Ryan v. City of Detroit

977 F.Supp.2d 738

Deborah RYAN, Plaintiff,

v.CITY OF DETROIT, et al., Defendants.

Civil Action No. 11–CV–10900.

United States District Court,

E.D. Michigan,

Southern Division.

Oct. 9, 2013.

Julie H. Hurwitz, Kathleen J. Kalahar, Kathryn Bruner James, Miriam R. Nemeth, William H. Goodman, Goodman and Hurwitz, P.C., Detroit, MI, for Plaintiff.

Edward E. Salah, James R. Acho, Cummings, McClorey, Livonia, MI, for Defendants.

OPINION AND ORDER GRANTING IN PART AND DENYING IN PART THE CANTON DEFENDANTS' MOTION FOR SUMMARY JUDGMENT (DKT. 93) AND DENYING THE CANTON DEFENDANTS' MOTION FOR JUDGMENT ON THE PLEADINGS AS MOOT (DKT. 81)

MARK A. GOLDSMITH, District Judge.

I. INTRODUCTION

This is a civil rights case brought under 42 U.S.C. § 1983 with pendent state-law claims for gross negligence and wrongful death. Plaintiff Deborah Ryan, in her individual capacity and as the representative of the estate of her daughter, Patricia “Katie” Williams, alleges that Defendants City of Detroit, Detroit police officers Barabara Kozloff and Dwane Blackmon, City of Canton, and Canton police officers Mark Schultz and Adam Falk failed to response properly to domestic violence committed by Ed Williams upon his wife, Katie Williams. Plaintiff alleges that this failure enabled Ed, ultimately, to murder Katie. In her § 1983 claim premised on the equal protection clause, Plaintiff alleges that Katie's report of domestic violence was treated differently based on the fact that her assailant was a police officer.

Before the Court is a motion for summary judgment (Dkt. 93) by Defendants Canton, Schultz and Falk (collectively “Defendants” or “the Canton Defendants”), which argues that the equal protection claim—the sole claim asserted against them—should be dismissed. For the reasons set forth below, the Court grants the motion in favor of Canton, but denies the motion with respect to Falk and Schultz.

II. BACKGROUND

A. The Events that Occurred between September 19, 2009 and September 22, 2009 Relating to Ed Williams and Katie Williams

Ed Williams, a Detroit Police Department (“DPD”) homicide detective, was married to Katie Williams, a DPD academy instructor. By 2009, the couple had been married for approximately three years and owned a home on Wall Street in Canton, Michigan. 9/20/2009 Falk Report at 1 (Dkt. 107–5). Ed and Katie had marital difficulties, however, and, by September 2009, they had not been living together for two months. Id.

At about 9:45 p.m. on the evening of Saturday, September 19, 2009, Ed came to the Wall Street home and found Katie talking to her boyfriend, Clifford Lee, on the phone. Video Tr. at 6–7 (Dkt. 106–3). An argument ensued, which culminated in Ed pushing Katie to the ground; Katie sustained a cut on her right cheek. Id. Shortly after midnight, Katie and Lee arrived at the Canton Police Department (“CPD”) headquarters and requested a police escort to accompany Katie back into the home. Falk Report at 1; Falk Dep. at 15–17 (Dkt. 106–2).

Officer Adam Falk was on duty at the CPD headquarters and interviewed Katie. Falk Dep. at 10. Katie described the domestic violence episode with her husband, but refused to provide her name or Ed's name. Id. at 14–17. Katie told Falk that she and her husband were both Detroit police officers and that she did not want Ed to lose his job. Video Tr. at 5, 8.

Falk informed Katie that all he could do was write a report and let the prosecutor make the determination whether Ed would be charged. Id. at 6. Falk said that he would write a report, but would not seek the arrest of Ed based on the information Katie gave him. Id. at 13. Falk also mentioned that the report was a “cover our ass thing,” in case “something really serious happens.” Id. at 9, 17. Katie then left the CPD headquarters with Lee. Falk Dep. at 17. Just before she left the police headquarters, Falk asked Katie “Do you still want anybody to go over to the house?” Katie responded “No.” Video Tr. at 18.

Falk prepared a report of his interview with Katie. The report described the incident as a “civil matter” with a disposition of “closed, for documentation only at this time.” Falk Report at 1–2. Falk's report recounts his encounter with Katie and Lee, including Katie's account of the events where Ed pushed her and she sustained a cut on her cheek. Id. The report also notes that Katie did not want to file a report, and that she wanted a police escort to her home to collect some things, known as a “civil standby,” but then stated that she did not want any assistance and left the station. Id. According to the report, Falk communicated this encounter to his supervisors. Id. at 2.

Katie then returned home the morning of September 20, accompanied by Plaintiff, her mother. Deborah Ryan Dep. at 60–65 (Dkt. 107–3). Katie entered the home unawarethat Ed was there. Id. According to Plaintiff, the women had an altercation with Ed, which involved yelling and a scuffle. Id. During this incident, Ed was holding a handgun and intoxicated. Id. Plaintiff called the Canton police for help, but when the police arrived they found that Ed had fled. Id. at 72. They also found that Ed had left a note, which one of the responding officers, Lieutenant Mark Schultz, considered to be a “suicide note.” ¹ Schultz Dep. at 111.

Shortly after Ed had fled, Schultz issued a notice through the Law Enforcement Information Network (LEIN) regarding Ed.² LEIN Notice (Dkt. 106–6). Schultz also contacted DPD to notify them of the incident between two of its officers. Schultz Dep. at 57–58. The transcript of Schultz's initial call to Sergeant Martel of DPD reveals that he wanted DPD apprised of the situation so that it would “get a hold of” Ed. Call Tr. at 5 (Dkt. 107–8). Schultz explained to Martel that he did not think the domestic violence incident would get a full investigation because (i) CPD did not have enough information, (ii) initially, Katie did not provide her name, and (iii) Falk had only written a civil report. Id. at 11. Schultz also told Martel that he was concerned that there may be a “workplace issue” because, from Schultz's understanding, Ed did not know the identity of Katie's boyfriend, Lee, a fellow DPD officer. Id. at 12–14.

In deposition, Schultz testified that if DPD wanted to do an internal investigation, CPD would provide DPD with information. Id. at 59. Schultz also stated that he hoped that DPD could get a hold of Ed to assess his “mental state.” Id.

CPD Officer Michael Steckel, an officer who assisted Schultz on September 20, 2009, also testified that CPD contacted DPD. Steckel Dep. at 9 (Dkt. 106–9). Steckel stated that Ed “could either come to the Canton Police Department or he could go to the supervisor's office at Detroit P.D. and we would make our decision based on what they had to say about if it was good enough to remove him from LEIN.” Id. at 24.

According to Schultz, he had a brief conversation with Ed a little after 6 p.m. on September 20, 2009. Schultz Dep. at 82, 86. Schultz told Ed that he knew Ed had left the note. Ed responded that the note did not mean anything. Id. at 83. Schultz also told Ed that he had entered the LEIN notice, listing him as a “missing person endangered.” Id. Schultz said that he would not remove the notice until Ed came to see Schultz or went to his supervisor at DPD. Id. Ed said that he was closer to Detroit, so Schultz told Ed to have his supervisor call him when he got to DPD. Id.

Although it is not entirely clear from the record, apparently Schultz notified DPD that Ed was coming to check-in with them. Id. at 57, 59. At some point prior to Ed's arrival at DPD, DPD determined that Sergeant Barbara Kozloff of DPD would speak with Ed. Kozloff testified that, prior to meeting Ed, she had a phone call with Schultz. Schultz apprised Kozloff of the basic facts of the morning incident in Canton. Kozloff Dep. at 55 (Dkt. 107–11). Kozloff testified that she asked Schultz if she had to take Ed into custody. Id. Schultz said no because there was no probable cause to arrest Ed. Id.

DPD Lieutenant Dwane Blackmon and Sergeant Martel also spoke with Kozloff prior to Ed's arrival and provided her with some information regarding the incident of Ed leaving the Canton home that morning. Kozloff Dep. at 40–41, 73.

Upon arriving at DPD, Ed met with Kozloff. Id. at 75. Ed told Kozloff of his marital strife, relating the argument with Katie that morning at the Canton home. Id. at 78. Kozloff also testified that Ed stated that when Ed heard police sirens, he left the home. Id. at 79. Kozloff did not inquire further because she had not been apprised of any other facts by Blackmon, Martel, or Schultz. Kozloff Dep. at 41, 45, 49, 61–62.

After meeting with Ed, Kozloff called Schultz at approximately 6:30 p.m. and told him that “all is well” with Ed. Schultz Dep. at 92. Relying on Kozloff's representation that “all is well,” Schultz removed the LEIN notice. Id. The timing of the LEIN notice removal is unclear from the record.

Late in the evening the next day, Monday, September 21, 2009, Ed and Katie spoke on the phone and agreed to meet the next morning in the Canton public library parking lot. DPD Report at 3 (Dkt. 106–2). On September 22, 2009, Ed and Katie met as planned at approximately 8 a.m. and spent about an hour talking on a bench near the parking lot. Id. After about an hour, the couple got up from the bench, and Ed retrieved a personal handgun from his car. Id. Ed then shot and killed Katie with his personal handgun in the parking lot. Id. He then committed suicide by turning the gun on himself. Id.

B. CPD Policies on Domestic Violence

Relevant to the case are CPD's policies and practices concerning domestic violence intervention operations. According to the Domestic Intervention Operations Policy (“DIO Policy”) published by CPD, the department established “a uniform policy” to “eliminate indecision in the minds of officers and create confidence when exercising judgment in the performance of their...