DECISION AND ORDER WILLIAM M. SKRETNY, Chief Judge. TABLE OF CONTENTS I. INTRODUCTION ..........................................................354 II. BACKGROUND.............................................................355 A. The SAFE Act ........................................................355 1. Assault Weapons...................................................355 2. Magazines and Ammunition..........................................356 B. Procedural History.............................
DECISION AND ORDER WILLIAM M. SKRETNY, Chief Judge. I. INTRODUCTION Plaintiffs commenced the present action pursuant to 42 U.S.C. 1983 seeking compensatory and injunctive relief for Defendants' alleged violations of their constitutional rights. The allegations in the complaint stem from Defendants' alleged searches of Plaintiffs' property and seizure of animals purportedly belonging to Plaintiffs. Presently before this Court are the motions for summary judgment of Defendants County of...
INTRODUCTION JOHN T. CURTIN, District Judge. Petitioner Luis Jose Almonte, an alien in the custody of the United States Department of Homeland Security, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (collectively, "DHS"), has filed this pro se petition for a writ of habeas corpus pursuant to 28 U.S.C. 2241 seeking release from detention at the Buffalo Federal Detention Facility in Batavia, New York, pending the execution of a final immigration order of removal issued against him. Item 1. As...
DECISION & ORDER MARIAN W. PAYSON, United States Magistrate Judge. PRELIMINARY STATEMENT Plaintiff Alex Edward Diakogiannis ("Diakogiannis") brings this action pursuant to Section 205(g) of the Social Security Act ("Act"), 42 U.S.C. 405(g), seeking judicial review of a final decision of the Commissioner of Social Security (the "Commissioner") denying his application for Supplemental Security Income ("SSI"). Pursuant to 28 U.S.C. 636(c), the parties have consented to the disposition of...
REPORT and RECOMMENDATION LESLIE G. FOSCHIO, Magistrate Judge. This is an action alleging violations by Defendants of the Americans with Disabilities Act, and state law claims of discrimination based on the infant A.J. Petri's ("A.J.") disability, autism, negligent hiring, supervision and retention of Defendant Nicotra as director of Eagles Landing Summer Camp ("the camp"), operated by the Defendant School District, and breach of contract. Plaintiffs allege that Defendants refused to admit A....
DECISION ORDER LESLIE G. FOSCHIO, Magistrate Judge. This case was recommitted to the undersigned by Honorable Richard J. Arcara on August 8, 2013. The matter is presently before the court on Petitioner's motion (Doc. No. 26), filed September 12, 2012, seeking to vacate judgment (Doc. No. 21), filed April 19, 2010, denying the petition for habeas relief. On July 29, 2005, Petitioner, Curtis L. Gainey ("Gainey" or "Petitioner"), filed the instant petition pursuant to 28 U.S.C. 2254,...
DECISION AND ORDER DAVID G. LARIMER, District Judge. Plaintiff, Jason Garcia, commenced this action pursuant to 42 U.S.C. 1983. Plaintiff, an inmate in the custody of the New York State Department of Corrections and Community Supervision ("DOCCS"), asserts claims under the Eighth Amendment to the United States Constitution against Anthony Witkowski, Daniel Heintz, and M. Meyer, who at all relevant times were correction officers employed by DOCCS. Plaintiff brought this action pro se,...
DECISION AND ORDER DAVID G. LARIMER, District Judge. Plaintiff Blossom South, LLC ("Blossom South") commenced this action against Kathleen Sebelius, as Secretary of the United States Department of Health and Human Services ("Secretary"), Marilyn Tavenner, as Administrator of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services ("CMS"), and Nirav Shah, M.D., as Commissioner of Health of the State of New York. Plaintiff asserts claims under the Social Security Act, 42 U.S.C. 301 et seq., the...
AMENDED DECISION AND ORDER CHARLES J. SIRAGUSA, District Judge. INTRODUCTION This civil rights case is before the Court on Defendants' motion to dismiss for lack of subject matter jurisdiction and for failure to state a claim. Notice of Motion to Dismiss, Oct. 5, 2011, ECF No. 10. For the reasons stated below, Defendants' motion to dismiss is granted as to the first, second, fourth, fifth, sixth and seventh causes of action; and denied as to the third cause of action, the retaliation and...
DECISION AND ORDER CHARLES J. SIRAGUSA, District Judge. INTRODUCTION Siragusa, J. This civil rights case is before the Court on Defendants' motion to dismiss for lack of subject matter jurisdiction and for failure to state a claim. Notice of Motion to Dismiss, Oct. 5, 2011, ECF No. 10. For the reasons stated below, Defendants' motion to dismiss is granted as to the first, second, fourth, fifth, and seventh causes of action; and denied as to the third and sixth causes of action, the...
DECISION AND ORDER MICHAEL A. TELESCA, District Judge. I. Introduction Represented by counsel, Donald F. Murphy ("Murphy" or "Plaintiff") instituted this action against defendants, alleging numerous injuries arising from his employment as a teacher in the Rochester City School District ("the RCSD"). Presently before the Court is the motion by the RCSD and employees of the RCSD ("the RCSD Defendants") for summary judgment dismissing the amended complaint. II. Factual Background and...
DECISION AND ORDER DAVID G. LARIMER, District Judge. This matter was brought by consumers Joni Eades ("Eades") and Levere C. Pike, Jr. ("Pike"), to challenge certain debt collection actions by the defendant. Defendant Kennedy, PC Law Offices ("Kennedy") is a law firm which engages in, among other things, debt collection. Kennedy allegedly attempted to collect a debt from Eades and Pike via at least one letter and one telephone call, and through a lawsuit that was filed in Pennsylvania....
DECISION AND ORDER WILLIAM M. SKRETNY, Chief Judge. I. INTRODUCTION On February 12, 2009, while on final approach to the Buffalo Niagara International Airport, Continental Connection Flight 3407 crashed into a house in Clarence Center, N.Y., killing all 45 passengers, the four-person crew, and one person in the house. By order entered October 6, 2009, the United States Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation transferred all then-pending actions concerning the crash of Flight 3407 to this...
DECISION and ORDER LESLIE G. FOSCHIO, Magistrate Judge. By papers filed June 20, 2013 (Doc. No. 463), Defendants seek sanctions against Plaintiffs' attorneys ("Plaintiffs' attorneys") based on Defendants' contention that Plaintiffs' attorneys, particularly Sarah E. Cressman ("Cressman"), misrepresented to the court and Defendants' counsel that no discovery responses from opt-in Plaintiffs, included in a random sample of such Plaintiffs, had been withheld whereas Plaintiffs' attorneys had...
DECISION and ORDER LESLIE G. FOSCHIO, Magistrate Judge. By papers filed October 2, 2012 (Doc. No. 351), Defendants moved to disqualify a litigation support company, D4, LLC ("D4"), as Plaintiffs' expert ("Defendants' motion"). In a Decision and Order filed May 21, 2013 (Doc. No. 455) ("the D&O"), the court denied Defendants' motion and entered a briefing schedule, D&O at 83, on Plaintiffs' request for sanctions pursuant to Fed.R.Civ.P. 11 ("Rule 11" or "Rule 11___"), 27 U.S.C. 1927 ("...
DECISION and ORDER LESLIE G. FOSCHIO, Magistrate Judge. By papers filed September 25, 2012 (Doc. No. 377), Defendants moved to disqualify a litigation support company, D4 LLC ("D4"), as Plaintiffs' expert ("Defendants' motion"). In a Decision and Order filed May 21, 2013 (Doc. No. 462) ("the D&O"), the court denied Defendants' motion and entered a briefing schedule on Plaintiffs' request for sanctions. D&O at 66. Defendants' objections to the D&O were recently rejected by Chief District Judge...
JOHN T. CURTIN, District Judge. INTRODUCTION On January 18, 2013, plaintiff, Frank Graham, filed a complaint alleging the violation of his rights under the First, Eighth, and Fourteenth Amendments to the United States Constitution and seeking damages pursuant to 42 U.S.C. 1983. Specifically, plaintiff alleged that, in retaliation for journal entries he made while a parolee at a boot-camp style drug treatment program, he was subjected to cruel and unusual punishment and excessive force, and...
DECISION AND ORDER CHARLES J. SIRAGUSA, District Judge. INTRODUCTION In the instant action a male former student at the University of Rochester is suing the University and a female classmate over actions that resulted in him being expelled. Now before the Court are the following motions: 1) the University of Rochester's ("the University") motion to dismiss (Docket No. [#9]); 2) Sarah Hulbert's ("Hulbert") motion to dismiss [#12]; 3) Hulbert's motion to seal [#12]; 4) Hulbert's motion for...
DECISION AND ORDER DAVID G. LARIMER, District Judge. INTRODUCTION Plaintiff Robert Testa brings this action against the Xerox Corporation Retirement Income Guarantee Plan ("RIGP") and the administrator of the RIGP, alleging that his pension benefits have been reduced in violation of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act ("ERISA"), 29 U.S.C. 1101 et seq. Testa brought this action in the United States District Court for the Central District of California in January 2010, and the...
DECISION & ORDER CHARLES J. SIRAGUSA, District Judge. INTRODUCTION Now before the court in this civil forfeiture action are the following: the government's motion, filed on April 28, 2013, ECF No. 6, to strike the verified answer to the complaint filed on March 17, 2010, ECF No. 3, by the would-be claimant, Thomas Conolly ("Connolly"), and for entry of default judgment; Conolly's cross-motion, filed on May 18, 2013, ECF No. 8, for relief from the government's application. 1 As...
