ORDER Before the Court, on referral from District Judge Donnelly, is the plaintiff’s motion for leave to file a fourth amended complaint. The County defendants oppose the motion. For the reasons stated below, the motion is granted. BACKGROUND A. Factual Averments On September 4, 2019, the plaintiff, Josiah Galloway (“Galloway”), commenced this action against the County of Nassau (“County”), the Nassau County Police Department (“NCPD”), the Incorporated Village of Hempstead (“Hempstead”), several police officers and detectives, Kathleen Rice (“Rice”), who, at the time, was the Nassau County District Attorney, and two Assistant District Attorneys, alleging that he was wrongfully arrested on June 5, 2008, in connection with crimes committed on May 28, 2008. ECF No. 1. Since September 2019, Galloway has amended his complaint three times. ECF Nos. 9, 53, 80. However, in August 2020, before he filed the third amended complaint, Galloway sought to extend all of the discovery deadlines, including the deadline to file motions to amend, arguing that the defendants had failed to provide timely discovery. Judge Orenstein, who was assigned to the case at the time, denied the request for an extension without prejudice to Galloway’s right to seek leave to amend if and when he succeed[ed] in securing disclosures from the defendants that reveal[ed] a basis for the proposed amendment. As a result, Galloway currently seeks leave to file a fourth amended complaint to add a claim pursuant to Monell v. Dep’t of Soc. Servs. of City of New York, 436 U.S. 658, 694-95 (1978) pursuant to Rule 15(a). According to Galloway, recent deposition testimony has disclosed that the identification procedures used to secure his wrongful conviction were official policies of Nassau County at that time. 1. Events Leading up to Galloway’s Incarceration According to the proposed fourth amended complaint, on May 15, 2008, Jorge Anyosa (“Anyosa”), the victim of the crime for which Galloway was charged, was seated in his cab awaiting customers near a train and bus terminal in Hempstead. ECF 93-1 19.1 At approximately 1:30 a.m., Anyosa was shot in the face following a dispute with the driver of a vehicle that had approached his car twenty minutes earlier. Id. Anyosa and a witness observed the shooter and described him as a black male, 25-30 years old, approximately 5’10″-5’11″, with close-cropped or shaved hair, an accent and no glasses or distinguishing facial features. Id. 20. Kenton Sherwood (“Sherwood”), who has since admitted to perpetrating the crime, matches the description provided by Anyosa and has a Jamaican accent. Id. 21. Witnesses described the vehicle Sherwood drove that night as a 2002-2005 gray Toyota Corolla with a missing front driver-side hubcap and dark tinted windows. Id. 22. Sherwood’s girlfriend at the time, Natasha Cheney (“Cheney”), owned a gray 2003 Toyota Corolla. Id. 23. According to the complaint, Cheney, other civilians, including Nadine and Vashtine Johnson, knew that Sherwood was responsible for the Anyosa shooting. Id. 25. In fact, on the day of the incident, Vashtine Johnson called the police tip line to report that Sherwood was the shooter but neither the NCPD not the Hempstead police investigated the lead. Id. 26. Instead, on May 19, 2008, a sketch artist met with the victim, who was still in the hospital, and generated a composite rendering of the perpetrator. Id. 28. The sketch resembles Sherwood. Id. 29. In any case, on June 5, 2008, Hempstead police officers arrested Galloway on charges unrelated to the Anyosa shooting. Id. 33-34. 32. According to Galloway, the composite sketch does not resemble him. Id. 32. Galloway is a 5’5″ black man with no accent. Id. 30. In addition, at the time of the incident, Galloway was 21 years old, had long hair and was missing a front tooth. Id. Galloway also wore glasses to drive and, due to his poor vision, did not drive at night. Id. Galloway claims that he had no access to the type of vehicle used in the crime and, at the time of the shooting, was at home with his family watching a movie. Id.
30-1. Nevertheless, after Galloway was arrested, several of the defendant officers allegedly coerced a friend of Galloway’s into signing a statement which implicated Galloway in the Anyosa shooting. Id. 37. The defendants then constructed photo array, using an old photograph of Galloway during a time period in which he had short hair, despite the fact that Galloway, who had longer hair, was present in the precinct for identification purposes. Id. 38. Anyosa selected the photograph of Galloway and was allegedly advised by the defendants that he had selected “the right guy.” Id.
