(DOWNLOAD) "White Plains Towing Corp. v. Patterson" by United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit # eBook PDF Kindle ePub Free
eBook details
- Title: White Plains Towing Corp. v. Patterson
- Author : United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit
- Release Date : January 21, 1993
- Genre: Law,Books,Professional & Technical,
- Pages : * pages
- Size : 78 KB
Description
KEARSE, Circuit Judge : Defendants Harold J. Wright and E. P. Streider (""defendants""), who at the pertinent times were New York State Police (""State Police"") officers, appeal from a judgment entered in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York following a one-day bench trial before Charles L. Brieant, then-Chief Judge, awarding plaintiffs White Plains Towing Corp. (""WP Towing"") and its president Don Cherico (collectively ""Cherico"") $1 in nominal damages and $22,700 in attorney's fees on their claims under 42 U.S.C. § 1983 (1988) that defendants caused the State Police to discontinue a service relationship with WP Towing, in violation of plaintiffs' rights under the First Amendment and the Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment to the Constitution. On appeal, defendants contend principally (1) that the district court erred in ruling that plaintiffs' First Amendment and due process rights were violated, and (2) that defendants were, in any event, entitled to dismissal of the due process claims on the ground of qualified immunity. Plaintiffs cross-appeal, contending principally that the district court erred in refusing to award more than nominal damages. For the reasons below, we conclude that plaintiffs' First Amendment claims and certain of their due process claims lacked merit and that defendants were entitled to dismissal of the remaining due process claims on the ground of qualified immunity. Accordingly, we reverse the judgment of the district court.