Opinion
May 7, 1990
Appeal from the Supreme Court, Suffolk County (Doyle, J.).
Ordered that order is affirmed, with costs.
The complaint asserted that the defendants, the Chief of Police and the former Mayor of the Village of Ocean Beach, respectively, committed abuse of process when they maliciously conspired to serve the plaintiffs with a summons for an alleged violation of the Village Zoning Code of Ocean Beach. The defendants maintain that the decision to issue the summons was discretionary and entitled to absolute immunity and that in any event, the complaint fails to state a cause of action to recover damages for abuse of process. We agree.
It is well established that determinations by public officials involving an exercise of discretion or expert judgment in policy matters are deemed quasi-judicial in nature, and accorded absolute immunity from liability (see, Haddock v. City of New York, 75 N.Y.2d 478; Tango v. Tulevech, 61 N.Y.2d 34, 40; Rottkamp v. Young, 15 N.Y.2d 831, affg 21 A.D.2d 373). The defendants' decision to serve the plaintiffs with an appearance summons was discretionary, since it was a reasoned judgment which could typically produce different acceptable results (see, Haddock v City of New York, supra; Tango v. Tulevech, supra; Rottkamp v Young, supra). Hence, the defendants are absolutely insulated from liability. Lawrence, J.P., Eiber, Rosenblatt and Miller, JJ., concur.