Sheriff's Silver Star Ass'n of Oswego County, Inc. v. County of Oswego
Female correction officers and the Sheriffs Silver Star Association sued Oswego County, Charles Nellis, and Reuel Todd under 42 U.S.C. § 1983 and New York Executive Law § 296, challenging the sex-segregation policy at the Oswego County Correctional Facility. The plaintiffs alleged that the policy, which prohibited female COs from male housing units and vice-versa, violated the Equal Protection Clause. The defendants justified the policy by an alleged mandate from New York law, specifically N.Y. County Law § 652(2). The court found that the defendants' interpretation of the state law was errant, as the law only requires the presence of same-gender COs, not a prohibition on cross-gender assignments. The court disregarded the county's post hoc justifications of inmate privacy and prevention of sexual harassment. Consequently, the court granted the plaintiffs' motion for partial summary judgment on municipal liability, declared the sex-segregation policy unconstitutional, and dismissed the official-capacity claims against Nellis and Todd, denying the county's cross-motion.