Sierra Serpa v. Martinez

• Court: Court of Appeals for the First Circuit
• Decided: June 16, 1993
• Docket: 91-2062A
• Status: Published

Opinion

USCA1 Opinion

UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS
                                FOR THE FIRST CIRCUIT
                                 ____________________

        No. 91-2062

                                 ANGEL SIERRA-SERPA,

                                Plaintiff, Appellant,

                                          v.

                               MANUEL MARTINEZ, ET AL.,

                                Defendants, Appellees.

                                 ____________________

                     APPEAL FROM THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

                           FOR THE DISTRICT OF PUERTO RICO

                     [Hon. Carmen C. Cerezo, U.S. District Judge]
                                             ___________________

                                 ____________________

                                        Before

                                 Selya, Circuit Judge,
                                        _____________

                     Coffin and Campbell, Senior Circuit Judges.
                                          _____________________

                                 ____________________

            Carlos V. Garcia Gutierez with whom  Guillermo J. Ramos Luina  was
            _________________________            ________________________
        on brief for appellant.
            Carlos  Lugo  Fiol,  Assistant  Solicitor  General, Department  of
            __________________
        Justice, with whom Reina Colon De Rodriguez, Acting Solicitor General,
                           ________________________
        was on brief for appellees.

____________________

                                    June 15, 1993
                                 ____________________

Per  Curiam.   The  Supreme  Court  of Puerto  Rico
                      ___________

            issued  its  opinion and  a  judgment  on  February 5,  1993,

            Sierra-Serpa v. Martinez, No.  CT-92-344 (P.R. Feb. 5, 1993),
            ____________    ________

            responding to the question certified by this court on May 27,

            1992.  See  Sierra-Serpa v.  Martinez, 966 F.2d  1 (1st  Cir.
                   ___  ____________     ________

            1992).

                      The   sole  issue   in  this   appeal  is   whether

            plaintiff's    1983 action  was barred  by Puerto  Rico's one

            year statute of limitations  for tort actions.  The  district

            court held that it  was barred and dismissed the  action.  On

            appeal, this  court found  that the issue  turned on  whether

            Section 3  of Article 40  of the  Puerto Rico  Code of  Civil

            Procedure, 32  L.P.R.A.    254, was implicitly  repealed when

            Article 20  of the Penal Code  of 1937 was repealed  in 1974.

            If Article 40(3)  was implicitly  repealed, then  plaintiff's

            action  was  barred by  the  statute of  limitations  and was

            properly dismissed.  The Puerto Rico Supreme  Court stated in

            its opinion  that  Article  40(3)  was  implicitly  repealed,
                                               ___

            responding  in  the  negative  to our  question  whether,  in

            essence,  Article   40(3)   excluded  from   the   applicable

            limitations  period  the  time  during  which  plaintiff  was

            imprisoned.  

                      In light of the opinion and judgment of the Supreme

            Court  of Puerto  Rico,  we hold  that  the district  court's

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dismissal  of  appellant's   complaint  as  time  barred   is

            affirmed.           So ordered.    
                                __________

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