Wallace v. City of Chicago

471 F. Supp. 2d 894, 2004 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 5448, 2004 WL 719258
District Court, N.D. Illinois·Decided March 30, 2004·No. 03 C 2296·Published·Cited by 2 cases

Opinion

MEMORANDUM OPINION

DERYEGHIAYAN, District Judge.

This matter is before the court on Defendant Kristen Roy’s (“Roy”) and Eugene Kato’s (“Kato”) motion for summary judgment and on Defendant City of Chicago’s (“City”) motion to dismiss. For the reasons stated below we grant the motion for summary judgment in part and deny it in part without prejudice and we deny the motion to dismiss without prejudice.

BACKGROUND

On January 19, 1994 Roy and Kato, detectives for the Chicago Police Department, were assigned to investigate the murder of John Herbert Handy (“Handy”). The police reports indicated that Handy had been shot in a building located at 825 N. Lawndale Avenue in Chicago, Illinois. The reports also indicated that Handy was employed as a house sitter for a construction company which was rehabbing the building. In addition, the police reports indicated that Handy and the proprietor of the construction company had a confrontation with drug dealers near the building prior to the shooting. The killer apparently entered the building through a window in the back of the building, shot Handy with a 9mm weapon three times, and then fled down a gangway along the building.

After learning of the murder, two other officers familiar with the area interviewed witnesses at the scene and witnesses and other informants indicated that Laron Jackson (“Jackson”) and Plaintiff Andre Wallace (“Wallace”) were dealing drugs at the crime scene on the night of the murder. On January 19, 1996 the police picked up Wallace and Jackson and took them to the police station. Defendants assert that at that point Jackson and Wallace were not under arrest and that they did not ask to go home. Kato and Roy first began interrogating Wallace and Jackson around 9:30 p.m. During the night Jackson eventually told police that Wallace had been working as “security” for the drug dealers on the night of the murder and was carrying a 9mm gun. Jackson also told police that he saw Wallace running down the gangway along the building after he heard shots fired. At 4:15 p.m. the police confronted Wallace with Jackson’s statements. The police first discovered that Wallace was only fifteen years old and they called in a youth officer to assist them.

At 6:00 a.m. an Assistant State’s Attorney was brought in and Wallace signed a written statement waiving his Miranda rights and admitting that he shot Handy three times.

At trial Wallace did not argue that he was innocent. Instead, at closing he argued that he killed Handy in self defense and at least during mutual combat arguing that he should be convicted of second degree murder rather than first degree murder. On appeal the appellate court ruled that Wallace had been seized for a significant amount of time prior to his written confession and the court remanded the case to the trial court to determine if the confession was legal. On remand the trial court found the confession to be admissible, but on the second appeal the appellate *897 court ruled that the confession was inadmissible. Subsequently, the Assistant State’s Attorney moved to nolle prosequi the charges against Wallace.

Wallace has filed a claim against Defendants pursuant to 42 U.S.C. § 1983 (“Section 1983”) alleging false imprisonment, excessive force, and unlawful arrest. Wallace also included a false imprisonment claim and a malicious prosecution claim based upon Illinois law. Kato and Roy have filed a motion for summary judgment on all counts and the City has filed a motion to dismiss.

LEGAL STANDARD

Summary judgment is appropriate when the record reveals that there is no genuine issue as to any material fact and the moving party is entitled to judgment as a matter of law. Fed.R.Civ.P. 56(c). In seeking a grant of summary judgment the moving party must identify “those portions of ‘the pleadings, depositions, answers to interrogatories, and admissions on file, together with the affidavits, if any,’ which it believes demonstrate the absence of a genuine issue of material fact.” Celotex Corp. v. Catrett, 477 U.S. 317, 323, 106 S.Ct. 2548, 91 L.Ed.2d 265 (1986) (quoting Fed.R.Civ.P. 56(c)). This initial burden may be satisfied by presenting specific evidence on a particular issue or by pointing out “an absence of evidence to support the non-moving party’s case.” Id. at 325, 106 S.Ct. 2548. Once the movant has met this burden, the non-moving party cannot simply rest on the allegations or denials in the pleadings, but, “by affidavits or as otherwise provided for in [Rule 56], must set forth specific facts showing that there is a genuine issue for trial.” Fed.R.Civ.P. 56(e). A “genuine issue” in the context of a motion for summary judgment is not simply a “metaphysical doubt as to the material facts.” Matsushita Elec. Indus. Co., Ltd. v. Zenith Radio Corp., 475 U.S. 574, 586, 106 S.Ct. 1348, 89 L.Ed.2d 538 (1986). Rather, a genuine issue of material fact exists when “the evidence is such that a reasonable jury could return a verdict for the nonmoving party.” Anderson v. Liberty Lobby, Inc., 477 U.S. 242, 248, 106 S.Ct. 2505, 91 L.Ed.2d 202 (1986); Insolia v. Philip Morris, Inc., 216 F.3d 596, 599 (7th Cir.2000). The court must consider the record as a whole, in a light most favorable to the non-moving party, and draw all reasonable inferences that favor the non-moving party. Anderson, 477 U.S. at 255, 106 S.Ct. 2505; Bay v. Cassens Transport Co., 212 F.3d 969, 972 (7th Cir.2000).

DISCUSSION

I. False Arrest and Malicious Prosecution Claims

In his answer brief to the instant motions Wallace concedes that a claim for false arrest would be time-barred and therefore contends that he does not assert a claim of false arrest. Therefore, we grant summary judgment on the false arrest claims. In his answer brief Wallace also admits that his malicious prosecution claims are flawed and should be dismissed with prejudice. Therefore, we grant summary judgment on the malicious prosecution claims.

II. Section 1983 Claims

Defendants argue that Wallace’s Section 1983 claims are barred by the statute of limitations. Section 1983 does not expressly provide a statute of limitations period and thus the federal courts are required to adopt the forum state’s statute of limitations period for personal injury claims. Wilson v. Garcia, 471 U.S. 261, 276, 105 S.Ct. 1938, 85 L.Ed.2d 254 (1985).

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Wallace v. City of Chicago, 471 F. Supp. 2d 894, 2004 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 5448, 2004 WL 719258 (N.D. Ill. 2004).

471 F. Supp. 2d 894 (Wallace v. City of Chicago) — published by Counsel Stack Legal Research, free access to 12M+ legal documents.

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