencies, the court granted Murphy additional time to file an amended response that complied with LCvR 56.1(c) and Fed. R. Civ. P. 56(c)(1). See [Doc. # 279].

Pursuant to Local Civil Rule 56.1(c):

The response brief in opposition to a motion for summary judgment (or partial summary judgment) shall begin with a section which contains a concise statement of material facts to which the party asserts genuine issues of fact exist. Each fact in dispute shall be num bered, shall refer with particularity to those portions of the record upon which the opposing party relies and, if applicable, shall state the number of the movant's facts that is disputed.
*1228All material facts set forth in the statement of the material facts of the movant shall be deemed admitted for the purpose of summary judgment unless specifically controverted by the statement of material facts of the opposing party.

LCvR 56.1(c) (emphasis added). The local rule is consistent with statements of the Tenth Circuit interpreting Fed. R. Civ. P. 56, and meant to further the purposes of Rule 56. The Tenth Circuit has stated that "on a motion for summary judgment, 'it is the responding party's burden to ensure that the factual dispute is portrayed with particularity, without ... depending on the trial court to conduct its own search of the record.' " Cross v. Home Depot , 390 F.3d 1283, 1290 (10th Cir. 2004) (quoting Downes v. Beach , 587 F.2d 469, 472 (10th Cir. 1978) ). This court "is not required to comb through Plaintiffs' evidence to determine the bases for a claim that a factual dispute exists." Bootenhoff v. Hormel Foods Corp. , No. CIV-11-1368-D, 2014 WL 3810329, at *2 n.3 (W.D. Okla. Aug. 1, 2014) (citing Mitchell v. City of Moore, Okla. , 218 F.3d 1190, 1199 (10th Cir. 2000) )3 ; see also Espinoza v. Coca-Cola Enters., Inc. , 167 Fed.Appx. 743, 746 (10th Cir. 2006) ("[W]here the nonmovant failed to support his case with adequate specificity, we will not fault the court for not searching the record on its own to make his case for him (nor will we take on that role of advocacy.") ); Boldridge v. Tyson Foods, Inc. , No. 05-4055-SAC, 2007 WL 1299197, at *2 (D. Kan.

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Bluebook (online)
295 F. Supp. 3d 1221, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/murphy-v-city-of-tulsa-oknd-2018.