Stevenson v. City of New York

Full title: ROBERT STEVENSON, Appellant, v. CITY OF NEW YORK et al., Respondents

Court: Appellate Division of the Supreme Court of New York, First Department

Date published: Mar 17, 1998

248 A.D.2d 248 (N.Y. App. Div. 1998)

671 N.Y.S.2d 218

Opinion

March 17, 1998

Appeal from the Supreme Court, New York County (Jane Solomon, J.).

A motion to vacate a default requires both a reasonable excuse and a showing of a meritorious claim. Here, while conceding that the failure to serve a notice of claim is fatal to any State-based tort claim, plaintiff contends that he nevertheless has a meritorious Federal-based tort claim under 42 U.S.C. § 1983. We disagree. No facts are adduced tending to show that plaintiff was selectively prosecuted for building code violations because of his race, or that race-based prosecutions were official policy or an officially sanctioned custom ( see, Monell v. New York City Dept. of Social Servs., 436 U.S. 658, 691).

Concur — Ellerin, J. P., Wallach, Rubin and Tom, JJ.