Posts in Category ‘Nick Bourland’

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19 ECBAWM Attorneys Named to 2023 Super Lawyers Lists

The firm is pleased to announce that 18 of its attorneys have been named to the 2023 Super Lawyers lists.

Firm partners Jonathan S. Abady, Matthew D. Brinckerhoff, Andrew G. Celli, Jr., Richard D. Emery, Debra L. Greenberger, Daniel J. Kornstein, Julia P. Kuan, Hal R. Lieberman, Ilann M. Maazel, Zoe Salzman, Sam Shapiro, Earl S. Ward, and O. Andrew F. Wilson were named 2023 Super Lawyers.

Associates David Berman, Nick Bourland, Andrew Jondahl, Vivake Prasad, Max Selver, and Emily Wanger were named 2023 Super Lawyers Rising Stars.

The Super Lawyers list is issued by Thomson Reuters. A description of the selection methodology can be found on the Super Lawyers website.

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ECBAWM Files Suit Alleging NYC Developer and Repeat Offender Engineer Designed and Constructed Housing that is Inaccessible to People with Disabilities

On February 22, 2023, ECBAWM filed a federal lawsuit on behalf of the Fair Housing Justice Center (“FHJC”), alleging that architectural and engineering firm NY Building Associates Inc., engineer Naresh Mahangu, developer Developing NY State, LLC, and property owner Third Street Equity, LLC failed to design and construct Astor on 3rd, a new 60-unit apartment building in Astoria, Queens, in compliance with fair housing laws’ accessibility requirements.

Astor on 3rd’s marketing materials boast that the development was “[b]uilt with state of the art design” and “maximize[s] luxury and functionality for every single resident.” In reality, as detailed in the Complaint, the FHJC’s fair housing testers revealed numerous inaccessible features throughout Astor on 3rd. The FHJC’s investigation also revealed that the project’s designer, engineer Naresh Mahangu, had been previously audited and disciplined by the New York City Department of Buildings for multiple code non-compliances, including failing to comply with accessibility requirements for people with disabilities.

“For too long, developers and designers of multifamily housing in New York City have cut corners and prioritized their bottom line over the rights of New Yorkers with disabilities,” stated ECBAWM attorney Nick Bourland. “Through this suit, FHJC is sending a clear message to the industry: if you ignore fair housing laws and hire design professionals who have a reputation for ignoring accessibility requirements, you will be held accountable.”

The FHJC is represented by ECBAWM attorneys Diane Houk and Nick Bourland. The FHJC’s press release regarding the suit can be found on the FHJC’s website.

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ECBAWM Client Gets $8.25 Million in Wrongful Conviction Case

On November 15, 2022, the City of Detroit agreed to pay $8.25 million to settle a federal wrongful conviction lawsuit brought by ECBAWM on behalf of Kendrick Scott. Mr. Scott spent over 19 years in prison for a murder he did not commit as a result of civil rights violations by Detroit Police Department detectives. The case alleged that the detectives coerced witnesses, including an intoxicated 14-year-old boy, into giving false statements and also hid evidence, including an exculpatory statement the victim made to her sister.

Mr. Scott was wrongfully convicted in 2000 and was exonerated in 2018, after the University of Michigan Innocence Clinic secured a reversal of his conviction from the Michigan Supreme Court and the prosecutor’s office later dismissed all charges. “Nothing will change the fact that Mr. Scott lost nearly two decades of freedom for something he had nothing to do with,” ECBAWM attorney Zoe Salzman said. “But this settlement speaks to the seriousness of the harm Mr. Scott experienced and will help Mr. Scott focus on the future.”

ECBAWM attorneys Zoe Salzman and Nick Bourland represent Mr. Scott, along with Bill Goodman of Goodman Hurwitz & James PC in Detroit.

Related News
ECBAWM Defeats Detroit Police Officers’ Attempt to Avoid Trial in Wrongful Conviction Case
ECBAWM Files Case for Innocent Man Who Spent 20 Years in Jail

Article

17 ECBAWM Attorneys Named to 2022 Super Lawyers Lists

The firm is pleased to announce that 17 of its attorneys have been named to the 2022 Super Lawyers lists.

Firm partners Jonathan S. Abady, Matthew D. Brinckerhoff, Andrew G. Celli, Jr., Richard D. Emery, Debra L. Greenberger, Daniel J. Kornstein, Hal R. Lieberman, Ilann M. Maazel, Zoe Salzman, Sam Shapiro, Earl S. Ward, and O. Andrew F. Wilson were named 2022 Super Lawyers.

Associates David Berman, Nick Bourland, Andrew Jondahl, Vivake Prasad, and Max Selver were named 2022 Super Lawyers Rising Stars.

The Super Lawyers list is issued by Thompson Reuters. A description of the selection methodology can be found on the Super Lawyers website.

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ECBAWM Represents Arizona Voters in Candidacy Challenges Under Fourteenth Amendment’s Insurrectionist Disqualification Clause

ECBAWM attorneys Jonathan S. Abady, O. Andrew F. Wilson, and Nick Bourland, alongside counsel at Free Speech for People and Barton Mendez Soto PLLC, represent a group of Arizona voters in three separate lawsuits challenging the eligibility of Representatives Paul Gosar and Andy Biggs, who are running for reelection to the United States House of Representatives, and Arizona State Representative Mark Finchem, who is running for Arizona Secretary of State, to appear on the 2022 primary election ballot.

The lawsuits, which were filed on April 7, 2022 in the Superior Court of Arizona in Maricopa County, allege that Gosar, Biggs, and Finchem are constitutionally disqualified from public office under Section Three of the Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution, also known as the Disqualification Clause, on the grounds that they helped facilitate the January 6, 2021 insurrection at the United States Capitol.

For more information on the Disqualification Clause lawsuits against Gosar, Biggs, and Finchem, please see Free Speech For People’s April 7, 2022 press release.

Press
“Legal Effort Expands to Disqualify Republicans as ‘Insurrectionists’,” The New York Times

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Post-Release Supervision Class Action to Proceed to Damages Trial

In Betances v. Fischer, ECBAWM represents a class of over 3000 individuals who were administratively, unilaterally, and unlawfully sentenced to terms of post-release supervision (“PRS”) by New York State corrections and parole officials. The Plaintiff class was certified by the Court in 2015 and the Court subsequently granted summary judgment on liability to Plaintiffs, holding the Defendant State corrections and parole officials personally liable for violating Plaintiffs’ due process rights.

In advance of trial, the Defendant State officials moved to decertify the Plaintiff class on the basis that Plaintiffs’ general damages—which stem from the liberty Plaintiffs lost while on PRS or incarcerated for violating PRS—cannot be determined on a class-wide basis. In a March 14, 2022 decision, United States Magistrate Judge Robert W. Lehrburger denied Defendants’ motion to decertify the class and ruled that “the class should be maintained for the purposes of trial to determine damages for loss of liberty.”

In denying the Defendants’ decertification motion, the Court held that Plaintiffs’ lost liberty “is inherent in any unlawful detention and is compensable as general damages” and “can be determined on a class-wide basis.” The Court further determined that these common injuries “predominate over other, individualized issues” and can therefore be determined on a class basis at trial.

ECBAWM attorneys Matthew D. Brinckerhoff, Nick Bourland, and Max Selver, and law clerk Julian Oppenheimer represent the Betances Plaintiff class.

Article

ECBAWM Defeats Detroit Police Officers’ Attempt to Avoid Trial in Wrongful Conviction Case

In a December 28, 2021 decision, United States District Judge Paul D. Borman rejected a motion for summary judgment filed by four Detroit Police Department (“DPD”) officers seeking to drastically narrow the scope of a lawsuit brought by Kendrick Scott, an innocent man who was wrongfully convicted of murder and spent nearly two decades in prison as a result of the DPD officers’ egregious misconduct.

The Court ruled that Mr. Scott’s case will proceed against all four DPD officers and held that each of Mr. Scott’s federal civil rights claims must be decided at a jury trial. Specifically, the Court found that, in light of the evidence presented by ECBAWM, a jury must decide whether the DPD officers violated Mr. Scott’s constitutional rights by suppressing exculpatory evidence and forcing witnesses to testify falsely.

“Mr. Scott endured almost 20 years in jail for a crime he did not commit. We look forward to showing all the evidence of this injustice to the jury at trial,” said ECBAWM partner Zoe Salzman.

“The Court’s decision makes clear that police officers who threaten witnesses and suppress exculpatory evidence—and do so without any regard for the rights and liberty of an innocent man—cannot escape liability on a technicality,” said ECBAWM attorney Nick Bourland. “Mr. Scott deserves to present his case to a jury and this victory guarantees that he will have his day in court.”

ECBAWM attorneys Zoe Salzman and Nick Bourland represent Mr. Scott.

Article

19 ECBAWM Attorneys Named to 2021 Super Lawyers Lists

The firm is pleased to announce that 19 of its attorneys have been named to the 2021 Super Lawyers lists.

Firm partners Richard D. Emery, Andrew G. Celli, Jr., Matthew D. Brinckerhoff, Jonathan S. Abady, Earl S. Ward, Ilann Margalit Maazel, Hal R. Lieberman, Daniel J. Kornstein, O. Andrew F. Wilson, Debra L. Greenberger, and Sam Shapiro were named 2021 Super Lawyers.

Firm partner Zoe Salzman and associates Emma Freeman, David Berman, Scout Katovich, Andrew Jondahl, Nick Bourland, Ananda Burra, and Vivake Prasad were named 2021 Super Lawyers Rising Stars.

The Super Lawyers list is issued by Thompson Reuters. A description of the selection methodology can be found on the Super Lawyers website.

Article

JJ Velazquez’s Sentence Is Commuted After Fighting for His Freedom for 23 Years

On August 17, 2021, New York Governor Andrew Cuomo commuted the sentence of ECBAWM client Jon-Adrian (“JJ”) Velazquez. Mr. Velazquez has maintained his innocence ever since he was wrongfully convicted in 1998 for a murder he had nothing to do with. Now he has been released from prison and reunited with his family, friends, and supporters.

While incarcerated in the New York correctional system for over 23 years, Mr. Velazquez seized every opportunity to learn, support his peers, and give back—all while fighting for his freedom. He emerged as a leader at the Sing Sing Correctional Facility, where, among other achievements, he earned his college degree with honors, founded a youth program to combat gun violence, organized nonviolence workshops for incarcerated people and their families, and led various fundraising efforts to support his community on the outside.

ECBAWM attorneys Jonathan Abady, Earl Ward, Sam Shapiro, and Nick Bourland represented JJ Velazquez in his clemency efforts.

Article

Second Circuit: Forensic Examiner Not Entitled to Qualified Immunity

In a significant qualified immunity ruling, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit denied a state ballistics examiner’s motion to dismiss a 42 U.S.C. § 1983 civil rights lawsuit.

ECBAWM client Vernon Horn was incarcerated for over 17 years for a crime he did not commit. His wrongful conviction stemmed from exculpatory evidence that was concealed before and during trial: New Haven Police detectives hid phone records in the basement of a detective’s house because they did not support the case against Horn, and the Connecticut State Police ballistics examiner failed to disclose that he prepared a second ballistics report that falsely implicated Mr. Horn because the original report would have exonerated him.

Following their release from prison in 2018, Mr. Horn and his co-defendant Marquis Jackson brought civil actions against the City of New Haven and certain law enforcement officials for violating their constitutional due process rights under Brady v. Maryland.

The state ballistics examiner, James Stephenson, filed a motion to dismiss the lawsuits against him on the grounds that he is entitled to (a) qualified immunity for failing to turn over exculpatory evidence and (b) absolute immunity for preparing the second false ballistics report because he did so at the prosecutor’s direction. The U.S. District Court for the District of Connecticut denied Stephenson’s motion to dismiss and he appealed to the Second Circuit.

In upholding the lower court’s ruling and denying Stephenson’s motion to dismiss, the Second Circuit wrote that “no reasonable forensic examiner in Stephenson’s position” would have concluded that Brady did not apply. The Court also concluded, “The allegations here are consistent with [Horn’s] theory that Stephenson independently decided to manipulate the margin of error upon learning that the memo … would weaken the state’s case against [Horn].”

Vernon Horn is represented by ECBAWM lawyers Ilann Maazel and Nick Bourland along with co-counsel Doug Lieb and Tamar Birckhead.

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