Atkins v. Borough of Phoenixville, Michael Bauerly, David Boelker, E. Jean Krack Michael Speck, Phoenixville Police Dep't, William Mossman, Peco Energy Co.
Atkins v. Borough of Phoenixville, Michael Bauerly, David Boelker, E. Jean Krack Michael Speck, Phoenixville Police Dep't, William Mossman, Peco Energy Co.
Opinion of the Court
"The Court has consistently held that some kind of hearing is required at some time before a person is finally deprived of his property interests." Wolff v. McDonnell ,
I. LEGAL STANDARD
"[S]ummary judgment is appropriate where there is 'no genuine dispute of material fact' and the moving party is 'entitled to judgment as a matter of law.' " Alabama v. North Carolina ,
Counsel for Plaintiffs failed to comply with the procedural requirements in moving for summary judgment and in opposing Defendants' motions for summary judgment. Rule 56(c) requires that a "party asserting that a fact cannot be or is genuinely disputed must support the assertion" by either "citing to particular parts of materials in the record" or "showing that the materials cited do not establish the absence of presence of a genuine dispute, or that an adverse party cannot produce admissible evidence to support the fact." Fed. R. Civ. P. 56(c). All of Plaintiffs' briefing lack citations to the Joint Appendix submitted by the parties. Plaintiffs furthermore did not submit a statement of undisputed material facts for their motion for summary judgment or a statement of disputed material facts for their opposition briefing. Accordingly, insofar as Defendants have substantiated their factual contentions with correct references to the Joint Appendix, those contentions will be considered undisputed. Fed. R. Civ. P. 56(e)(2).
"[I]t is the attorney's job (not the court's) to closely examine the record to determine if sufficient issues of fact exist to warrant a trial." Russell v. City of Phila. ,
II. FACTUAL BACKGROUND
From 2003 to 2015, Atkins, Davenport, and Duren owned the Pennsylvania House Hotel in Phoenixville. The Hotel has five levels, including four stories and a basement. The Hotel principally offered units for rent on a weekly basis, and it was usually about 70-80% occupied. During the relevant time period of this dispute, the Hotel was mainly used as a multifamily dwelling.
At some point in November 2014, an unnamed Hotel resident invited David Boelker, Director of Code Enforcement for the Borough of Phoenixville, to examine the premises. The resident expressed some concerns about the Hotel's living conditions, fearing that the property was unsafe for his wife, child, and grandchildren. Along with Michael Baurley, a Building Code Official for the Borough of Phoenixville, Boelker entered the Hotel and took photographs of the premises. The initial inspection was limited to the hallways of the Hotel. Based on what they saw, Boelker concluded that a search warrant was necessary to determine if there were building code violations.
As a result, the Borough applied for an administrative search warrant to examine the Hotel. In the affidavit section, the Borough *516stated that "[t]he purpose of said warrant is for establishing proper Heating requirements ... as well as other safety issues with regard to egress, sprinkler systems, electrical panels, proper working bathing facilities." The warrant was then signed.
In early December 2014, Baurley, Boelker, other building code officers, Harry Weaver of Barry Isett & Associates, Inc. ("BIA"), and the Phoenixville Fire Department (including its Chief, John Buckwalter) began inspecting the Hotel.
Other areas in the Hotel were similarly hazardous. The basement had no functional exit sign or emergency lighting. Its egress doors were padlocked from the inside. The electrical panels were open and wires were exposed. The smoke detector was inoperable. The Fire Department's report further observed additional fire hazards in the rear office area and ground level commercial space of the Hotel. The office had "multiple devices plugged into a single outlet." Indeed, surge protectors were plugged into other surge protectors, creating an "electrical octopus." The ground level had no working smoke detectors and functional emergency egress lighting. The egress doors were padlocked from the inside. Mattresses were piled against the wall. The sprinkler heads were obscured by construction materials.
Given these myriad problems afflicting the Hotel, it was declared unfit for human habitation on the same day of the inspection. A day afterwards, PECO terminated gas service to the Hotel and removed its electric meters.
BIA would later complete a report that included findings about the Hotel's compliance with local construction codes. According to the BIA report, the Hotel "contained no permanent heating facilities." The "central boilers were observed in a state of disrepair." The BIA report confirmed the Fire Department's account in several respects as well. It too observed the smell "indicative of a natural gas leak" on the second floor. The BIA report also observed "sprinkler heads that have been obstructed." Further, it noted the "disorderly storage of mattresses, televisions, boxes, and other combustible materials." The exit doors on two of the floors were "found boarded, locked, and equipped with signage forbidding [their] use." As for the residential units, a majority of them lacked a "functioning smoke detector, many without a smoke detector entirely." Based on these factual findings and more, the BIA report concluded that the Hotel was uninhabitable and presented unsafe conditions in violation of local building codes.
*517Plaintiffs then sued the Borough, multiple Borough officials, and PECO as well as its employees under Section 1983. For ease of reference, the Borough, and its officials and police officers will be collectively referred to as the "Borough Defendants." Other Borough officials included in this lawsuit are the former Chief of the Phoenixville Police Department, William Mossman; former Mayor of Phoenixville, Michael Speck; and Borough Manager, Jean Krack. Plaintiffs have also sued three Phoenixville police officers - Lance Frost, Kyle Place, and Patrick Mark - who were present at the Hotel during the December inspection. PECO and its employees will be referred to as the "PECO Defendants."
The gravamen of Plaintiffs' claims is that Defendants did not afford them due process of law in finding that the Hotel was unsuitable for habitability. Plaintiffs have moved for summary judgment, contending that there is no dispute that Defendants violated their constitutional rights. Defendants, in turn, have also filed a motion for summary judgment, seeking dismissal of Plaintiffs' remaining Section 1983 claims.
III. DISCUSSION
To succeed, a claim under Section 1983 requires that a defendant, under color of state law, violated a federal right of the plaintiff's. Groman v. Twp. of Manalapan ,
a. Procedural Due Process Claim for Lack of a Pre-Deprivation Hearing
i. Against Borough Defendants
A claim under Section 1983 for deprivation of procedural due process requires: (1) the deprivation of an individual interest that is encompassed within the Fourteenth Amendment's protection of "life, liberty, or property" and (2) the procedures available to the plaintiffs did not provide "due process of law." See Hill v. Borough of Kutztown ,
As a matter of due process, "summary administrative action may be justified in emergency situations." See Elsmere Park Club, L.P. v. Town of Elsmere ,
The "emergency situation" exception applies in this case. The Borough Defendants have adduced competent evidence supporting their reasonable belief that the building conditions presented an emergency situation. It is undisputed that there were tenants living in the building - some of which included senior citizens. It is also undisputed that the Hotel contained various fire hazards: multiple gas leaks, exposed electrical panels, combustible material throughout the Hotel, and one open flame that was personally seen by Chief Buckwalter. There were no functional extinguishers, smoke detectors, or posted exit plan. Some of the egress doors were locked. Given these circumstances, the Borough's officials had a reasonable belief of an emergency situation that threatened the health and welfare of the Hotel residents. See id. As the First Circuit has explained in a due process case, "No one can seriously doubt that emergency conditions may exist (e.g., a severe fire hazard ) that would warrant a peremptory shutdown of a residential building." Herwins v. City of Revere ,
ii. Against PECO
A Section 1983 claim based on procedural due process requires deprivation of some sort by a "state actor." See Kach v. Hose ,
To determine if PECO's conduct was state action, the central inquiry "is whether there is such a close nexus between the State and the challenged action that seemingly private behavior may be fairly treated as that of the State itself." Kach ,
Plaintiffs have failed to marshal any evidence to suggest that the PECO Defendants "acted with the help of or in concert" with Borough officials, or that PECO Defendants can be "recognized as a joint participant," acting interdependently with the Borough. See
b. Procedural Due Process Claim for Lack of a Post-Deprivation Remedy
i. Against Borough Defendants
Because a pre-deprivation hearing was not required, the Court "must nevertheless determine whether the postdeprivation remedy" that the Borough offered was adequate. Elsmere Park ,
In Elsmere Park , the Third Circuit concluded that the town provided the plaintiff with "adequate means of appealing the condemnations" at issue. Id. at 423. The Elsmere Park court looked to the local code, noting that the plaintiff had an avenue to challenge the condemnations through the town's Board of Adjustment - an appellate forum established as part of the town's zoning code. Id. at 422. Because there was such an "administrative body empowered to hear [the plaintiff's] appeal," as well as "procedures ... specifically designed to address appeals of condemnation decisions," the town's post-deprivation hearing procedure was deemed sufficient. Id. at 423.
On the facts of this case, the Borough's appeals process was adequate. Insofar as Plaintiffs contend that they lacked notice that the Borough closed down the Hotel in early December, the undisputed facts belie this assertion. According to Section 11-215 of the Phoenixville Borough Code, "When the Housing Inspector determines that there exists a violation of any provision of this Part, he shall give written notice of such violation to the violator." The Borough did so when Baurley sent a letter to Atkins shortly after the Hotel was deemed uninhabitable in early December 2014. The letter cited, among other things, a specific provision of the Borough's code governing designations of dwellings as unfit for human habitation. That provision, Section 11-218 of the Phoenixville Borough Code, stated that when the Housing Inspector "finds that any dwelling constitutes *520a serious hazard to the health or safety of the occupants ... he shall designate such dwellings as unfit for human habitation." At the latest, Atkins knew about Baurley's letter by late January 2015.
Like the town in Elsmere Park , the Borough provided an appeals process. As Section 11-215 provides, "Any person aggrieved by a decision or an action of the Housing Inspector may appeal to the Board of Housing Appeals for a review of the decision in accordance with procedures described by the Board of Housing Appeals." The same section also notes that when emergency action is taken by the Housing Inspector, priority is given to any appeals of that action. Based on two of the Plaintiffs' deposition testimony, they knew that they could appeal the Borough's decision. Duren conceded that he could "challenge the condemnation decision of the Borough...." Atkins was aware of his right to appeal based on correspondence he received from the Borough before the December inspection. Atkins further testified that he conferred with his attorneys - current counsel in this case - to determine the reasons for the Borough's action. Atkins testified at his deposition that he thought his attorneys contacted Borough officials to inquire about the Hotel's shutdown. But it is undisputed that neither Plaintiffs nor their attorneys appealed the Borough's decision. Plaintiffs' briefing does not otherwise explain, with citations to the record, why the Borough's appeals process is insufficient. See Fed. R. Civ. P. 56(c)(1). Consequently, Plaintiffs' failure to "take advantage" of the appeals process "means that [they] cannot claim a constitutional injury." Elsmere Park ,
ii. Against PECO Defendants
Plaintiffs have pointed to no record evidence that the PECO Defendants can be regarded as "state actors" for purposes of their procedural due process claim based on a lack of post-deprivation remedy. See Kach ,
c. Substantive Due Process Claim against Borough Defendants
Section 1983 provides a remedy for violations of substantive due process under the Fourteenth Amendment. Chainey v. Street ,
The shocks-the-conscience standard is a fact-specific inquiry. See
*521United Artists Theatre Circuit, Inc. v. Twp. of Warrington ,
d. Monell Claims against Borough
A Monell claim requires an underlying constitutional violation. Burgos v. City of Phila. ,
e. Plaintiffs' Motion for Summary Judgment
Because Plaintiffs have not pointed to any record evidence in support of their Section 1983 claims, see Fed. R. Civ. P. 56(c), and for the reasons stated above, their motion for summary judgment shall be denied.
An order follows.
BIA has provided services to the Borough for at least 15 years, acting as one of its third-party construction agencies responsible for enforcing Pennsylvania construction codes. Weaver has served as the Borough's Construction Code Official since 2013.
This case was reassigned from the calendar of the Honorable Legrome D. Davis. ECF No. 67. In a prior order adjudicating the Defendant's motion to dismiss under Rule 12(b)(6), Judge Davis dismissed some of Plaintiffs' Section 1983 claims. ECF No. 65.
Judge Davis's prior order concluded that the first test did not apply. ECF No. 65.
Atkins emailed his counsel, on January 24, 2015, that he "just got a certified copy of the letter" from the Borough. However, he added that it was "the same one [Plaintiffs] already have," suggesting that Plaintiffs and their attorneys already received notice from the Borough about the Hotel's habitability issues.
Judge Davis's prior order dismissed Plaintiffs' substantive due process claims against the PECO Defendants. ECF No. 65.
Reference
- Full Case Name
- Craig ATKINS, Andrew Duren and Joel Davenport v. BOROUGH OF PHOENIXVILLE, Michael Bauerly, David Boelker, E. Jean Krack Michael Speck, Phoenixville Police Department, William Mossman, Peco Energy Company, Peco Employees John Browns 1-100, Lance Frost, Kyle Place, Patrick Mark and Phoenixville Hose, Hook and Ladder 1
- Cited By
- 4 cases
- Status
- Published