Perez v. Metropolitan Transportation Authority

883 F. Supp. 2d 431, 34 I.E.R. Cas. (BNA) 422, 2012 WL 3195078, 2012 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 110972
CourtDistrict Court, S.D. New York
DecidedAugust 7, 2012
DocketNo. 11 Civ. 8655(RWS)
StatusPublished
Cited by3 cases

This text of 883 F. Supp. 2d 431 (Perez v. Metropolitan Transportation Authority) 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
Perez v. Metropolitan Transportation Authority, 883 F. Supp. 2d 431, 34 I.E.R. Cas. (BNA) 422, 2012 WL 3195078, 2012 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 110972 (S.D.N.Y. 2012).

Opinion

OPINION

SWEET, District Judge.

Defendants Metropolitan Transportation Authority (the “MTA”), John D’Agostino (“D’Agostino”) and Oleg Olshanetskiy (“01-shanetskiy,” and, with the MTA and D’Agostino, the “Defendants”) have moved pursuant to Fed.R.Civ.P. 12(b)(6) to dismiss the amended verified complaint (the “Amended Complaint”) of plaintiff Ada Perez (“Perez” or the “Plaintiff’) alleging violations of Plaintiffs constitutional rights resulting from urine tests performed dur[433]*433ing Plaintiffs employment with the MTA. Based upon the conclusions set forth below, Defendants’ motion to dismiss the Amended Complaint is granted in part and denied in part.

Prior Proceedings

On November 29, 2011, Plaintiff filed her initial complaint asserting eleven causes of action, alleging constitutional rights violations, as well as violations of Title VII, New York State Executive Law §§ 296, 297 and New York City Administrative Code § 8-107. On February 15, 2012, Defendants filed a motion to dismiss the initial complaint. In an opinion dated May 29, Defendants’ motion was granted, and Plaintiff was permitted 20 days to file an amended complaint (the “May 29 Opinion”). See Perez v. Metro. Transp. Auth., No. 11 Civ. 8655(RWS), 2012 WL 1943943 (S.D.N.Y. May 29, 2012).

On June 19, 2012, Plaintiff filed the Amended Complaint, which alleges four causes of action brought under 42 U.S.C. § 1983, including (1) a Fourth, Fifth and Fourteenth Amendment claim alleging unreasonable search and seizure with respect to a urine test conducted on January 22, 2010, (2) a Fourth, Fifth and Fourteenth Amendment claim alleging unreasonable search and seizure with respect to urine tests conducted on August 14, 2009, March 26, 2010 and July 20, 2010, (3) a Fifth and Fourteenth Amendment claim alleging procedural and substantive due process violations and (4) a Fifth and Fourteenth Amendment claim alleging deprivation of a liberty interest without due process of law.

The Amended Complaint

Although based on the same facts described in the May 29 Opinion, the Amended Complaint provides additional information not pled in the original complaint. Accordingly, a full recitation of the facts alleged in the Amended Complaint will be provided. In the Amended Complaint, Plaintiff alleges the following facts, which are accepted as true at this stage of the litigation.

The MTA is a public authority operating under New York State law that provides interstate public transportation services and is an “employer” as that term is defined in the applicable statutes.

D’Agostino, at all times relevant to this litigation, was and still is a Deputy Chief of Police for the MTA. He is the commanding officer of the MTA’s Internal Affairs Bureau and Medical Control Unit and Occupational Health Services Department (“OHS”). According to an MTA Department Manual attached to the Amended Complaint, D’Agostino is responsible “for managing sick leave and service-related injury cases and assisting with the coordination and evaluation of such cases with the MTA Occupational Health Service Department (OHS).”

Olshanetskiy, at all times relevant to this litigation, was and still is a physician and is the Medical Review Officer (“MRO”) for the MTA’s OHS. In a letter dated September 10, 2010 to a physician charged with performing an independent medical examination of Plaintiff, Olshanetskiy identified himself as- “Medical Director in charge of the MTA Police Medical Department.” The MTA Department Manual attached to the Amended Complaint states that Olshanetskiy is responsible “for medically evaluating and determining if a Member is fit for duty following a report of sick leave or service-related injury.”

Plaintiff is a female of Puerto Rican national origin. On July 7, 2008, Plaintiff became employed by the MTA as a police officer. On June 11, 2009, while in the performance of her duties, Plaintiff suffered an injury to her wrist and was compelled to undergo two surgeries. Plaintiff [434]*434returned to work in August 2009, but was on restricted duty and was assigned to an MTA office at 341 Madison Avenue, New York, New York. Plaintiff remained on restricted duty until February 17, 2012 when she returned to full duty. During the time Plaintiff was on restricted duty, she worked in civilian clothes and did not possess a firearm. Based upon a Memorandum of Agreement between the MTA and the Police Benevolent Association dated November 2002, Plaintiff, during the time that she was on restricted duty, was not in a safety sensitive position. The Memorandum of Agreement states, in relevant part:

The parties interpret the federal regulations to mean that members of the Department who do not carry a firearm for security purposes are not performing safety sensitive duties and therefore will not be subject to the U.S. DOT/FTA alcohol and drug testing procedure.
The MTA considers members of the Department carrying a firearm off duty not to be performing a safety sensitive function unless they are taking law enforcement action within the MTA service region. Employees not performing safety sensitive duties on a daily basis such as employees assigned to training outside the MTA service area, employees absent from work for the day (i.e. sick leave, jury duty, union release time, military leave, workers’ compensation, vacation, etc.) and employees assigned to restricted duty assignments without a firearm, will remain in the random testing pool. The U.S. DOT/FTA guidelines provide that these employees may only be tested if they are actually performing safety sensitive duties. Employees selected for random testing who are either assigned to a [sic] non-safety sensitive duties for the duration of the work-day or are not performing safety sensitive duties for the duration of the work day will be considered unavailable for testing that day. The parties agree to be bound by any determinations of the U.S. DOT or the FTA to the contrary.

During her employment with the MTA, Plaintiff has not received any disciplinary action and has never been accused or suspected of engaging in any prohibited alcohol or drug abuse.

MTA is subject to various rules, regulations, procedures and policies wherein it can administer urine/drug tests to its employees. These rules provide for pre-employment testing, reasonable suspicion testing, post-accident testing, random testing and follow-up testing after returning to duty following a prior positive finding for prohibited alcohol or drug use. MTA has implemented its own substance abuse policy in accordance with applicable federal regulations. MTA’s policy provides that drug or alcohol testing will be conducted (1) pre-employment, including after an absence from work of 90 consecutive days or more, (2) where there is reasonable suspicion, (3) randomly, (4) post-accident, (5) upon return to duty after a positive test and (6) as a follow-up after return to duty. Return to duty and follow-up testing are to be conducted with reference to an employee who has engaged in conduct in violation of federal regulations or MTA policy.

Since Plaintiff returned to restricted duty in August 2009, Defendants have compelled her to be subject to repeated urine tests.

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Bluebook (online)
883 F. Supp. 2d 431, 34 I.E.R. Cas. (BNA) 422, 2012 WL 3195078, 2012 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 110972, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/perez-v-metropolitan-transportation-authority-nysd-2012.