Case: Gonzales v. City of Austin

1:15-cv-00956 | U.S. District Court for the Western District of Texas

Filed Date: Oct. 27, 2015

Closed Date: 2016

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Case Summary

The Plaintiff, a thirty-five-year-old single mother with seven children, filed this class-action complaint in the District Court for the Western District of Texas (Austin Division) on October 27, 2015. The Plaintiff, represented by the Texas Fair Defense Project and the University of Texas School of Law Civil Rights Clinic, sued the City of Austin under 42 U.S.C. § 1983, seeking declaratory and injunctive relief. The Plaintiff claimed that the City had a practice of jailing people who are too poor to pay their fines for traffic tickets and other petty misdemeanors in violation of their constitutional rights to due process, equal protection, and counsel under the Fourteenth and Sixth Amendments of the U.S. Constitution.

The Plaintiff herself was indigent. Her annual income as a childcare aid at an elementary school was less than $6,000 and she received food stamps, free school lunches for her children, and Section 8 housing assistance. She could not afford expenses like car insurance or auto-inspections, and thus, when she started receiving traffic tickets for driving without an inspection or insurance, she was not able to pay off the fines. In December 2010, the Plaintiff was arrested and incarcerated in a local jail. Her sentencing judge did not inquire into her ability to pay for the fines or appoint counsel to represent her. Because of her incarceration, she lost her job. The Plaintiff was again arrested and incarcerated in 2013 for driving without a valid license and insurance, and for driving with expired registration. She subsequently received two more traffic tickets after her release. At the time she filed this complaint, the Plaintiff’s two traffic tickets were still outstanding.

Along with the initial complaint, the Plaintiff filed a motion for class certification. The City filed a motion to dismiss on November 17, 2015, but on December 8 the Plaintiff filed an amended complaint. On December 28, the Court dismissed the Plaintiff’s pending motion for class certification as well as the City’s Motion to dismiss in light of the amended complaint. The City filed a new motion re-urging the court to dismiss the amended complaint and on January 11, 2016, the Plaintiff filed a new motion for class certification. On January 19, 2016, a stipulation was entered between the parties agreeing that the Court need not determine the Plaintiff’s motion for class certification at the time, and that any determination made would be after the completion of discovery.

On March 15, 2016, District Judge Sam Sparks approved the City’s motion re-urging a motion to dismiss and dismissed the case without prejudice. The court agreed with the City’s argument that even if the Plaintiff’s allegations were taken as true (that Austin municipal judges failed in practice to appoint counsel and conduct indigency hearings), the judges were still performing their judicial functions, and those actions cannot constitute municipal policy. The rules governing a municipal judge’s response to an individuals’ inability to pay a fine and his/her ability to issue a warrant if the fine is not paid leaves discretion to the judge and does not mandate any particular action.

The case is now closed.

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Summary Authors

Robert Carnes (10/21/2017)

People

For PACER's information on parties and their attorneys, see: https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/4401701/parties/gonzales-v-city-of-austin/

Judge(s)

Attorney for Plaintiff

Ashe, R. Lawrence (Texas)

Barsness, Paul R. (Texas)

Bernhardt, Rebecca (Texas)

Carter, Lynn E. (Texas)

Christensen, Jeanne-Marie Bates (Texas)

Attorney for Defendant

Judge(s)

Sparks, Sam (Texas)

Attorney for Plaintiff

Ashe, R. Lawrence (Texas)

Barsness, Paul R. (Texas)

Bernhardt, Rebecca (Texas)

Carter, Lynn E. (Texas)

Christensen, Jeanne-Marie Bates (Texas)

Clark, Sara Wilder (Texas)

Coleman, Brian A (District of Columbia)

Coppola, Christopher J. (Texas)

Corona, Jesse S. (Texas)

Crawford, Bernard Lee (Texas)

Dobson, Casey L. (Texas)

Farhadi, Meitra (Texas)

Grinstein, Joseph S. (Texas)

Hawkins, Frederick A. (Texas)

Kennard, Karen M. (Texas)

Kneeland, Mishell B. (Texas)

Laird, Henry Gray (Texas)

Lloyd, Andralee Cain (Texas)

London, Alice (Texas)

Manne, Neal S. (Texas)

Natarajan, Ranjana (Texas)

Nelson, Justin (Texas)

Orr, Lindsay B (Delaware)

Ploeger, Don V (Texas)

Pringle, Susanne Ashley (Texas)

Richards, Clark Willis (Texas)

Richards, Daniel R. (Texas)

Riley, Meghan L. (Texas)

Rose, Andrea Dawn (Texas)

Sanders, Robin Elizabeth (Texas)

Siegel, Michael John (Texas)

Singh, Shelly (Texas)

Trigilio, Trisha (Texas)

Tynan, Matthew William (Texas)

Wilder, Tanya E. (Texas)

Attorney for Defendant

Edwards, Christine G. (Texas)

Harris, Robin E (Texas)

Attorney Contact Information via CourtListener

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Documents in the Clearinghouse

	Document
1:15-cv-00956	Docket [PACER]	April 4, 2016	April 4, 2016 Docket
1 1:15-cv-00956	Class Action Complaint Gonzales and Salazar v. City of Austin	Oct. 27, 2015	Oct. 27, 2015 Complaint
15 1:15-cv-00956	First Amended Complaint	Dec. 8, 2015	Dec. 8, 2015 Complaint
33 1:15-cv-00956	Order Harris v. City of Austin	March 16, 2016	March 16, 2016 Order/Opinion 2016 WL 2016

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Resources

Title	Description		External URL Date / External URL
DOJ Dear Colleague Letter to Courts Regarding Fines and Fees for Youth and Adults U.S. Department of Justice	The DOJ issued a Dear Colleague letter for state and local courts and juvenile justice agencies regarding the imposition and enforcement of fines and fees for adults and youth. The letter highlights …	April 20, 2023	April 20, 2023 https://www.justice.gov/...

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Docket

See docket on RECAP: https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/4401701/gonzales-v-city-of-austin/

Last updated March 2, 2024, 3:05 a.m.

ECF Number	Description	Date	Link Date / Link
1	COMPLAINT ( Filing fee $ 400 receipt number 0542-7903906), filed by Valerie Gonzales, Maria Salazar. (Attachments: # 1 Civil Cover Sheet)(Trigilio, Trisha) (Entered: 10/27/2015) 1 Civil Cover Sheet View on PACER	Oct. 27, 2015	Oct. 27, 2015 RECAP
2	REQUEST FOR ISSUANCE OF SUMMONS by Valerie Gonzales, Maria Salazar. (Trigilio, Trisha) (Entered: 10/27/2015)	Oct. 27, 2015	Oct. 27, 2015 PACER
	Case Assigned to Judge Sam Sparks. CM WILL NOW REFLECT THE JUDGE INITIALS AS PART OF THE CASE NUMBER. PLEASE APPEND THESE JUDGE INITIALS TO THE CASE NUMBER ON EACH DOCUMENT THAT YOU FILE IN THIS CASE. (so)	Oct. 27, 2015	Oct. 27, 2015 PACER
3	Summons Issued as to City of Austin. (so) (Entered: 10/27/2015)	Oct. 27, 2015	Oct. 27, 2015 RECAP
4	MOTION to Certify Class by Valerie Gonzales, Maria Salazar. (Attachments: # 1 Ex. A, Gonzales Declaration October 2015, # 2 Ex. B, Gonzales Case List, # 3 Ex. C, Gonzales Declaration August 2015, # 4 Ex. D, Salazar Declaration, # 5 Ex. E, Austin Municipal Court Data 2011-2015, # 6 Ex. F, Application for Extension to Pay, # 7 Ex. G, Austin Municipal Court Internal Rule 13.3, # 8 Ex. H, Austin City Code 2-10-21, # 9 Ex. I, Rules of Austin Municipal Court, # 10 Ex. J, Austin Municipal Court Website: Appointment of Counsel, # 11 Ex. K, Austin Budget 2014-2015 (Excerpt), # 12 Ex. L, U.S. Census Quickfacts: Austin, Texas, # 13 Ex. M, Bernhardt Declaration, # 14 Ex. N, Pringle Declaration, # 15 Ex. O, Natarajan Declaration, # 16 Ex. P, Trigilio Declaration, # 17 Ex. Q, Grinstein Declaration)(Trigilio, Trisha) (Entered: 10/27/2015) 1 Ex. A, Gonzales Declaration October 2015 View on PACER 2 Ex. B, Gonzales Case List View on PACER 3 Ex. C, Gonzales Declaration August 2015 View on PACER 4 Ex. D, Salazar Declaration View on PACER 5 Ex. E, Austin Municipal Court Data 2011-2015 View on PACER 6 Ex. F, Application for Extension to Pay View on PACER 7 Ex. G, Austin Municipal Court Internal Rule 13.3 View on PACER 8 Ex. H, Austin City Code 2-10-21 View on PACER 9 Ex. I, Rules of Austin Municipal Court View on PACER 10 Ex. J, Austin Municipal Court Website: Appointment of Counsel View on PACER 11 Ex. K, Austin Budget 2014-2015 (Excerpt) View on PACER 12 Ex. L, U.S. Census Quickfacts: Austin, Texas View on PACER 13 Ex. M, Bernhardt Declaration View on PACER 14 Ex. N, Pringle Declaration View on PACER 15 Ex. O, Natarajan Declaration View on PACER 16 Ex. P, Trigilio Declaration View on PACER 17 Ex. Q, Grinstein Declaration View on PACER	Oct. 27, 2015	Oct. 27, 2015 PACER
5	DEFICIENCY NOTICE: re 4 MOTION to Certify Class (dm) (Entered: 10/27/2015)	Oct. 27, 2015	Oct. 27, 2015 PACER
6	ATTACHMENT of Proposed Order Granting Class Certification to 4 MOTION to Certify Class by Valerie Gonzales, Maria Salazar. (Trigilio, Trisha) (Entered: 10/27/2015)	Oct. 27, 2015	Oct. 27, 2015 PACER
7	SUMMONS Returned Executed by Valerie Gonzales, Maria Salazar. City of Austin served on 10/27/2015, answer due 11/17/2015. (Trigilio, Trisha) (Entered: 10/29/2015)	Oct. 29, 2015	Oct. 29, 2015 PACER
8	Motion to Dismiss for Failure to State a Claim by City of Austin. (Attachments: # 1 Proposed Order)(Edwards, Christine) (Entered: 11/17/2015) 1 Proposed Order View on PACER	Nov. 17, 2015	Nov. 17, 2015 PACER
9	MOTION to Appear Pro Hac Vice by Susanne Ashley Pringle ( Filing fee $ 100 receipt number 0542-7973277) by Brian A. Coleman on behalf of Valerie Gonzales, Maria Salazar. (Pringle, Susanne) (Entered: 11/19/2015)	Nov. 19, 2015	Nov. 19, 2015 PACER
10	MOTION to Appear Pro Hac Vice by Susanne Ashley Pringle ( Filing fee $ 100 receipt number 0542-7973493) by Lindsay B. Orr on behalf of Valerie Gonzales, Maria Salazar. (Pringle, Susanne) (Entered: 11/19/2015)	Nov. 19, 2015	Nov. 19, 2015 PACER
11	ORDER GRANTING 9 Motion to Appear Pro Hac Vice for Brian A. Coleman. Pursuant to our Administrative Policies and Procedures for Electronic Filing, the attorney hereby granted to practice pro hac vice in this case must register for electronic filing with our court within 10 days of this order. Signed by Judge Sam Sparks. (os) (Entered: 11/20/2015)	Nov. 20, 2015	Nov. 20, 2015 PACER
12	ORDER GRANTING 10 Motion to Appear Pro Hac Vice for Lindsay B. Orr. Pursuant to our Administrative Policies and Procedures for Electronic Filing, the attorney hereby granted to practice pro hac vice in this case must register for electronic filing with our court within 10 days of this order. Signed by Judge Sam Sparks. (os) (Entered: 11/20/2015)	Nov. 20, 2015	Nov. 20, 2015 PACER
13	Unopposed MOTION for Extension of Time to File Response/Reply to Motion to Dismiss by Valerie Gonzales, Maria Salazar. (Attachments: # 1 Proposed Order)(Grinstein, Joseph) (Entered: 11/24/2015) 1 Proposed Order View on PACER	Nov. 24, 2015	Nov. 24, 2015 PACER
14	ORDER GRANTING 13 Motion for Extension of Time to File Response. Signed by Judge Sam Sparks. (dm) (Entered: 12/01/2015)	Dec. 1, 2015	Dec. 1, 2015 PACER
15	AMENDED COMPLAINT against All Defendants amending, filed by Karian Harris.(Trigilio, Trisha) (Entered: 12/08/2015)	Dec. 8, 2015	Dec. 8, 2015 PACER
16	ORDER DISMISSING 4 Motion to Certify Class; DISMISSING without prejudice 8 Motion to Dismiss. Signed by Judge Sam Sparks. (td) (Entered: 12/29/2015)	Dec. 28, 2015	Dec. 28, 2015 RECAP
17	Motion Re-urging Motion to Dismiss for Failure to State a Claim 8 by City of Austin. (Edwards, Christine) Modified on 12/29/2015 to correct motion type (td). (Entered: 12/29/2015)	Dec. 29, 2015	Dec. 29, 2015 PACER
18	Response in Opposition to Motion, filed by Karian Harris, re 8 Motion to Dismiss for Failure to State a Claim filed by Defendant City of Austin, 17 Motion to Dismiss for Failure to State a Claim filed by Defendant City of Austin (Attachments: # 1 Exhibit A, # 2 Exhibit B, # 3 Exhibit C, # 4 Exhibit D, # 5 Proposed Order)(Grinstein, Joseph) (Entered: 12/30/2015) 1 Exhibit A View on PACER 2 Exhibit B View on PACER 3 Exhibit C View on PACER 4 Exhibit D View on PACER 5 Proposed Order View on PACER	Dec. 30, 2015	Dec. 30, 2015 PACER
19	ORDER, ( Status Conference set for 1/13/2016 09:00 AM before Judge Sam Sparks,). Signed by Judge Sam Sparks. (dm) (Entered: 01/04/2016)	Jan. 4, 2016	Jan. 4, 2016 PACER
20	MOTION for Extension of Time to File Response/Reply as to 18 Response in Opposition to Motion, by City of Austin. (Attachments: # 1 Proposed Order)(Edwards, Christine) (Entered: 01/05/2016) 1 Proposed Order View on PACER	Jan. 5, 2016	Jan. 5, 2016 PACER
21	MOTION for Leave to Exceed Page Limitation by City of Austin. (Attachments: # 1 Proposed Order)(Edwards, Christine) (Entered: 01/08/2016) 1 Proposed Order View on PACER	Jan. 8, 2016	Jan. 8, 2016 PACER
22	REPLY to Response to Motion, filed by City of Austin, re 8 Motion to Dismiss for Failure to State a Claim filed by Defendant City of Austin (Edwards, Christine) (Entered: 01/08/2016)	Jan. 8, 2016	Jan. 8, 2016 RECAP
23	NOTICE of Attorney Appearance by Robin E. Harris on behalf of City of Austin (Harris, Robin) (Entered: 01/11/2016)	Jan. 11, 2016	Jan. 11, 2016 PACER
24	ORDER GRANTING 20 Motion for Extension of Time to File Response. Signed by Judge Sam Sparks. (dm) (Entered: 01/11/2016)	Jan. 11, 2016	Jan. 11, 2016 PACER
25	REPLY to Response to Motion, filed by Valerie Gonzales, Karian Harris, Maria Salazar, re 8 Motion to Dismiss for Failure to State a Claim filed by Defendant City of Austin Surreply To Defendant's Motion to Dismiss (Attachments: # 1 Exhibit E, # 2 Exhibit F, # 3 Exhibit G, # 4 Exhibit H, # 5 Exhibit I, # 6 Exhibit J)(Grinstein, Joseph) (Entered: 01/11/2016) 1 Exhibit E View on PACER 2 Exhibit F View on PACER 3 Exhibit G View on PACER 4 Exhibit H View on PACER 5 Exhibit I View on PACER 6 Exhibit J View on PACER	Jan. 11, 2016	Jan. 11, 2016 RECAP
26	Opposed MOTION to Certify Class by Karian Harris. (Attachments: # 1 Ex. A, Decl. of Karian Harris, # 2 Ex. B, Docket Sheets for Karian Harris, # 3 Ex. C, Austin Municipal Court Data, # 4 Ex. D, Payment Plan Application, # 5 Ex. E, Austin Municipal Court Internal Rule, # 6 Ex. F, Decl. of Valerie Gonzales, # 7 Ex. G, Decl. of Maria Salazar, # 8 Ex. H, Decl. of Juan Martinez, # 9 Ex. I, Austin City Code 2-10-21, # 10 Ex. J, Austin Municipal Court Rules, # 11 Ex. K, Austin Municipal Court Website, # 12 Ex. L, Austin City Budget Excerpt, # 13 Ex. M, US Census Austin Data, # 14 Ex. N, Decl. of Rebecca Bernhardt, # 15 Ex. O, Decl. of Susanne Pringle, # 16 Ex. P, Decl. of Ranjana Natarajan, # 17 Ex. Q, Decl. of Trisha Trigilio, # 18 Ex. R, Decl. of Joseph Grinstein, # 19 Ex. S, Decl. of Brian Coleman)(Trigilio, Trisha) (Entered: 01/11/2016) 1 Ex. A, Decl. of Karian Harris View on PACER 2 Ex. B, Docket Sheets for Karian Harris View on PACER 3 Ex. C, Austin Municipal Court Data View on PACER 4 Ex. D, Payment Plan Application View on PACER 5 Ex. E, Austin Municipal Court Internal Rule View on PACER 6 Ex. F, Decl. of Valerie Gonzales View on PACER 7 Ex. G, Decl. of Maria Salazar View on PACER 8 Ex. H, Decl. of Juan Martinez View on PACER 9 Ex. I, Austin City Code 2-10-21 View on PACER 10 Ex. J, Austin Municipal Court Rules View on PACER 11 Ex. K, Austin Municipal Court Website View on PACER 12 Ex. L, Austin City Budget Excerpt View on PACER 13 Ex. M, US Census Austin Data View on PACER 14 Ex. N, Decl. of Rebecca Bernhardt View on PACER 15 Ex. O, Decl. of Susanne Pringle View on PACER 16 Ex. P, Decl. of Ranjana Natarajan View on PACER 17 Ex. Q, Decl. of Trisha Trigilio View on PACER 18 Ex. R, Decl. of Joseph Grinstein View on PACER 19 Ex. S, Decl. of Brian Coleman View on PACER	Jan. 11, 2016	Jan. 11, 2016 RECAP
27	ORDER GRANTING 21 Motion for Leave to File Excess Pages. Signed by Judge Sam Sparks. (dm) (Entered: 01/12/2016)	Jan. 12, 2016	Jan. 12, 2016 PACER
28	Minute Entry for proceedings held before Judge Sam Sparks: Status Conference held on 1/13/2016. Motions taken under advisement, written order forthcoming. (Minute entry documents are not available electronically.). (Court Reporter Lily Reznik.)(dm) (Entered: 01/13/2016)	Jan. 13, 2016	Jan. 13, 2016 PACER
29	Proposed Scheduling Order by Valerie Gonzales, Karian Harris, Maria Salazar. (Grinstein, Joseph) (Entered: 01/19/2016)	Jan. 19, 2016	Jan. 19, 2016 PACER
30	STIPULATION Order Regarding Briefing Schedule for Plainitiff's Motion for Class Certification by Valerie Gonzales, Karian Harris, Maria Salazar. (Grinstein, Joseph) (Entered: 01/19/2016)	Jan. 19, 2016	Jan. 19, 2016 PACER
31	Unopposed MOTION to Withdraw as Attorney for Plaintiff, by Trisha Trigilio by Karian Harris. (Trigilio, Trisha) (Entered: 01/26/2016)	Jan. 26, 2016	Jan. 26, 2016 PACER
32	ORDER GRANTING 31 Motion for Trisha Trigilio to Withdraw as Attorney. Signed by Judge Sam Sparks. (os) (Entered: 01/27/2016)	Jan. 27, 2016	Jan. 27, 2016 PACER
33	ORDER GRANTING 17 Motion Re-Urging Motion to Dismiss. Signed by Judge Sam Sparks. (td) (Entered: 03/16/2016)	March 16, 2016	March 16, 2016 RECAP
34	ORDER DISMISSING CASE WITHOUT PREJUDICE. Signed by Judge Sam Sparks. (td) (Entered: 03/16/2016)	March 16, 2016	March 16, 2016 RECAP
35	Transcript filed of Proceedings held on January 13, 2016, Proceedings Transcribed: All Pending Matters. Court Reporter/Transcriber: Lily I. Reznik, Telephone number: 512-391-8792. Parties are notified of their duty to review the transcript to ensure compliance with the FRCP 5.2(a)/FRCrP 49.1(a). A copy may be purchased from the court reporter or viewed at the clerk's office public terminal. If redaction is necessary, a Notice of Redaction Request must be filed within 21 days. If no such Notice is filed, the transcript will be made available via PACER without redaction after 90 calendar days. The clerk will mail a copy of this notice to parties not electronically noticed Redaction Request due 4/13/2016, Redacted Transcript Deadline set for 4/25/2016, Release of Transcript Restriction set for 6/21/2016, (Reznik, Lily) (Entered: 03/23/2016)	March 23, 2016	March 23, 2016 PACER
36	ADVISORY TO THE COURT by City of Austin. (Edwards, Christine) (Entered: 04/04/2016)	April 4, 2016	April 4, 2016 PACER