Opinion
# 2015-038-530 Claim No. 123154 Motion No. M-86228
05-27-2015
SYLVESTER BLAKE v. THE STATE OF NEW YORK
SYLVESTER BLAKE, Pro se No appearance ERIC T. SCHNEIDERMAN, Attorney General of the State of New York By: Anthony Rotondi, Assistant Attorney General
Synopsis
Motion to dismiss claim sounding in constitutional tort for failure to provide ramadan meals granted. Remedy for violation by correctional facility of inmate's free exercise rights lies in enforcement proceeding in Supreme Court pursuant to Correction Law § 610, therefore no cause of action for constitutional tort can be maintained in the Court of Claims.
Case information
| UID: | 2015-038-530 |
| Claimant(s): | SYLVESTER BLAKE |
| Claimant short name: | BLAKE |
| Footnote (claimant name) : | |
| Defendant(s): | THE STATE OF NEW YORK |
| Footnote (defendant name) : | |
| Third-party claimant(s): | |
| Third-party defendant(s): | |
| Claim number(s): | 123154 |
| Motion number(s): | M-86228 |
| Cross-motion number(s): | |
| Judge: | W. BROOKS DeBOW |
| Claimant's attorney: | SYLVESTER BLAKE, Pro se No appearance |
| Defendant's attorney: | ERIC T. SCHNEIDERMAN, Attorney General of the State of New York By: Anthony Rotondi, Assistant Attorney General |
| Third-party defendant's attorney: | |
| Signature date: | May 27, 2015 |
| City: | Saratoga Springs |
| Comments: | |
| Official citation: | |
| Appellate results: | |
| See also (multicaptioned case) |
Decision
Claimant, an individual incarcerated in a State correctional facility, has filed an amended claim in which he seeks compensation for injuries sustained as a result of defendant's alleged negligence in failing to provide him with "N.O.I. [Nation of Islam] Muslim Rumadun [sic] meals" from July 22 through August 8, 2013 at Upstate Correctional Facility (see Amended Claim No. 123154, ¶ 2). Defendant moves to dismiss the claim on the grounds that this Court lacks subject matter jurisdiction and that it fails to state a cause of action. Claimant has not submitted opposition to the motion.
The claim alleges that defendant's agents knew or should have known that claimant was registered with the Department of Corrections and Community Supervision as a N.O.I. Muslim, that defendant was negligent in its maintenance and daily check of the "N.O.I. Muslim Rumadun [sic] feedup list," and negligent in its failure to provide him with "N.O.I. Muslim Rumadun [sic] meals" (see id., ¶¶ 3, 5). The amended claim states that it is "a New York State Constitutional Claim" (id., ¶ 6), and no other cause of action is asserted.
The claim is capable of being construed as sounding in negligence - i.e. that defendant had a duty to provide claimant with Ramadan meals, but that it breached its duty to do so, and that claimant was thereby harmed. However, the amended claim expressly characterizes itself as sounding in constitutional tort, and thus, the Court will limit its consideration of the amended claim to that one cause of action, particularly because claimant has not opposed defendant's motion.
Relying upon the decision in Hernandez v State of New York (UID No. 2012-049-064 [Ct Cl, Weinstein, J., Dec. 10, 2012]), defendant asserts that Correction Law § 610 provides claimant with a remedy in Supreme Court to enforce his State constitutional right to free exercise of religion, and thus, a State constitutional tort cannot be maintained in the Court of Claims (see Rotondi Affirmation, ¶¶ 5-7). Correction Law § 610 implements the State constitutional right of freedom of religious exercise of religion by incarcerated individuals (see Matter of Brown v McGinnis, 10 NY2d 531, 535 [1962]), and "[i]n case of a violation of any of the provisions of [Correction Law § 610] any person feeling himself aggrieved thereby may institute proceedings in the [State] supreme court . . . to enforce the provisions of this section" (Correction Law § 610 [3]). It has been held that this right of enforcement is a remedy that precludes a claim sounding in constitutional tort for money damages for past violations of the constitutional right to free exercise of religion (see Ohnmacht v State of New York, 14 Misc 3d 1231[A] [Ct Cl 2007] [enforcement remedy pursuant to Correction Law § 610 [3] is an available remedy for defendant's alleged interference with religious diet, therefore constitutional tort may not be implied]; Hernandez v State of New York; see also Davis v State of New York, UID No. 2012-015-540 [Ct Cl, Collins, J., May 11, 2012]; Smith v State of New York, UID No. 2010-039-208 [Ct Cl, Ferreira, J., Nov. 8, 2010]; Van Duyne v State of New York, UID No. 2003-032-518 [Ct Cl, Hard, J., Aug. 4, 2003] [Correction Law § 610 "does not give rise to a private right of action for money damages against the State"]).
Because the amended claim asserts only a State constitutional tort, and because such a cause of action cannot be maintained in the Court of Claims for past damages due to an alleged failure to meet claimant's religious dietary needs, defendant's motion to dismiss the claim is meritorious. Accordingly, it is
ORDERED, that motion number M-86228 is GRANTED, and claim number 123154 is DISMISSED.
May 27, 2015
Saratoga Springs, New York
W. BROOKS DeBOW
Judge of the Court of Claims Papers considered: (1) Amended Claim Number 123154, filed September 13, 2013; (2) Verified Answer to the Amended Claim, filed October 22, 2013; (3) Notice of Motion to Dismiss, dated January 21, 2015; (4) Affirmation in Support of Anthony Rotondi, AAG, dated January 21, 2015, with Exhibits A- C; (5) Affidavit of Service of Motion, sworn to January 21, 2015.