# MEYER v. STATE OF NEW JERSEY

> District Court, D. New Jersey · June 30, 2025

URL: https://www.frixlaw.com/law-library/cases/11087326

## Case

- **Court:** District Court, D. New Jersey
- **Decided:** June 30, 2025
- **Opinion:** 100trialcourt
- **Cited by:** 0 later opinions in the Frix Law Library

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## Opinion text

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
DISTRICT OF NEW JERSEY

ROBERT JOHN MEYER, Civil Action No. 21-15273 (MCA)

Plaintiff,
MEMORANDUM OPINION
v.

STATE OF NEW JERSEY, et al.,

Defendants.

This matter has been opened to the Court by Robert John Meyer’s filing of an Amended
Complaint. (See ECF No. 12.) The Court has screened the Amended Complaint for dismissal
under 28 U.S.C. § 1915(e)(2)(B), and, for the reasons explained below, dismisses the federal claims
as time barred, denies equitable tolling, and declines supplemental jurisdiction over the remaining
state law claims pursuant to 28 U.S.C. 1367.
I. FACTUAL BACKGROUND & PROCEDURAL HISTORY
a. The Original Complaint
Plaintiff filed his original complaint in this action or about August 6, 2021. (ECF No. 1.)
After granting Plaintiff’s application to proceed in forma pauperis, the District Court screened the
original complaint for dismissal under 28 U.S.C. §1915(e)(2)(B) and dismissed the §1983 claims
against the State of New Jersey. (ECF No. 5 at 5-6.) The District Court also dismissed the §1983
claims against the Prosecutor Defendants A. Curry, R. Ballard, J. Siedman, and K. Poggi on the
basis of prosecutorial immunity.1 (Id. at 6.) The Court determined that Plaintiff’s §1983 claims
for malicious prosecution and fabrication of evidence were time barred on the face of the

1 In his Amended Complaint, Plaintiff does not reallege his §1983 claims against the State of New
Jersey or the prosecutor defendants.
Complaint. (Id. at 8-12.) The Court also found that Plaintiff did not allege a sufficient basis for
equitable tolling and provided Plaintiff with leave to amend. The Court also declined supplemental
jurisdiction pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1367(c)(3) over Plaintiff’s remaining state law claims,
including any claims under the New Jersey Civil Rights Act (“NJCRA”). (Id. at 12.)
b. The Amended Complaint

After seeking and receiving an extension of time, Plaintiff filed an Amended Complaint
against S. Yates, J. Salanitro, S. Francis, D. Wallace, T. Hassan, V. Domenick, G. Mandara, L.
Stevens, S. Harrisson, and John and Jane Does 1-10.2 (ECF No. 12 at 1-14.) The matter was
subsequently reassigned to the undersigned. (ECF No. 13.)
In the Amended Complaint, Plaintiff alleges that he is civilly committed at the Special
Treatment Unit (“STU”) pursuant to the Sexually Violent Predator Act (“SVPA”). (Amended
Compl. at ¶ 3.) Plaintiff further alleges that he had a verbal confrontation with SCO Francis on
June 6, 2014, and she sprayed him with disinfectant. (Id. at ¶¶ 8-12.) SCO Francis called a Code
33, and the arriving corrections officers, including Salanitro, Hassan, Domenick, Mandara, and

Stevens, allegedly assaulted and pepper sprayed Plaintiff. (Id. at ¶¶ 12-13.) Afterwards, the
corrections officer Defendants allegedly conspired to file false reports, in which they claimed that
Plaintiff had assaulted and threatened the officers. (Id. at ¶¶ 14, 17.)
The allegedly false reports resulted in criminal charges against Plaintiff for terroristic
threats, obstruction of administrative law, and assaulting corrections officers. (Id. at ¶ 18.)

2 Plaintiff’s original complaint did not allege a basis for tolling; his accompanying certification
claimed in in vague terms that “STU programs were shut down” due to COVID-19 and did not
reopen until June 21, 2021. (See ECF No. 1-5 at 3.) Plaintiff also claimed that he was only
permitted to use the computer and make copies once or twice a week. (Id. at 3-4.)
Plaintiff was indicted on October 23, 2014, and on July 14, 2015, prosecutors sought a superseding
indictment, which added a charge for resisting arrest. (Id. at ¶¶ 19, 23.)
Administrator Defendant Yates allegedly upheld the confiscation of Plaintiff’s discovery
material, including a DVD recording of the June 6, 2014 events, which allegedly interfered with
Plaintiff’s ability to prepare for trial. (Id. at ¶¶ 20-22.)

Plaintiff’s trial took place from March 2, 2016 through March 4, 2016, during which the
correction officer defendants allegedly gave false testimony. (Id. at ¶¶ 26-31.) The resisting arrest
charge was dismissed at the conclusion of the trial. (Id. at ¶ 32.) Plaintiff alleges that he did not
testify because the trial judge ruled that he could be impeached with his prior conviction(s). (Id.
at ¶ 34.) The jury acquitted Plaintiff of assaulting the corrections officers but found him guilty of
one count of terroristic threats and one count of obstruction of the administration of law. (Id. at ¶
33.)
Plaintiff alleges that on May 5, 2016, during the sentencing phase, he learned that
Defendant Yates revealed confidential medical records protected by HIPAA without Plaintiff’s

consent or a court order. (Id. at ¶ 34.) On May 9, 2016, the state court sentenced Plaintiff to four
years imprisonment for the terroristic threats charge and a concurrent 18-month sentence for the
obstruction charge. (Id. at ¶ 35.) Plaintiff appealed his conviction. (Id. at ¶ 36.)
On May 13, 2016, Plaintiff was moved from the STU to South Woods State Prison to serve
his sentence. (ECF No. 12-3, Certification of Robert J. Meyer (“Meyer Cert.”), ¶ 3.) On July 10,
2017, Plaintiff was paroled and returned to the STU to continue his civil commitment. (Amended
Compl. at ¶¶ 36, 38.)
On February 9, 2018, the Appellate Division reversed Plaintiff’s conviction and remanded
for a new trial. (Id. at ¶ 36.) The state appealed, and the Supreme Court denied certification on
October 3, 2018. (Id.)
In the meantime, the state court dismissed the Indictment on June 14, 2019, and issued
another order dismissing the Indictment with prejudice on July 17, 2019. (Id. at ¶ 39.) Plaintiff

alleges that the state court issued the second dismissal order to clear up confusion regarding
whether the Indictment was dismissed with or without prejudice. (Id.)
Prior to the dismissals of the Indictment, Plaintiff filed a notice of tort claim on July 12,
2019, with the State of New Jersey, but he alleges it was not answered. (Id. at ¶ 40.) As of June
2021, the New Jersey Office of Risk Management told Plaintiff that a response may take some
time due to the shutdown associated with COVID-19. (Id.) Plaintiff alleges that he called the case
manager several times and left messages, but he did not receive a response to his claims. (Id.)
Plaintiff further alleges that he mistakenly believed that he needed to file and receive a
response to his notice of tort claim prior to filing his civil rights action and also alleges that the

STU was “in various states of lockdown and isolated confinement of residents due to COVID-19.”
(Id. at ¶ 41.)
In his accompanying certification, Plaintiff contends that beginning in February 2020, the
STU was placed on lockdown due to COVID-19,3 and during this time no movement, programs,
or activities occurred and residents were allowed out of their cells for only twenty minutes a day.
(See Meyer Cert. at ¶ 8.) According to Plaintiff, the facility “partially opened,” but there was still

3 Notably, the first confirmed case of COVID-19 in New Jersey was announced on March 3, 2020.
See Governor Murphy’s Press Release dated March 4, 2020, available at
https://www.nj.gov/governor/news/news/562020/20200304e.shtml, last visited June 2, 2025. The
WHO declared COVID-19 a pandemic on March 11, 2020. See
https://www.cdc.gov/museum/timeline/covid19.html, last visited June 2, 2025.
no law library access from May-August 2020, and the law library operated sporadically up until
January 2023. (Id. at ¶¶ 8-9.)
Plaintiff has also submitted a certification from a former law library clerk at the STU. (ECF
No. 12-4, Certification of Roy L. Marcum (“Marcum Cert.”).) Marcum was the law library clerk
at the STU from November 2018-October 2021. (Marcum Cert. at ¶ 3.) Like Plaintiff, Marcum

contends that the law library operated only sporadically while the COVID-19 protocols were in
effect and that the COVID-19 protocols ended approximately a month before he submitted his
certification in January 2023. (Id. at ¶¶ 3, 10.)
Marcum also contends that beginning in June 2021, the law library was “in a state of chaos”
due to interference by staff. (Id. at ¶ 4.) Printers were “nonfunctional” and “schedules were
changed without warning.” 4 (Id. at ¶ 5.) Marcum also contends that Plaintiff has difficulty
reading and understanding the Court’s instructions that Marcum must explain “elementary
procedures to him,” and that Plaintiff has only a minimal grasp of these procedures. (Id. at ¶ 8.)
Plaintiff agrees that he has difficulty reading and understanding the Court’s instructions and states

without explanation that he only recently has been able to obtain assistance in filing a complaint.
(Meyer Cert. at ¶¶ 13-14.)
c. Plaintiff’s Prior Federal Actions
Plaintiff does not disclose any prior federal actions in his original or Amended Complaint.
(See ECF No. 1 at 2.) It appears that Plaintiff has filed at least three prior federal civil actions

4 After Marcum was removed from the position without reason, two new clerks were hired but one
was dismissed for alleged misconduct and the other was placed on Modified Activities Program
(“MAP”). Marcum also notes that in the several months prior to his January 2023 certification,
there was no working printer for the STU law library and that residents could only print if they
have access to a personal word processor, as Marcum does, or if another resident with a word
processor were willing to assist. (Id. at ¶ 11.)
asserting violations of his civil rights while incarcerated in the Adult Diagnostic Treatment Center
(“ADTC”) and the STU. See Meyer v. Ferguson, Civ. No. 01-5803 (KSH); Meyer v. Kent, Civ.
No. 01-5836 (DRD); Meyer v. Hyatt, Civ. No. 13-6043 (WJM). The civil action Myer v. Hyatt is
related to this action. There, Plaintiff submitted an Amended Complaint on October 6, 2015, in
which he sued Yates, Francis, Salanitro, Wallace, Hassan, Domeneck, Mandara, Stevens, and

Harrisson in connection with the June 6, 2014 incident and the resulting criminal investigation.
(See ECF No. 13-6043, ECF No. 31, at 10-14.) These Defendants, with the exception of Salanitro
and Harrisson, were served and answered the Amended Complaint December 7, 2015. (Id. at ECF
No. 46.) After receiving permission to submit a second amended complaint, Plaintiff voluntarily
withdrew Civ. Act. No. 13-6043 on or about April 16, 2018. (Id. at ECF No. 65.)
II. STANDARD OF REVIEW
At this time, the Court screens the Amended Complaint for dismissal under §
1915(e)(2)(B). Under the Prison Litigation Reform Act, Pub. L. 104-134, §§ 801–810, 110 Stat.
1321-66 to 1321-77 (Apr. 26, 1996) (“PLRA”), district courts must review prisoner complaints

when the prisoner is proceeding in forma pauperis. See 28 U.S.C. § 1915(e)(2)(B). The PLRA
directs district courts to sua sponte dismiss claims that are frivolous or malicious, fail to state a
claim upon which relief may be granted, or seek monetary relief from a defendant who is immune
from such relief. See 28 U.S.C. § 1915(e)(2)(B). Whether a complaint fails to state a claim under
§ 1915(e)(2)(B)(ii) is governed by the same standard applicable to motions to dismiss under
Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 12(b)(6), see Tourscher v. McCullough, 184 F.3d 236, 240 (3d
Cir. 1999), which requires the Court to determine whether the complaint contains “sufficient
factual matter, accepted as true, to state a claim to relief that is plausible on its face.” Ashcroft v.
Iqbal, 556 U.S. 662, 678 (2009) (quotations omitted). At the pleading stage, the Court accepts the
facts alleged in the pro se complaint as true, draws all reasonable inferences in the plaintiff’s favor,
and asks only whether the complaint, liberally construed, contains facts sufficient to state a
plausible claim. Shorter v. United States, 12 F.4th 366, 374 (3d Cir. 2021) (quoting Perez v.
Fenoglio, 792 F.3d 768, 774, 782 (7th Cir. 2015)). Conclusory allegations, however, do not
suffice. Iqbal, 556 U.S. at 678. As relevant here, when screening a complaint pursuant to the

PLRA, courts may “dismiss a suit for failing to state a claim when the limitations defense is
obvious from the face of the complaint.” McPherson v. U.S., 392 F. App’x 938, 943 (3d Cir. 2010.
Dismissal is appropriate when the “allegations make clear the action is not timely.” Id.
III. DISCUSSION
Based on Plaintiff’s allegations, the Court construes §1983 and NJCRA claims for
malicious prosecution, fabrication of evidence, and conspiracy against Defendants Salanitro,
Francis, Wallace, Hassan, Domenick, Mandara, Stevens, and Harrisson.5 The Court also construes
a supervisory liability claim under § 1983 and the NJCRA against Defendant Yates based on her
alleged knowledge of and acquiescence in the fabrication of evidence by her subordinates. The

Court also construes Plaintiff to allege § 1983 and NJCRA claims against Yates for interference
with his right to prepare a defense and a violation of his right to medical privacy.
a. The Federal Claims in the Amended Complaint are Untimely
The Court begins by analyzing the timeliness of the federal claims. The amount of time a
§ 1983 claimant has to bring suit is determined by the personal-injury law of the state where the
alleged harm occurred, Coello v. DiLeo, 43 F.4th 346, 352 (3d Cir. 2022) (citing Dique v. N.J. State

5 Plaintiff does not appear to assert § 1983 claims for excessive force against the corrections officer
Defendants arising from the alleged assault that occurred on June 6, 2014. To the extent Plaintiff
sought to bring such a claim, the Court would dismiss it as time barred because it accrued over 10
years ago at the time of his injury. Indeed, Plaintiff filed a prior action about the June 6, 2014
incident and subsequently withdrew that action.
Police, 603 F.3d 181, 185 (3d Cir. 2010)), and New Jersey law gives litigants two years to file a
personal-injury claim. See id. (citing N.J. Stat. Ann. § 2A:14-2).
Plaintiff’s § 1983 claims against Yates arising from her alleged interference with his right
to prepare a defense and her violations of his right to medical privacy accrued more than two years
prior to the filing of his Complaint and are time barred. Yates allegedly violated Plaintiff’s right

to prepare a defense to the pending criminal charges when she upheld the decision to confiscate
the video evidence sent to him by his attorney.6 This claim accrued when it occurred in 2016 (or
at the latest when his conviction was overturned by the Appellate Division), and is clearly time
barred. Yates also allegedly violated his right to medical privacy7 some time prior to his sentencing
in May 2016 when she turned over his medical information to the prosecution without his consent
or a court order. This claim accrued at the latest in May 2016 when Plaintiff learned of the
disclosure, and is also time barred.

6 A pretrial detainee has a right of access to the courts with respect to legal assistance and
participation in preparing a defense against pending criminal charges. See, e.g., Prater v. City of
Phila., 542 F. App’x 135, 136-37 (3d Cir. 2013); May v. Sheahan, 226 F.3d 876, 883-84 (7th Cir.
2000). A pretrial detainee may also raise claims alleging interference with his Sixth Amendment
right to the assistance of counsel. Prater, 542 F. App’x at 137.
7 The Third Circuit has recognized that inmates have a constitutional right to privacy in their
medical information, which is “subject to substantial restrictions and limitations in order for
correctional officials to achieve legitimate correctional goals and maintain institutional security.”
Doe v. Delie, 257 F.3d 309, 317 (3d Cir. 2001). The Court assumes without deciding that Plaintiff,
as a civil detainee, has at least the same expectation of privacy in his medical records as a convicted
prisoner has.
The Court next addresses when Plaintiff’s § 1983 claims for malicious prosecution,8
fabrication of evidence,9 conspiracy,10 and supervisory liability11 accrued. Under federal law, a
malicious prosecution claim accrues when the prosecution comes to “a favorable termination.”
Thompson v. Clark, 596 U.S. 36, 44 (2022). Likewise, “[t]he statute of limitations for a fabricated-
evidence claim . . . does not begin to run until the criminal proceedings against the defendant (i.e.,

the § 1983 plaintiff) have terminated in his favor.” McDonough v. Smith, 588 U.S. 109, 114
(2019). Favorable termination occurs when the prosecution is “terminated, disposed of, or, as the
books usually say, at an end.” Thompson, 596 U.S. at 45 (quoting Clark v. Cleveland, 6 Hill 344,
346 (1844)) (emphasis in original). In Coello v. DiLeo, 43 F.4th at 350, the plaintiff’s conviction
was vacated in a collateral proceeding with no objection from the state. Under the circumstances
of that case, the Third Circuit held that the favorable-termination requirement “when the state court
vacated [the plaintiff’s] criminal conviction.” Id. at 355. In a more recent nonprecedential

8 The Court construes Plaintiff to bring claims for malicious prosecution under § 1983. Generally,
prosecutors are responsible for initiating criminal proceedings, but courts have long “recognized
that a § 1983 malicious prosecution claim might be maintained against one who furnished false
information to, or concealed information from, prosecuting authorities.” Gallo v. City of Phila.,
161 F.3d 217, 220 n.2 (3d Cir. 1998).
9 “If a defendant has been convicted at a trial at which the prosecution has used fabricated evidence,
the defendant has a stand-alone claim under section 1983 based on the Fourteenth Amendment.”
Mervilus v. Union Cnty., 73 F.4th 185, 193 (3d Cir. 2023) (cleaned up) (quoting Halsey v. Pfeiffer,
750 F.3d 273, 294 (3d Cir. 2014)).
10 The construes Plaintiff to allege that the correction officer defendants engaged in a § 1983
conspiracy by falsifying evidence in order to maliciously prosecute him. “To prevail on a
conspiracy claim under § 1983, a plaintiff must prove that persons acting under color of state law
‘reached an understanding’ to deprive him of his constitutional rights.” Jutrowski v. Township of
Riverdale, 904 F.3d 280, 293–94 (3d Cir. 2018) (citing Adickes v. S.H. Kress & Co., 398 U.S. 144,
150-52 (1970)).
11 “[A] supervisor may be personally liable under § 1983 if he or she participated in violating the
plaintiff's rights, directed others to violate them, or, as the person in charge, had knowledge of and
acquiesced in his subordinates' violations. A.M. ex rel. J.M.K. v. Luzerne Cnty. Juvenile Detention
Center, 372 F.3d 572, 586 (3d Cir. 2004) (citing Baker v. Monroe Township, 50 F.3d 1186, 1190–
91 (3d Cir.1995)).
decision, the Third Circuit explained that “favorable termination is the moment when the outcome
of the prosecution can no longer be changed by the trial court.” DiGiesi v. Township of
Bridgewater Police Department, 2025 WL 1218254, at *2 (3d Cir. Apr. 28, 2025). “That timing
necessarily turns on state-court practices.” Id. (citing Smith v. Massachusetts, 543 U.S. 462, 470–
71 (2005) (looking to state-court practices to determine the finality of a court-directed judgment

of acquittal). In DiGiesi, the Third Circuit specifically considered whether the statute of
limitations for the plaintiff’s malicious-prosecution claim under § 1983 started running when the
trial judge orally acquitted him following a bench trial or when the Court later entered a written
judgment and determined that the latter date controlled. Id. at *1-2. The Third Circuit found that
under New Jersey law, the outcome of the prosecution can no longer be changed when the court
issues the order of dismissal. See Coello, 43 F.4th at 356 (citing Bessasparis v. Twp. of
Bridgewater, No. A-1040-19, 2021 WL 1811637, at *7 (N.J. Super. Ct. App. Div. May 6, 2021)
(per curiam) (discussing “causes of action [for malicious prosecution] accru[ing] on ... the day [a]
court issued orders of dismissal”)).

Here, the Appellate Division overturned Plaintiff’s criminal conviction on appeal and
remanded his case for a new trial on October 3, 2018. (Amended Complaint at ¶ 36.) Although
the Appellate Division issued an order vacating Plaintiff’s conviction, it also remanded for a new
trial. As such, the Court assumes without deciding that this order did not terminate or dispose of
the criminal charges, as required for a favorable termination. Plaintiff alleges that the trial court
dismissed the indictment on June 14, 2019, and “due to confusion about whether the case was
dismissed with or without prejudice, the court reissued the order dismissing the indictment with
prejudice and that order was filed on July 17, 2019.” (Id. at ¶ 39.) To bring timely claims for
malicious prosecution, fabrication of evidence, conspiracy, and supervisory liability, Plaintiff
should have filed his Complaint by June 14, 2021, or two years after the state court dismissed the
charges. Giving Plaintiff the benefit of the prisoner mailbox rule, he submitted his original
complaint for filing on August 6, 2021, the date he signed his original complaint and cover letter.
(ECF No. 1, Complaint at 29, ECF No. 1-1.) Even if the Court calculates the limitations period
from the second dismissal order entered on July 17, 2019, Plaintiff filed his Complaint 20 days

after the two-year limitations period expired. As such, the malicious prosecution, fabrication of
evidence, conspiracy, and supervisory liability claims are also untimely.
b. Equitable Tolling Arguments
The Court next considers whether Plaintiff has provided sufficient facts supporting
equitable tolling of the limitations period.12 “‘State law, unless inconsistent with federal law”
governs whether a limitations period should be tolled. McPherson v. United States, 392 F. App’x
938, 944 (3d Cir. 2010) (quoting Dique, 603 F.3d at 185). Equitable tolling affords relief from
inflexible, harsh, or unfair application of a statute of limitations, but it requires the exercise of
reasonable insight and diligence by a person seeking its protection. Villalobos v. Fava, 342 N.J.

Super. 38, 52 (App. Div. 2001); see also Freeman, 347 N.J. Super. App. Div. at 31–32 (App. Div.
2002) (“Plaintiffs have a duty to diligently pursue their claims.”). Under New Jersey law, a court
may equitably toll a statutory limitations period “under very limited circumstances.” Barron v.
Gersten, 472 N.J. Super. 572, 577 (App. Div. 2022). The remedy may be appropriate “(1) [if] the
defendant has actively misled the plaintiff, (2) if the plaintiff has ‘in some extraordinary way’ been
prevented from asserting his [or her] rights, or (3) if the plaintiff has timely asserted his [or her]

12 New Jersey also recognizes several bases for statutory tolling. See, e.g., N.J. Stat. Ann. § 2A:
14-21 (detailing tolling because of minority or insanity); N.J. Stat. Ann. § 2A: 14-22 (detailing
tolling because of non-residency of persons liable). The Amended Complaint does not allege facts
supporting Plaintiff’s insanity or minority, or the non-residency of the defendants.
rights mistakenly in the wrong forum.”13 Id. (alterations in original) (quoting F.H.U. v. A.C.U.,
427 N.J. Super. 354, 379 (App. Div. 2012)). And “[a]bsent a showing of intentional inducement
or trickery by a defendant, [equitable tolling] . . . should be applied sparingly and only in the rare
situation where it is demanded by sound legal principles and in the interest of justice.” Id. (citing
Binder v. Price Waterhouse & Co., L.L.P., 393 N.J. Super. 304, 313 (App. Div. 2007). Crucially,

to benefit from equitable tolling, a plaintiff must demonstrate that he or she has been diligent in
the pursuit of their claims. Barron, 472 N.J. Super. at 577; see also Menominee Indian Tribe of
Wis. v. United States, 577 U.S. 250, 255-57 (2016) (reiterating that diligence “covers those affairs
within the litigant’s control,” while extraordinary circumstances “by contrast, is meant to cover
matters outside its control.”).
In his Complaint and supporting submissions, Plaintiff alleges two reasons for his late
filing: 1) his mistaken belief that he needed to file a notice of claim to proceed with his civil rights
action and 2) the COVID-19 restrictions at the STU (and in the law library in particular). (See
Amended Complaint at ¶¶ 40-41; see also ECF No. 12-2, Supporting Brief; ECF No. 12-3,

Certification of Robert J. Meyer; ECF No. 12-4, Certification of Roy L. Marcum.)
Plaintiff argues in his “supporting brief” that his timely filing of the notice of claim, which
allegedly went unanswered by the state, satisfies the third basis for equitable tolling, i.e., timely
filing in the wrong forum. The Court disagrees. Generally speaking, “[c]ases applying wrong-

13 Similarly, under federal law,
there are three principal, though not exclusive, situations in which
equitable tolling may be appropriate: (1) where the defendant has
actively misled the plaintiff respecting the plaintiff's cause of action;
(2) where the plaintiff in some extraordinary way has been
prevented from asserting ... her rights; or (3) where the plaintiff has
timely asserted . . . her rights mistakenly in the wrong forum.
D.J.S.-W. by Stewart v. United States, 962 F.3d 745, 750 (3d Cir. 2020)
forum tolling typically involve a scenario where a plaintiff initially files his complaint in the wrong
forum and then, after re-filing in the proper forum, argues that the initial complaint tolled the
applicable statute of limitations.” Williams v. Tech Mahindra (Americas) Inc., 2024 WL 5055834,
at *2 (3d Cir. 2024) (emphasis supplied). Here, Plaintiff did not file his complaint in the wrong
forum; rather, he filed a notice of claim, which is a prerequisite to filing a NJTCA claim against

public entities or employees in New Jersey. It is well established that the notice of claim provision
in the NJTCA does not apply to actions alleging violations of federal constitutional rights under
42 U.S.C. §1983 or even to state constitutional torts. See Cnty. Concrete Corp. v. Town of
Roxbury, 442 F.3d 159, 174 (3d Cir. 2006) (explaining that “NJTCA’s notice requirements do not
apply to federal claims, including § 1983 actions. . . or to state constitutional torts”) (citations
omitted); Fuchilla v. Layman, 109 N.J. 319, 330 (1988) (“notice provisions of the Act do not apply
to section 1983 actions”); see also Felder v. Casey, 487 U.S. 131, 138 (1988); Greenway
Development Co., Inc. v. Borough of Paramus, 163 N.J. 546, 558 (2000). Thus, Plaintiff’s mistake
was not that he filed his complaint in the wrong forum but that he waited to receive a response

from to his tort claim notice prior to filing his federal civil rights complaint. For these reasons, the
Court finds that the timely filing of Plaintiff’s notice of claim does not qualify as a timely filing of
his complaint in the wrong forum, and he is not entitled to equitable tolling on this basis.
The Court also takes judicial notice of the fact that Plaintiff’s filed a related action about
the June 6, 2014 incident, and finds that his litigation history belies his claims that he believed he
needed to wait for a response to his tort claims notice to file a federal civil rights action or otherwise
did not know how or when to commence a federal action. Nevertheless, even if Plaintiff were
confused about the filing requirements for a civil rights action due to his limited understanding of
the law, his confusion is not a basis for equitable tolling.
Plaintiff also contends that the lockdowns and restrictions on law library access during the
COVID-19 pandemic satisfies the extraordinary circumstances requirement for equitable tolling.
According to Plaintiff, the STU law library was closed from May 2020 to August 2020 due to the
COVID-19 pandemic, and operated sporadically during the remainder of the limitations period.
However, Plaintiff had approximately seven months to seek assistance in drafting and filing his

complaint prior to the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. And this is not a case where Plaintiff’s
limitations period expired in the early weeks or months of the COVID-19 pandemic. Notably, in
Barron v. Gersten, 472 N.J. Super. at 579, certif. denied, 252 N.J. 429 (2022), the Appellate
Division considered the language in four omnibus orders issued by the New Jersey Supreme Court
in response to COVID-19 and determined that the Supreme Court declared the period from March
16, 2020 through May 10, 2020 a legal holiday; the Appellate Division also held, however, that
that the orders “did not have the effect of adding days to any statute of limitations.” Id. at 579
(finding the plaintiff’s complaint time barred by 13 days and declining to afford equitable tolling).
Moreover, the argument that the lockdowns associated with COVID-19 amount to extraordinary

circumstances “is more compelling during the very early months of the COVID-19 pandemic.”
See Peek v. United States, No. 20-9747, 2023 WL 8110795, at *10 (D.N.J. Nov. 23, 2023) (finding
that the lockdowns during the first four months of the COVID-19 pandemic coupled with the
petitioner’s alleged mental health difficulties warranted tolling). Here, Plaintiff’s limitations
period did not expire until June or July 2021, more than a year after the period declared a legal
holiday by the New Jersey Supreme Court’s omnibus orders.
Moreover, the availability of “[e]quitable tolling ‘does not excuse claimants from
exercising the reasonable insight and diligence required to pursue their claims.’” See Fisher v.
Hollingsworth, 115 F.4th 197, 213 (3d Cir. 2024) (citing Barron, 472 N.J. Super at 577). Here,
even if ongoing lockdowns and law library restrictions associated with the COVID-19 pandemic
amounted to extraordinary circumstances, Plaintiff has not provided facts showing that he was
diligent in attempting to prepare and file his federal complaint. The Court credits Plaintiff’s
allegations about the COVID-19 closures and restrictions, and recognizes that he is pro se, civilly
committed, and has difficulty reading and understanding the law. But the Court also takes notice

of his allegation that he followed up several times with the New Jersey Office of Risk Management
about his tort claim notice, despite his alleged limitations and the restrictions associated with the
COVID-19 pandemic. Ultimately, Plaintiff fails to provide sufficient facts showing that he
diligently attempted to draft and file his complaint during the two-year limitations period but was
thwarted by restrictions associated with the COVID-19 pandemic.
For all these reasons, Plaintiff has not shown that he is entitled to equitable tolling of the
limitations period. Therefore, the Court dismisses Plaintiff’s § 1983 claims for malicious
prosecution, fabrication of evidence, conspiracy, and supervisory liability, as well as his claims for
interference with his right to prepare a defense and his right to medical privacy, as time barred

under 28 U.S.C. § 1915(e)(2)(B) and finds that Plaintiff has not provided an adequate basis for
equitable tolling. The Court denies further leave to amend the federal claims, finding that such
amendment would be futile.
c. Supplemental Jurisdiction
Having dismissed the federal claims, the Court declines supplemental jurisdiction over the
remaining state law claims, including any claims arising under the NJCRA or other state law. See
28 U.S.C. § 1367(c)(3). Section 1367(d)(3) “suspends the statute of limitations for two adjacent
time periods: while the claim is pending in federal court and for 30 days postdismissal.” Artis v.
D.C., 583 U.S. 71, 83 (2018); see 28 U.S.C. § 1367(d). Plaintiff is free to refile his state law claims
in state court within that 30-day period. The Court expresses no opinion on whether the state court
would afford Plaintiff equitable tolling on his state law claims (or find that the state is equitably
estopped from asserting a statute of limitations defense) based on Plaintiff’s allegations that the
New Jersey Office of Risk Management failed to respond to his tort claims notice. Although
Plaintiff has 30 days to refile his state law claims in state court, he may not reassert his § 1983
claims because the Court has dismissed these claims as untimely and denied further leave to
amend.
IV. CONCLUSION
For the reasons explained above, the Court dismisses the federal claims in the Amended
Complaint pursuant to its screening authority under 28 U.S.C. § 1915(e)(2)(B) and denies
equitable tolling and further leave to amend the federal claims. The Court declines supplemental
jurisdiction over any remaining state law claims under 28 U.S.C. § 1367(c)(3) and notifies Plaintiff
that he may refile his state law claims in state court pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1367(d). An
appropriate Order follows.
i ow
930% Fon. Madeline Cox Arles
United States District Judge

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Source: Frix Law Library, https://www.frixlaw.com/law-library/cases/11087326. Public record. Not legal advice.