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Friday, July 24, 2009

Attorney's Claim of False Arrest by Court Officer Survives

Judge Endorses Attorney's Claim of False Arrest by Court Officer
The New York Law Journal by Mark Fass - July 24, 2009

A lawyer who was arrested in a Queens courtroom after calling a court officer an obscene name has successfully sued New York state for false arrest. The underlying incident took place in the courtroom of now-retired Queens Civil Court Judge Steven Gottlieb on Sept. 30, 2005. Joseph A. DePaula, an East Norwich solo practitioner, had arrived in the courtroom, the Civil Court's calendar part, shortly after 10 a.m. Mr. DePaula sat in the last row of benches on the aisle seat, waiting to be called. His phone rang and he answered it. Mr. DePaula and the court officer who soon thereafter arrested him, Charles Rey, provided differing accounts at trial regarding what happened next. Both agreed that Officer Rey confiscated Mr. DePaula's phone. And both agreed that Mr. DePaula used an expletive in referring to Officer Rey. Officer Rey testified that he twice asked Mr. DePaula to step out of the courtroom, that Mr. DePaula twice refused and that Officer Rey therefore placed him under arrest.

The 16-year veteran of courtroom security said he handcuffed Mr. DePaula, escorted him out of the courtroom and held him in a security room for 15 minutes, during which he gave Mr. DePaula a summons charging him with disorderly conduct. Officer Rey testified that he asked Mr. DePaula to leave the courtroom not because of the name-calling but because the attorney was causing a disturbance. For his part, Mr. DePaula denied the court officer asked him to leave the courtroom before handcuffing him and placing him under arrest. He also denied attempting to provoke Officer Rey by calling him a name. Rather, as he explained to the court, he was merely using the epithet in an attempt to convey that the officer was a "contemptible, disagreeable, obnoxious person." A judicial hearing officer acquitted Mr. DePaula of disorderly conduct. His present action against the state for false arrest and malicious prosecution ensued. In a decision handed down earlier this month, Court of Claims Judge S. Michael Nadel found the state liable for false arrest. The judge, however, threw out the malicious prosecution charge, citing a lack of malice. Judge Nadel ruled that, under People v. Tarka, 75 NY2d 996, a mere slur did not constitute sufficient probable cause for Officer Rey to arrest Mr. DePaula. "While the requisite intent might be established by the Court officer's version of the [events], upon consideration of the conflicting testimony, the defendant has not established that the arrest was based upon anything more than the words spoken by [DePaula]," Judge Nadel wrote in DePaula v. State of New York, 11765.

"The preponderance of the credible evidence establishes that Mr. DePaula's utterance was spoken in a conversational tone, and that he did not refuse the Officer's request to leave the courtroom before he was placed under arrest." Mr. DePaula did not return a call for comment. His attorney, Laurence Jacobson, said a hearing has been set for Aug. 3 to determine damages, which he said could be significant. "It's damn embarrassing," Mr. Jacobson said of the arrest, "and it's frightening, also." Assistant Attorney General Robert Schwerdt represented the state. A spokeswoman for the attorney general's office declined to comment. Dennis Quirk, the president of the New York State Court Officers Association, said Judge Nadel's decision, like Mr. DePaula's earlier acquittal, demonstrated the way the scales of justice inequitably balance in favor of attorneys. "The officer was doing his job appropriately," Mr. Quirk said. "Because [DePaula] was an attorney, he received preferential treatment. Attorneys are no better than anybody else. They're not supposed to use their phones in the courtroom. We did what we were supposed to do."  Mark.Fass@incisivemedia.com

14 comments:

Bronx Zoo Lover said...

There is Total Chaos in the courts. We have honest judges who are afraid of corrupt superiors. We have corrupt judges who violate the law with every breath. We have lawyers who lie, cheat and steal on a regular basis. We have a large number of judges who have been elected by rigged elections. We have a 'judicial' system that has NO accountability, and we have power-hungry court officers who think they're guarding the president.... when they're not out drinking on breaks and lunch, of course. This isn't a court system, it's a zoo. Complete with the stench.

Anonymous said...

A judge is allowing a crony to get money from the State(Taxpayers).

Anonymous said...

Bronx Zoo Lover you are DEAD ON. You win the prize for articulation.

Anonymous said...

the judge may not be helping his crony, if the officers are anything like some of the puke that is in Niagara County, then the officer deserved it!
until the honest are allowed to file complaints & they actually are investigated and proper accountability, then evil will continue to prevail
with healthcare & pensions
I hope the judges turn them all in!

Barum & Bailey Circus said...

Hear Yee, Hear Yee...The Courts are being run by "CIRCUS CLOWNS"..it's a crying shame what has happened to a once respected system...All of these thugs need to be thrown in JAIL..What I have witnessed is so beyond surreal...They're all "UNTOUCHABLE" and they "WALK ON WATER"!!!!!!!!

BARNUM AND BAILEY CIRCUS said...

Hear Yee, Hear Yee...The Courts are being run by "CIRCUS CLOWNS"..it's a crying shame what has happened to a once respected system...All of these thugs need to be thrown in JAIL..What I have witnessed is so beyond surreal...They're all "UNTOUCHABLE" and they "WALK ON WATER"!!!!!!!!

Eliot Bernstein said...

Lets bring back the good old days. In Hillsboro NC in 1770 they closed the courts, threatened the judges and publically whipped the attorneys.

Anonymous said...

concur! concur! concur!

Anonymous said...

Remember that attorneys are above the law, so the fix was in and we will be the ones that pay for it. What a scam

Anonymous said...

In my "loving" productive years as a courtroom employee...I watched these court officers on many occasions purposely stand behind defts about to be sentenced...always to a term of probation..as these officers frequently asked the judge for the sentence committment.... so they could be ready to happily cuff someone...and they would then slap the side of their gun , while unclicking the holster snap constantly and then pull out the handcuffs and start releasing and locking the cuffs continuously...all in the vein of freightening the deft into believing he would be incarcerated!

This was not only cruel and the typical OCA... abuse of power..but a sign that many of these court officers are cowardly a**holes!

I am glad a heroic state judge ruled against these power freaks of court security....placing them in a position to do what they know is correct for once and also force them to become subject to consequences even though they act like most of the judiciary!

Maybe there is judicial reform in the horizons, with the non-corrupt judges and empoyees.... overwhelming OCA administration carp... with rulings that mandate arrests and firings!

Not a fan of lawyers and their arrogance...but court employees are way out of control and need to be monitored by the public..in any profession!

Anonymous said...

the FBI needs to be in our courthouses.....
to accomplish this send complaints
to
- this website
- the CJC
- the FBI
- Senator Sampson (asking that hearings be held in your area and that the above presence is requested-sampson@state.state,ny.us)
along with our media, they should be mandated to print all allegations!

Anonymous said...

the FBI needs to be in our courthouses.....
to accomplish this send complaints
to
- this website
- the CJC
- the FBI
- Senator Sampson (asking that hearings be held in your area and that the above presence is requested-sampson@state.state,ny.us)
along with our media, they should be mandated to print all allegations!

Anonymous said...

How about this one: A cop in Las Vegas, l Spiotto who falsely arrested the wrong guy for a crime that never occurred. Spiotto believes in Spiotto’s law. Detective spiotto of Las vegas arrested a guy who had no criminal record of any kind. This guy lost his business, friends, and his ability to work in the business field. To dishonor someone, by accusing someone of a crime is bad enough. To have a man kidnapped(jailed), held for ransom(bail) and forced to live in conditions that aren’t fit for and animal is a real criminal act. Spiotto should think before he leaps. Spiotto should not claim to be a detective. Spiotto should not have the ability to place anyone under arrest. Spiotto is the dictionary definition of false arrest.

Anonymous said...

I am a court officer and I witness my colleages abuse here power on a DAILY basis. They are quick to arrest the public for nonsense. I am thrilled that counsel was victorious!
I can not identify myself b/c the court system is like the mob...If you go against the family, you pay severely!

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See Video of Senator John L. Sampson's 1st Hearing on Court 'Ethics' Corruption

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               Video of 1st Hearing on Court 'Ethics' Corruption
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