Murray v. The State of New York

CourtDistrict Court, S.D. New York
DecidedDecember 6, 2024
Docket1:24-cv-08015
StatusUnknown

This text of Murray v. The State of New York (Murray v. The State of New York) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, S.D. New York primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Murray v. The State of New York, (S.D.N.Y. 2024).

Opinion

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT ELECTRONICALLY FILED DOC #: _________________ SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF NEW YORK DATE FILED: 12/6/2024 ----------------------------------------------------------------- X : MICHAEL JOHN MURRAY, : : Plaintiff, : 1:24-cv-08015-GHW : -v- : ORDER OF DISMISSAL : WITH LEAVE TO AMEND THE STATE OF NEW YORK, et al., : : Defendants. : : ----------------------------------------------------------------- X

GREGORY H. WOODS, United States District Judge:

Plaintiff Michael John Murray brings this action pro se. He has paid the fees to bring this action. Plaintiff seeks damages and injunctive relief pursuant to claims under the Thirteenth Amendment and Fourteenth Amendment. Construed liberally, Plaintiff’s complaint sues: (1) Governor Kathy Hochul; (2) Attorney General Letitia James; (3) Leila Bozorg; (4) Derek Davis; (5) Georgette Murray; (6) the State of New York; (7) the New York City Housing Authority (“NYCHA”); and (8) the Graduate Center of the City University of New York (“CUNY”). For the reasons set forth below, the Court dismisses this action sua sponte and grants Plaintiff leave to amend his complaint within thirty (30) days of this order. I. STANDARD OF REVIEW The Court has the authority to dismiss a pro se complaint sua sponte if the Court determines that the action is frivolous, even where the plaintiff has paid the fees to bring a civil action. See Fitzgerald v. First E. Seventh Tenants Corp., 221 F. 3d 362, 363–64 (2d Cir. 2000). “An action is ‘frivolous’ when either: (1) ‘the factual contentions are clearly baseless,’ such as when allegations are the product of delusion or fantasy;’ or (2) ‘the claim is based on an indisputably meritless legal theory.’” Livingston v. Adirondack Beverage Co., 141 F.3d 434, 437 (2d Cir. 1998) (quoting Nance v. Kelly, 912 F.2d 605, 606 (2d Cir. 1990) (per curiam)). The Court must also dismiss an action sua sponte where it lacks subject matter jurisdiction. See Fed. R. Civ. P. 12(h)(3); Ruhrgas AG v. Marathon Oil Co., 526 U.S. 574, 583 (1999). Finally, the Court may dismiss an action sua sponte for failure to state a claim on which relief may be granted “so long as the plaintiff is given notice and an opportunity to be heard.” Wachtler v. Cnty. of Herkimer, 35 F. 3d 77, 82 (2d Cir. 1994) (citation and internal quotation marks omitted), abrogated on other grounds, Murphy v. Hughson, 82 F. 4th 177 (2d Cir. 2023).

Where, as here, the plaintiff proceeds pro se, the Court construes the complaint “liberally,” Harris v. Mills, 572 F. 3d 66, 72 (2d Cir. 2009), and interprets the complaint’s allegations to raise the “strongest [claims] that they suggest.” Triestman v. Fed. Bureau of Prisons, 470 F. 3d 471, 474 (2d Cir. 2006) (internal quotation marks and citations omitted). Still, the Court’s “special solicitude” in pro se cases, id. at 475, does not absolve a pro se plaintiff of the requirement under Rule 8 of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure that his complaint provide a “short and plain statement . . . showing that the pleader is entitled to relief.” Fed. R. Civ. P. 8(a)(2); accord Salahuddin v. Cuomo, 861 F.2d 40, 41 (2d Cir. 1988). Rule 8 requires a complaint to allege “sufficient factual matter, accepted as true, to ‘state a claim to relief that is plausible on its face.’” Ashcroft v. Iqbal, 556 U.S. 662, 678 (2009) (quoting Bell Atl. Corp. v. Twombly, 550 U.S. 544, 570 (2007)). “A claim has facial plausibility when the plaintiff pleads factual content that allows the court to draw the reasonable inference that the defendant is

liable for the misconduct alleged.” Id. In reviewing a motion to dismiss, the Court “accept[s] all factual allegations as true, and draw[s] all reasonable inferences in the plaintiff’s favor.” Austin v. Town of Farmington, 826 F.3d 622, 625 (2d Cir. 2016). II. BACKGROUND

Plaintiff brought this pro se action on October 22, 2024, and paid the requisite filing fee on the same day. Dkt. No. 1. On October 25, 2026, Plaintiff filed the operative amended complaint. Dkt. No. 4 (“Amended Complaint”). The Amended Complaint names eight defendants: The State of New York; NYCHA; Leila Bozorg, the Executive Director of Housing at NYCHA; CUNY; Derek Davis, General Counsel at CUNY; New York Governor Kathy Hochul; New York Attorney General Letitia James; and Georgette Banks Murray, who appears to be Plaintiff’s ex-wife. The Amended Complaint brings claims against these defendants under the Thirteenth and Fourteenth Amendments to the United States Constitution. Id. at 2. Plaintiff alleges that the State of New York violated his rights because (1) in 1996, the New York State Secretary of State issued correspondence stating that there was no record of Plaintiff having a Real Estate Salesman license; (2) in or around 1995, the State of New York Department of Education did not address Plaintiff’s administrative claims against CUNY; (3) in 1980, the People of the State of New York engaged in “questionable Estoppel upon proprietorship endeavors” after Plaintiff inquired about “legal procedures to raise capital”; and (4) in 1998, the Supreme Court of the State of New York improperly entered a default divorce judgment. Id. at 5A. As to Defendant NYCHA, Plaintiff alleges that, in 1987, NYCHA improperly issued an Income Execution Order against him, which the Plaintiff claims he has “attempted to resolve by

issuing a check to the creditor’s attorney to cover legal and clerical fees.” Id. As to Defendant CUNY, Plaintiff alleges that (1) in 1962, CUNY misused his social security account number; and (2) in 1994, CUNY wrongfully terminated Plaintiff as a student after Plaintiff warned that CUNY was in possession of copyrighted materials.” Id. at 5B. Finally, Plaintiff alleges that Georgette Murray, in 1998, engaged in “[i]rregularities in the process serving of divorce summons” against him. Id. Plaintiff alleges that the “default divorce judgment” Ms. Murray obtained is therefore invalid. Id. The Amended Complaint makes no allegations regarding Governor Hochul, Attorney General James, Ms. Bozorg, and Mr. Davis. See id. at 5A-5B. Plaintiff seeks (1) declaratory judgment “to correct all ‘State Agency Purview Judgements’

which are errors to actuarial records”; (2) vacatur of the 1998 divorce judgment against him; (3) repayment of all military and welfare amounts for “parents’ time in government service”; (4) repayment of Plaintiff’s “pension input into [his] wife’s public agency occupation”; (5) repayment of Plaintiff’s “input into New York City municipal and union death benefit insurance”; and (6) retrieval of his CUNY undergraduate papers. Id. at 6B. III. DISCUSSION

Because Plaintiff seeks redress for violations of his rights under the Thirteenth and Fourteenth Amendments to the United States Constitution, the Court construes Plaintiff’s Amended Complaint as asserting claims under 42 U.S.C. § 1983.

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

Related

Coppedge v. United States
369 U.S. 438 (Supreme Court, 1962)
Edelman v. Jordan
415 U.S. 651 (Supreme Court, 1974)
Blum v. Yaretsky
457 U.S. 991 (Supreme Court, 1982)
Carnegie-Mellon University v. Cohill
484 U.S. 343 (Supreme Court, 1988)
Owens v. Okure
488 U.S. 235 (Supreme Court, 1989)
Seminole Tribe of Florida v. Florida
517 U.S. 44 (Supreme Court, 1996)
Ruhrgas Ag v. Marathon Oil Co.
526 U.S. 574 (Supreme Court, 1999)
Bell Atlantic Corp. v. Twombly
550 U.S. 544 (Supreme Court, 2007)
Ashcroft v. Iqbal
556 U.S. 662 (Supreme Court, 2009)
Salahuddin v. Cuomo
861 F.2d 40 (Second Circuit, 1988)
Abbas v. Dixon
480 F.3d 636 (Second Circuit, 2007)
Fabrikant v. French
691 F.3d 193 (Second Circuit, 2012)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
Murray v. The State of New York, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/murray-v-the-state-of-new-york-nysd-2024.