Nawuoh v. Venice Ashby Cmty. Ctr.

802 F. Supp. 2d 633, 2011 WL 2936362, 2011 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 79934
CourtDistrict Court, E.D. Pennsylvania
DecidedJuly 20, 2011
DocketCivil Action No. 09-CV-5817
StatusPublished
Cited by16 cases

This text of 802 F. Supp. 2d 633 (Nawuoh v. Venice Ashby Cmty. Ctr.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, E.D. Pennsylvania primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Nawuoh v. Venice Ashby Cmty. Ctr., 802 F. Supp. 2d 633, 2011 WL 2936362, 2011 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 79934 (E.D. Pa. 2011).

Opinion

MEMORANDUM AND ORDER

JOYNER, Chief Judge.

Before this Court are the Motion for Summary Judgment of Defendants Bucks County Housing Authority and Venice [637]*637Ashby Community Center (Doc. No. 20) and Plaintiffs’ response in opposition thereto (Doc. No. 24). For the reasons set forth in this Memorandum, the Court grants the Motion as to Counts I and II of the Amended Complaint, declines to exercise supplemental jurisdiction over the state-law claims against these Defendants, and dismisses Counts III and IV against them without prejudice.

7. BACKGROUND

This case arises out of the tragic death of second grader Emerson Nawuoh, who was fatally struck by a motor vehicle on the evening of December 6, 2007. Prior to the accident, Emerson, a resident of the Venice Ashby housing project, had been at the Venice Ashby Community Center. The Community Center was a room that hosted, among other things, an after-school homework program for children who resided at the housing project.

The Venice-Ashby Residents Council-a nonprofit organization composed of residents of the Venice Ashby housing project, created to benefit the housing project’s residents, (Resident Council Bylaws, Pis.’ Resp. Ex. C)-had implemented the homework program at the Community Center. (Stone Dep. 11:20-12:8, 23:11-13, Defs.’ Mot. Ex. C.) Although the Community Center was in a building owned by the Bucks County Housing Authority, the program was organized and staffed by members of the Residents Council, including Chester Stone, its President, and Sandra Cooper, a board member. (Cooper Dep. 23:5-8, Defs.’ Ex. E; Moody Dep. 34:15-20, 35:4-13, Defs.’ Ex. D.) The program generally ran from 4:00 p.m. to 5 or 5:30 p.m., (Stone Dep. 24:23-25:18), and though there was a sign-in sheet, the children could freely come and go. (Id. 25:19-26:16; Cooper Dep. 46:9-12.) When the program ended, the children generally left on their own; adults seldom picked them up, though younger children were usually accompanied by an older sibling. (Cooper Dep. 47:24-48:4; Stone Dep. 41:23-42:8.)

Darla Moody, a program director for the Housing Authority at Venice Ashby, was aware that the Residents Council used the Community Center for the homework program and other activities. (Moody Dep. 32:6-24, 33:18-22.) However, there was no active participation by any Housing Authority employees in the Residents Council’s programs, and the Housing Authority employees routinely left before the homework program concluded. (Id. at 34:15-20, 39:2-40:24.) Thus, apart from its space being used, the Housing Authority was not involved in the program’s operation. (Id. at 30:9-24; Moody Dep. 55:19-56:12, Pis.’ Resp. Ex. B.)

Prior to the night in question, Emerson had never stayed until the end of the homework program but rather left almost immediately after signing in, leaving his older sister at the program. (Cooper Dep. 44:9-45:24, 48:7-16.) On December 6, 2007, however, Emerson did stay until closing. Around 5 p.m., Mr. Stone told the children to clean up because the Girl Scouts would be starting their event in the space. (Stone Dep. 43:17-23.) Emerson and other children left through the back door, (Stone Dep. 44:1-12), and at some point soon afterward Emerson ended up in the street outside the building, where he was fatally struck by a passing motorist.

Plaintiffs, as administrators of Emerson’s estate, filed suit in federal court against the Housing Authority, the Community Center,1 the Residents Council, [638]*638and Mr. Stone. Count I of the Amended Complaint alleges a “violation of civil rights under color of state law pursuant to the Civil Rights Act of 1871[,] 42 U.S.C. §§ 1981 and 1983.” (Doc. No. 11, at 4.) Count II is identical, with the exception of the phrase “deliberate indifference” added in parentheses at the end of the heading. (Id. at 7.) Counts III and IV are, respectively, wrongful death and survivorship claims under state law. (Id. at 9-10.) All four Defendants are named in each count.

After the close of discovery, the Housing Authority and Community Center filed the pending Motion for Summary Judgment. (Doc. No. 20.) Although the Motion states that these Defendants are seeking summary judgment “as to all claims against them in the Amended Complaint,” (id.), the Memorandum on which Defendants rely discusses only Counts I and II; it does not challenge the state-law claims asserted in Counts III and IV. (Doc. No. 21.)2 More specifically, Defendants assert that Plaintiffs have not presented sufficient evidence to support liability under the state-created danger theory. (Id. at 4.) They also assert that there has been “no showing that any alleged policy or custom which may have lead [sic] to an underlying Constitutional violation was performed by a State actor.” (Id. at 10-11.)

In response, Plaintiffs acknowledge that their § 1983 claims are based on the state-created danger theory but assert that there is sufficient evidence that all four elements of the state-created danger test have been met. (Doc. No. 25, at 1, 5.)3

II. STANDARD OF REVIEW

“[S]ummary judgment is proper ‘if the pleadings, depositions, answers to interrogatories, and admissions on file, together with the affidavits, if any, show that there is no genuine issue as to any material fact and that the moving party is entitled to a judgment as a matter of law.’ ” Celotex Corp. v. Catrett, 477 U.S. 317, 322, 106 S.Ct. 2548, 91 L.Ed.2d 265 (1986) (quoting Fed.R.Civ.P. 56(c)). “[T]he party moving for summary judgment has the initial burden of identifying evidence which it believes demonstrates the absence of a genuine issue of material fact.” Childers v. Joseph, 842 F.2d 689, 694 (3d Cir.1988). “However, where the nonmoving party bears the burden of proof, [the nonmoving party] must by affidavits or by the depositions and admissions on file ‘make a showing sufficient to establish the existence of [every] element essential to that party’s case.’ ” Id. (quoting Celotex, 477 U.S. at 322, 106 S.Ct. 2548). While the facts and inferences must be viewed in the light most favorable to the party opposing the motion, Matsushita Elec. Indus. Co. v. Ze[639]*639nith Radio Corp., 475 U.S. 574, 587, 106 S.Ct. 1348, 89 L.Ed.2d 538 (1986), “a non-moving party must adduce more than a mere scintilla of evidence in its favor and cannot simply reassert factually unsupported allegations contained in its pleadings.” Williams v. Borough of W. Chester, 891 F.2d 458, 460 (3d Cir.1989) (footnote and citations omitted).

III. DISCUSSION

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Bluebook (online)
802 F. Supp. 2d 633, 2011 WL 2936362, 2011 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 79934, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/nawuoh-v-venice-ashby-cmty-ctr-paed-2011.