2008 Decisions

Opinions of the United

States Court of Appeals

for the Third Circuit

4-14-2008

Chainey v. Street

Precedential or Non-Precedential: Precedential

Docket No. 06-1061

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Recommended Citation

"Chainey v. Street" (2008). 2008 Decisions. Paper 1295.

http://digitalcommons.law.villanova.edu/thirdcircuit_2008/1295
 PRECEDENTIAL

UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS

FOR THE THIRD CIRCUIT

Nos. 06-1061 & 06-1256

NANNIE CHAINEY;

LEROY HAMPTON, JR.; ERNESTINE M. RICE;

TRINA McCLAIN; LYNNE JOHNSON;

TERESA A. GRAYER-CAMPBELL;

CASSANDRA CARTER JOHNSTON;

THOMAS MAPP SR.; BETTY MAPP H/W;

BETTY MAPP1; ERNEST HUBBARD;

ESTHER HUBBARD H/W; ESTHER HUBBARD1;

ROBERT FORD; GWENDOLYN FORD H/W;

GWENDOLYN FORD1; OLAITAN ODENIYI;

ADEOLA ODENIYI H/W; ADEOLA ODENIYI1;

LUCRETIA WILSON; ANNE LEE;

GERALD RENFROW; CONSTANCE RENFROW H/W;

VIRGINIA COX; HAZEL TAYLOR;

MILTON WILLIAMS; SHERRY WILLIAMS H/W;

FRANK LEWIS; EVA LEWIS H/W; EVA LEWIS1;

KERMIT BOSTIC; ELIZABETH BOSTIC H/W;

MARY J. JACKSON; SAMUEL MATTAWAY;

YVETTE MATTAWAY H/W; YVETTE MATTAWAY1;

CHARLES RENFROW, JR.; GERALD RENFROW1;
2

CARRIE F. FOSKEY; BERIDAN PAYNE;

CONSTANCE RENFROW1,

Appellees at 06-1061/

Cross-Appellants at 06-1256

v.

JOHN STREET, MAYOR, CITY OF PHILADELPHIA;

CITY OF PHILADELPHIA;

EDWARD McLAUGHLIN, COMMISSIONER,

DEPARTMENT OF LICENSES AND INSPECTIONS;

HERBERT E. WETZEL, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR; 

REDEVELOPMENT AUTHORITY

OF THE CITY OF PHILADELPHIA,

Appellants at 06-1061/

Cross-Appellees at 06-1256

On Appeal from the United States District Court

for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania

D.C. Civil Action No. 03-cv-06248

(Honorable John P. Fullam)

Argued January 23, 2007

Before: SCIRICA, Chief Judge,

FUENTES and CHAGARES, Circuit Judges
3

(Filed April 14, 2008 )

CRAIG R. GOTTLIEB, ESQUIRE (ARGUED)

RICHARD G. FEDER, ESQUIRE

City of Philadelphia Law Department

One Parkway, 17th Floor

1515 Arch Street

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19102

Attorney for Appellants/Cross-Appellees

ROBERT T. VANCE, JR., ESQUIRE (ARGUED)

100 South Broad Street, Suite 1530

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19110

ADRIAN J. MOODY, ESQUIRE 

Law Offices of Adrian J. Moody

1616 Walnut Street, Suite 700

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19103

Attorney for Appellees/Cross-Appellants

OPINION OF THE COURT

SCIRICA, Chief Judge.

This is an appeal from the District Court’s partial denial

of defendants’ post-trial motion after a jury verdict against the
4

City of Philadelphia based on its decision to halt repairs on

houses rebuilt in the aftermath of the 1985 MOVE bombing.

Defendants are the city, the city Redevelopment Authority, and

three former city officials: Mayor John Street, former Licenses

and Inspections Commissioner Edward McLaughlin, and

Redevelopment Authority Executive Director Herbert Wetzel.

Plaintiffs are twenty-four of the sixty-one homeowners whose

houses were destroyed in a fire caused by the MOVE bombing.

In 1986, the city agreed to rebuild plaintiffs’ houses and to

repair defects for up to ten years. After having spent $12.8

million over 14 years, the city decided in July 2000 it would

make no further repairs to the houses. A federal jury rendered

a partial verdict for plaintiffs. Defendants filed post-trial

motions, which the District Court granted in part, reducing the

jury award. Both parties appealed. We will affirm in part and

reverse in part. We will remand for an analysis of the

substantive due process claim and Fed. R. Civ. P. 50 waiver and,

if the issue has not been waived, for a determination of whether

each plaintiff proved causation and damages.

I.

This case arises from the city’s 1985 bombing during the

administration of Mayor Wilson Goode (mayoral term

1984–1992) of a home occupied by MOVE, a group formed in

the 1970s as part of a “back to nature” movement. In 1978, the

city attempted to execute an eviction order on MOVE members

living in a home in the Powelton Village neighborhood of

Philadelphia. MOVE members resisted with gunfire, killing one
5

police officer and wounding other officers and firefighters.

Nine MOVE members were convicted and sentenced for the

officer’s murder.

By 1985, at least thirteen MOVE members had relocated

to a single family home at 6221 Osage Avenue in West

Philadelphia. Disrupting the neighborhood with loudspeakers,

MOVE members made violent and profane threats to neighbors,

police, and city officials. According to a police probable cause

affidavit submitted to support arrest and search warrants,

MOVE members carried weapons, blocked the windows of their

house with wooden slats, constructed a bunker on the roof, and

threatened to blow up the entire neighborhood. Arrest and

search warrants were issued on May 11, 1985. On May 12, the

police evacuated residents from the surrounding neighborhood,

anticipating a raid on the MOVE house.

In the early morning of May 13, police officers and

firefighters surrounded the MOVE residence. At 5:30 a.m., with

a bullhorn, police announced they had arrest warrants for four

MOVE members and gave them fifteen minutes to surrender.

The MOVE members resisted, shouting back threats that they

were prepared for a gun battle. After fifteen minutes, police

fired tear gas and smoke projectiles at the house. Firefighters

sprayed the house with water to provide cover for advancing

police officers. Some minutes later, the police came under fire

from gunshots fired from inside the house. Muzzle flashes were

seen coming from the rooftop bunker.
6

A massive gun battle ensued. Police were unable to enter

the house because the walls of the house were fortified. Police

retreated, and considered other methods to breach the defenses

MOVE had erected. Later that afternoon, a police helicopter

dropped a bomb on the roof of the MOVE residence. The

bomb’s detonation ignited several barrels of gasoline, starting a

fire that killed eleven of the thirteen residents. Houses on the

Pine and Osage blocks were consumed in the blaze. The

bombing, the resultant deaths, and the destruction of neighbors’

homes were viewed as a national tragedy.

This case involves the owners of houses on the Pine and

Osage blocks. In the fire’s aftermath, the city engaged in

extensive negotiations with the owners of the sixty-one

destroyed houses. In June 1985, the city asked the

Redevelopment Authority to use its eminent domain authority to

acquire the damaged area for “develop[ment] as a

redevelopment project.” The homeowners filed objections to

the eminent domain/redevelopment plan. In April 1986, the

Philadelphia City Council enacted Ordinance 861, obligating the

city to rebuild the sixty-one houses “destroyed in the

conflagration.” The city also agreed to provide a ten-year

warranty for certain defects from the day each homeowner

moved into his/her home.

In September 1986, the parties entered into an agreement

(the 1986 Agreement), in which the city agreed to build and

warrant sixty-one new houses in compliance with all applicable

Philadelphia Codes, as required by Ordinance 861, and plaintiffs
7

agreed to waive damages claims in the eminent domain

proceeding. The city enlisted the Redevelopment Authority,

which selected a developer, Edwards & Harper, a corporation

specifically formed to rebuild the houses. The city allocated

$6.7 million to Edwards & Harper through the Urban Local

Development Corporation to finance the rebuilding project.

Edwards & Harper hired a general contractor, Ebony

Construction Company, Inc., of which Ernest Edwards was a

director.

Edwards misappropriated funds and was prosecuted and

convicted of theft. See Commonwealth v. Edwards, 582 A.2d

1078, 1082–90 (Pa. Super. Ct. 1990). Edwards & Harper failed

to complete the project. The city and the Redevelopment

Authority hired another general contractor to complete the

houses. In February 1986, when Edwards’s companies

defaulted, the new general contractor was left with over one

million dollars of unpaid costs.

For two years, plaintiffs lived in substitute housing at the

city’s expense. In 1987, plaintiffs moved into their newly

constructed homes. But the houses were defective. Within

weeks of moving in, several homeowners experienced problems

including: leaking roofs, defective bathroom and kitchen

plumbing, improper or inadequate flooring, nails popping out of

walls, bursting pipes, defective electrical wiring, flooded

basements and backyards, and non-functioning appliances. In

June 1987, the city amended Ordinance 861 to authorize the city

to hire the Redevelopment Authority to warrant the houses
 Between 1988 and 1990, the city allocated $720,400 to the 1

Redevelopment Authority for repairs.

8

against “construction, design and related defects.” In January

1988, the city and the Redevelopment Authority entered into a

new agreement (the 1988 Agreement)—the Redevelopment

Authority agreed to perform the city’s repair obligations and the

city agreed to compensate the Redevelopment Authority.

Between 1988 and 1997, when the warranties were set to

expire, the Redevelopment Authority conducted piecemeal

repairs of reported problems, replacing roofs, stoves,

dishwashers, and garbage disposals. The record suggests a

continuous flow of money into the project, but does not present

a clear picture of the total expenditures during that time. In 1

1995, the Redevelopment Authority estimated it would cost $8.5

million to repair the original defective construction.

The city and the Redevelopment Authority hired the

United States Army Corps of Engineers to evaluate the cost of

the remaining repairs. In 1997, the Corps issued a

comprehensive report outlining the remaining necessary repairs,

estimating it would cost the city and the Redevelopment

Authority $1.657 million to fulfill their warranty obligations and

to bring each house into compliance with city building codes.

The Corps determined that repairs to the building envelope—the

roofing, bricks, sliding doors, siding, and windows—would

account for seventy percent of the total projected remaining

cost.
 The total hard construction-cost estimates increased to 2

between $3.3 million and $4.4 million (including the original

$1.7 million). Additional costs included $439,000 to $482,000

in soft costs for the United States Army Corps of Engineers

contract, an energy consultant contract, and Redevelopment

Authority staff, and $416,000 to $556,000 for warranty

settlement items including interior repairs to be made by

homeowners, lost energy payments, and owners’ administrative

fees.

9

In 1998, the city, the Redevelopment Authority, and the

Corps designed a solicitation for bids from private contractors

to complete the repair work. On August 30, the Redevelopment

Authority entered into a $1,765,538 contract with the successful

bidder, Allied Construction Company (the Redevelopment

Authority-Allied Construction Agreement). The city allocated

$2 million to pay Allied Construction for the repairs. Shortly

thereafter, Allied Construction workers uncovered several other

problems hidden from view until discovered in the course of

conducting repairs. The Redevelopment Authority subsequently

authorized payment of an additional $800,000. But by the end

of 1999, the estimated cost for modifications rose from

$800,000 to between $2.1 million and $3.5 million, an increase

attributable to items not covered under the work’s original

scope: changed window types, brick wall modifications and

window sill replacements, additional framing, and modifications

to interior walls. None of these additional costs had been

2

included in Allied Construction’s original estimate.
10

Accordingly, the Redevelopment Authority requested another

$2.9 million from the city to satisfy Allied Construction’s

requests and to comply with the warranty obligations.

On December 22, 1999, outgoing Mayor Edward Rendell

sent a letter (the Rendell Letter) to the homeowners reaffirming

the city’s intent to complete the necessary repairs. But after

Mayor John Street took office in January 2000, city officials

balked at the Redevelopment Authority’s request for the

additional $2.9 million. In a memorandum dated January 4,

2000, the city audit manager estimated the final cost of each

warranty at $129,000 for each of the sixty-one houses, for a total

cost of $7,869,000. On February 10, 2000, the city controller

reported that the city had already incurred almost $13 million for

warranty repairs, or $211,286 per house. In March 2000, the

city estimated the additional cost would range between $4.5

million and $11 million. In the 1986 Agreement, the city

determined the fair-market value of the houses as of May 12,

1985, to be approximately $26,000 per house, or $1,586,000

total. At trial, Plaintiffs’ expert report estimated that as of

March 23, 2005, plaintiffs would need to be reimbursed “in the

neighborhood of $250,000” for each house in order to relocate

to a similar house in another Philadelphia neighborhood.

In mid-2000, the city’s Department of Licenses and

Inspections inspected the houses and reported that no defects

rendered the houses imminently dangerous. But the report noted

a problem with air vents—an original construction defect that

could potentially draw carbon monoxide into the houses. None
11

of the residents had reported any carbon monoxide problems,

but the city’s commerce director prepared a plan for relocating

all of the residents. City officials soon concluded the air-vent

problem rendered the houses imminently dangerous and that the

houses should be treated as a blighted area. On July 21, 2000,

plaintiffs were summoned to a meeting with the mayor at City

Hall. At that meeting, Mayor John Street presented plaintiffs

with a letter informing them that the city would pay $125,000

per house, plus $25,000 for relocation expenses, but that the

parties would be required to vacate their premises no later than

September 6, 2000. The residents were told that if they did not

move, their homes would be taken through eminent domain.

Thirty-seven of the sixty-one sets of residents accepted this (or

a subsequent lower) offer; the remaining twenty-four rejected

the offer, and later initiated this suit.

Shortly thereafter, Philadelphia Gas Works began to

“red-tag” plaintiffs’ houses, the first step in terminating gas

service. Plaintiffs obtained an injunction in state court against

Philadelphia Gas Works to continue service and against the city

to refrain from demolishing plaintiffs’ houses without a court

order or until the conclusion of the eminent domain proceeding.

Coles v. Philadelphia, No. 0395 (Philadelphia County Ct.

Comm. Pl. Oct. 3, 2000) (order granting injunction).

On October 22, 2003, plaintiffs filed suit in state court

and defendants removed to federal court. At a federal jury trial,

plaintiffs sought to prove claims based on breach of contract,

substantive due process, the takings clause, state-law conspiracy,
 The jury instructions did not reference the 1986 Agreement. 3

12

equal protection, and specific performance. On the contract

claim, the jury was instructed to decide liability and damages for

breach of contract on three alleged contracts: the 1988

Agreement, the Redevelopment Authority-Allied Construction 3

Agreement, and the Rendell Letter.

The jury found the city and the Redevelopment Authority

liable for breach of two contracts—the 1988 Agreement and the

Rendell Letter, but not the Redevelopment Authority-Allied

Construction Agreement. The jury awarded $250,000 per

plaintiff in contract damages, consisting of $150,000 in

expectation damages against the city and the Redevelopment

Authority and $100,000 in emotional distress damages against

the city ($6 million total). The jury awarded $152,083.33 per

plaintiff for substantive due process violations, consisting of

$70,000 per plaintiff in compensatory damages against Mayor

John Street, $30,000 in compensatory damages against the city,

and $52,083.33 in punitive damages against Mayor John Street

in his individual capacity ($3.65 million total). For the takings

clause claims, the jury awarded $80,000 per plaintiff against the

city ($1.92 million total). The jury also awarded $52,500 per

plaintiff in conspiracy damages against defendants, consisting

of $20,000 in compensatory damages against the mayor,

$14,000 in compensatory damages against the city, $2,000 each

in compensatory damages against Wetzel, McLaughlin, and the

Redevelopment Authority, $4,166.67 in punitive damages
13

against the city, and $8,333.33 in punitive damages against the

mayor ($1.26 million total). The District Court entered

judgment against defendants for a total of $12.816 million, with

each of the twenty-four plaintiffs receiving an aggregate award

of $534,000.

The case was tried before Judge Clarence Newcomer,

who died after the jury verdict. Defendants filed post-trial

motions. Newly assigned Judge John Fullam granted

defendants’ motion for judgment as a matter of law with respect

to the takings, civil conspiracy, and punitive damages claims,

but rejected defendants’ motion for a new trial. See Chainey v.

Philadelphia, No. Civ.A. 03-06248-JF, 2005 WL 3263042 (E.D.

Pa. Dec. 1, 2005). The court upheld liability on claims for

breach of contract (under both the 1988 Agreement and the

Rendell Letter) and substantive due process. Id. at *3–4. On

breach of contract, the court upheld the jury’s award of

$150,000 per plaintiff in repair damages ($3.6 million total) and

$100,000 per plaintiff for emotional distress ($2.4 million total).

Id. at *5–6. Although the court upheld the substantive due

process verdict against the city and against Mayor John Street in

his official capacity, it awarded no recovery because plaintiffs

sought only emotional distress damages for this claim. Id. The

court found an unacceptable overlap between the $2.4 million

contractual emotional distress award and the identical award for

substantive due process violations. Id. Moreover, the court

found that any award in excess of $100,000 per plaintiff for

emotional distress damages, caused by either breach of contract
 Jurisdiction is proper under 28 U.S.C. § 1291. The District 4

Court had subject matter jurisdiction under 28 U.S.C. §§ 1331,

1343, and 1367. We exercise plenary review over this appeal

and cross-appeal from a final judgment, granting in part and

denying in part defendants’ post-trial motion for judgment as a

matter of law. Marinelli v. City of Erie, 216 F.3d 354, 359 (3d

Cir. 2000). We review defendants’ request for a new trial based

on alleged prejudicial questioning for abuse of discretion.

United States v. Adedoyin, 369 F.3d 337, 342 (3d Cir. 2004). 

14

or substantive due process violations, was excessive. Id.

Accordingly, the District Court entered judgment for

breach of contract against the city and judgment for substantive

due process against the city and against Mayor John Street in his

official capacity. The aggregate award for each plaintiff was

reduced to $250,000 for a total of $6 million.4

II.

All parties have appealed. Defendants contend the

District Court erred by denying judgment as a matter of law on

the breach of contract claims and substantive due process

claims, and by denying their motion for a new trial. Plaintiffs

contend the District Court erred by overturning the takings

clause verdict and the punitive damage award against Mayor

John Street.

A. Breach of Contract Claims
15

The District Court declined to disturb the jury’s damage

award based on breach of contract under both the 1988

Agreement and the Rendell Letter. Chainey, 2005 WL

3263042, at *3–4. The court held defendants waived their

statute of limitations defense against the contract claims based

on the 1988 Agreement by failing to raise the defense until posttrial motions. Id. at *4. It also rejected defendants’ argument

that Mayor Rendell was not authorized to bind the city,

concluding he had apparent authority. Id. at *3.

We will affirm liability under the 1988 Agreement, but

not under the Rendell Letter. Accordingly, we will affirm the

award of contractual expectation damages based upon the 1988

Agreement and reverse the award of contractual emotional

distress damages based on the Rendell Letter.

1. 1988 Agreement

a. Statute of Limitations

Defendants contend that Pennsylvania’s four-year statute

of limitations for written contracts bars recovery under the 1988

Agreement. 42 Pa. Cons. Stat. § 5525(a)(8). Defendants

maintain the 1988 Agreement expired no later than November

1996, requiring plaintiffs to assert their claims by November

2000. The District Court found defendants waived the statute of

limitations defense by failing to timely raise it. We agree.

Affirmative defenses should be asserted in the

appropriate responsive pleadings. Fed. R. Civ. P. 8(c). “Failure
“The purpose of requiring the defendant to plead available 5

affirmative defenses in his answer is to avoid surprise and undue

prejudice by providing the plaintiff with notice and the

opportunity to demonstrate why the affirmative defense should

not succeed.” Robinson v. Johnson, 313 F.3d 128, 134–35 (3d

Cir. 2002) (citing Blonder-Tongue Labs., Inc. v. Univ. of Ill.

Found., 402 U.S. 313, 350 (1971)). Permitting the limitations

defense after the close of all evidence contradicts the articulated

purpose of the rule.

16

to raise an affirmative defense by responsive pleading or by

appropriate motion generally results in the waiver of that

defense.” Charpentier v. Godsil, 937 F.2d 859, 863 (3d Cir.

1991). Although “a [statute of] limitations defense does not 5

necessarily have to be raised in the answer[,] . . . it does not

follow that a limitations defense can be raised at any time.”

Robinson v. Johnson, 313 F.3d 128, 135 (3d Cir. 2002). In this

case, it was raised too late. A statute of limitations defense,

raised for the first time in a post-trial motion, is generally

waived. See Bradford-White Corp. v. Ernst & Whinney, 872

F.2d 1153, 1161 (3d Cir. 1989) (finding statute of limitations

defense waived when raised in the answer but never pursued

until post-trial motions); see also United States v. Big D

Enterprises, Inc., 184 F.3d 924, 935 (8th Cir. 1999) (finding

statute of limitations defense waived when “[a]ppellants failed

to raise the statute of limitations argument until their posttrial

[sic] motion for remittitur”). 
17

Defendants first raised the statute of limitations defense

to the 1988 Agreement in post-trial motions. They justify their

failure to plead it earlier by contending the 1988 Agreement was

never pleaded nor did it become an articulated theory of

recovery until mentioned in the District Court’s jury

instructions. But in their Amended Complaint, plaintiffs alleged

that “[d]efendants breached the express and implied terms and

conditions of the Settlement Agreement, the Allied

[Construction] Contract, and their other legal obligations . . . ”

and that “[a]s a direct and proximate result of . . . Defendants’

breaches of the Settlement Agreement, Mayor Rendell’s

December 22, 1999 letter, the Allied [Construction] Contract

and related contractual obligations, . . . Plaintiffs were injured

. . . .” Although it should have been specifically pleaded, the

reference to “related contractual obligations” covers the related

contractual obligation in the 1988 Agreement. Furthermore, the

proposed jury instructions expressly referenced the “1988

warranty agreement” as a theory of recovery. Defendants raised

no objection. 

In Bradford-White Corp. v. Ernst & Whinney, we found

a statute of limitations defense waived where, even though

pleaded in the answer, it was not pursued before or at the trial.

872 F.2d at 1160–61 (defendant “did not file a motion or present

argument before the district court on the statute of limitations

issue at any time before or at the trial”). After the jury verdict,

defendant raised its statute of limitations arguments in post-trial

motions. We found “it would be grossly unfair to allow a
 Defendants cite no case law, referring instead to the 6

Restatement (Second) of Contracts § 304, which states: “A

promise in a contract creates a duty in the promisor to any

intended beneficiary to perform the promise, and the intended

beneficiary may enforce the duty.”

18

plaintiff to go to the expense of trying a case only to be met by

a new defense after trial.” Id. at 1161. Defendants here never

raised the statute of limitations defense to the 1988 Agreement

until after trial. They have waived the statute of limitations

defense. 

Defendants cite Eddy v. Virgin Islands Water & Power

Auth., 256 F.3d 204 (3d Cir. 2001), as authority to amend at the

post-trial stage. In Eddy, we held the defense of qualified

immunity is not necessarily waived by a defendant who fails to

raise it until the summary judgment stage. Id. at 210. Eddy is

inapposite. 

b. The City’s Liability

Defendants contend plaintiffs cannot recover against the

city as a matter of law because the contractual obligations in the

1988 Agreement ran only between the Redevelopment Authority

and the city. Contending only the Redevelopment Authority

promised to repair plaintiffs’ homes, defendants argue the

Redevelopment Authority was the only party responsible to

plaintiffs under the 1988 Agreement. But the city assumed 6

responsibility to repair plaintiffs’ houses in the 1986 Agreement.
 Contracts and Bonds. The [City Law] Department 7

shall prepare or approve all contracts, bonds and

other instruments in writing in which the City is

concerned, and shall approve all surety bonds

required to be given for the protection of the City.

It shall keep a proper registry of all such

contracts, bonds and instruments. 

351 Pa. Code § 4.4-400(c).

Contracts. Before any contract shall be effective, 8

the [City] Director of Finance shall approve it as

19

It then delegated that duty to the Redevelopment Authority in

the 1988 Agreement, and promised to fund the repairs. Before

payment, the Redevelopment Authority was required to provide

the city with bills and vouchers. Plaintiffs were third-party

beneficiaries of the 1988 Agreement, and may properly assert

claims based on the 1988 Agreement against both the city and

the Redevelopment Authority. Accordingly, we agree with the

District Court that the 1988 Agreement was a valid basis for the

jury’s contract award against the city.

2. The Rendell Letter

Defendants contend the Rendell Letter was not a binding

contract because it lacked the approval of the City Law

Department and Finance Department as required by the

Philadelphia Home Rule Charter. See 351 Pa. Code § 4.4-

400(c); 351 Pa. Code § 6.6-104. Plaintiffs presented no 7 8
to the availability of appropriated funds. He shall

designate on every such contract, the

appropriation under which it is made and shall

give it a number in the order of its date. He shall,

in the order in which each contract is numbered,

charge the appropriation out of which

expenditures thereunder will be made.

351 Pa. Code § 6.6-104.

20

evidence that the City Law Department or Finance Department

prepared or approved the Rendell Letter. Nonetheless, plaintiffs

contend defendants bore the burden and failed to put forth

evidence to show the letter was not approved in accordance with

the Philadelphia Home Rule Charter. Plaintiffs are incorrect.

Under Pennsylvania law, the party asserting the validity of a

contract bears the burden of proof. Linn v. Employers Reins.

Corp., 153 A.2d 483, 485 (Pa. 1959); Hazleton Area Sch. Dist.

v. Krasnoff, 672 A.2d 858, 862 (Pa. Commw. Ct. 1996).

At issue is whether Mayor Rendell had actual or apparent

authority to contract for the city, absent the approval of the City

Law and Finance Departments. The Philadelphia Home Rule

Charter provides: “the [City Law] Department shall prepare or

approve all contracts . . . .” 351 Pa. Code § 4.4-400(c).

Furthermore, “[b]efore any contractshall be effective, the [City]

Director of Finance shall approve it as to the availability of

appropriated funds.” 351 Pa. Code § 6.6-104. Under

Pennsylvania decisional law, government officials cannot bind
21

the government without the necessary statutory approval. See

City of Scranton v. Heffler, Radetich & Saitta, LLP, 871 A.2d

875, 880 (Pa. Commw. Ct. 2005) (“‘Where a municipality must

execute a contract in a particular manner under legislative

pronouncement, failure to comply with the pronouncement

renders the contract unenforceable.’” (quoting Alco Parking

Corp. v. Public Parking Auth. of Pittsburgh, 706 A.2d 343, 348

(Pa. Super. Ct. 1998))); Pittsburgh Baseball, Inc. v. Stadium

Auth. of Pittsburgh, 630 A.2d 505, 508–09 (Pa. Commw. Ct.

1993) (finding an oral contract with a city mayor was not

binding on the city); see also Innes v. Sch. Dist. of Nanticoke, 20

A.2d 225, 227 (Pa. 1941) (“‘Persons contracting with a

governmental agency must, at their peril, know the extent of the

power of its officers making the contract.’” (quoting Charleroi

Lumber Co. v. Sch. Dist. of Bentleyville, 6 A.2d 88, 92 (Pa.

1939))).

In Scranton, the Commonwealth Court considered

whether the City of Scranton could be liable for the mayor’s

written promise to pay plaintiff to audit medical claims paid by

the city’s insurance carrier. After plaintiff submitted invoices

for several months of auditing services, the city refused to pay.

Finding the statutory requirements for execution of municipal

contracts mandatory, the court held there was no legally binding

contract. Scranton, 871 A.2d at 880. The City of Scranton’s

Administrative Code provided “all contracts must be reviewed

and approved by the City Solicitor and signed by the Mayor and

the Controller or their designated substitutes and attested to by
22

the City Clerk.” Id. Because these requirements had not been

met, the court found no valid contract. Id.

Similarly in Pittsburgh Baseball, Inc., plaintiff was

attempting to enforce an alleged oral promise by the mayor of

the City of Pittsburgh to contribute $25 million towards the

purchase and operation of the Pittsburgh Pirates baseball

franchise. The Commonwealth Court held the alleged oral

contract with the mayor was not binding on the city where the

relevant city code required all contracts with the city to be in

writing and to be signed by the mayor and appropriate

department head and where the Philadelphia Home Rule Charter

required that all contracts involving city affairs be authorized by

resolution of the city council. Pittsburgh Baseball, Inc., 630

A.2d at 508–09. Construing the plain language of the statute,

the Philadelphia Home Rule Charter, and Pennsylvania

decisional law, we find the Rendell letter lacked actual authority

to bind the city.

Even if lacking actual authority, the District Court held

the mayor had apparent authority to bind the city: “[It] may well

be [that the mayor lacked actual authority], but he certainly had

apparent authority . . . .” Chainey, 2005 WL 3263042, at *3. To

establish apparent authority, a third party must demonstrate that

he reasonably relied on his agent’s alleged appearance of

authority. Revere Press, Inc. v. Blumberg, 246 A.2d 407, 410

(Pa. 1968). Citing William B. Tanner Co., Inc. v. WIOO, Inc.,

528 F.2d 262, 268 (3d Cir. 1975), plaintiffs assert they

reasonably believed the mayor, as the city’s chief executive, had
23

the power to contractually bind the city. In Tanner, an agent of

a radio station who held himself out as a general manager

entered into contracts on behalf of the radio station. We held

that a reasonable person might believe the radio station gave the

agent authority. Id. at 266–67. But that case did not involve

apparent authority where a statute, ordinance, or in this case, a

statute and a city home rule charter dictated the approval

necessary to bind the city.

Where a statute gives public notice of the required

procedures for governmental contract approval, Pennsylvania

courts have held there is no apparent authority for contracting

government agents who are not authorized by the statute. See

Berkheimer Associates v. Norco Motors, 842 A.2d 966, 970–71

(Pa. Commw. Ct. 2004); Krasnoff, 672 A.2d at 862. In Norco,

the Commonwealth Court refused to enforce a settlement

agreement between a local tax collector and a taxpayer over

township and school district delinquent taxes because it was not

approved by a majority vote of the school board, as required by

the Public School Code for contracts exceeding $100. The

taxpayer contended the tax collector had apparent authority to

settle, citing case law holding that a lawyer may sometimes have

apparent authority to settle a case on behalf of the client even

absent express authority. Norco, 842 A.2d at 969–70. In

rejecting this argument, the court found, “the cases relied on by

Norco and the trial court do not involve a school district where

a statute puts all persons dealing with it on notice that contracts

over $100.00 require approval of the school board.” Id. at 970.
 Moreover, the discussion of equitable estoppel in Scranton 9

counsels against finding apparent authority. The Scranton court

considered whether equitable estoppel bound the city, and

concluded that entering into a contract without the express

approval of the solicitor was unreasonable as a matter of law,

given the requirements of the Scranton Administrative Code.

Scranton, 871 A.2d at 882. The unreasonableness was

particularly manifest considering that the plaintiff relied upon

statements from a “member[] of the outgoing administration in

its waning months.” Id. at 881.

24

Similarly in Krasnoff, the Commonwealth Court rejected

the argument that school board members had apparent authority

to contract absent approval by a majority vote of the school

board. In Krasnoff, an architect contracted with the school

district to perform renovations. After meeting with individual

school board members, the architect provided services beyond

the scope of his original contract. The Commonwealth Court

determined the Public School Code required approval by an

affirmative vote of the school board to create a binding contract

for the additional services. Krasnoff, 672 A.2d at 862 (citing 9

Matevish v. Sch. Dist. of Ramey, 74 A.2d 797 (Pa. Super. Ct.

1950)). Consistent with these cases, the Rendell Letter cannot

constitute a binding contract as the mayor lacked both actual and

apparent authority under the Philadelphia Home Rule Charter to

enter into such a contract. See 351 Pa. Code § 4.4-400(c); 351

Pa. Code § 6.6-104.
25

Alternatively, plaintiffs contend defendants ratified the

Rendell Letter. “It is well settled that a municipal corporation

may ratify contracts which are within its corporate powers and

made by its officers without authority, or in excess of their

authority.” Eckert v. Pierotti, 553 A.2d 114, 118 (Pa. Commw.

Ct. 1989). A “municipality may waive an irregularity of a

municipal contract and ratify that contract.” Scranton, 871 A.2d

at 881 (citing Eckert, 553 A.2d at 118). Ratification may consist

of affirmative action by the proper officials or by other action or

inaction that amounts to approval of the contract under the

circumstances. Id. But where a previously unauthorized

contract is retroactively ratified by post-contract approval, such

post-contract ratification must be approved by “everyone whose

approval was [previously] required under applicable law.” Id.;

see also Pittsburgh Baseball, Inc., 630 A.2d at 509 (finding no

ratification); cf. Eckert, 553 A.2d at 118 (holding ratification

existed based upon formal post-contract approval of the contract

at issue). In Scranton, where the court found the alleged

contract lacked the required approval of the city solicitor, among

others, the court also held that there was no post-contract

ratification because the evidence “reveal[ed no] approval of the

City Solicitor” between the time of the contract and the alleged

ratification. Scranton, 871 A.2d at 881. Similarly here,

plaintiffs presented no evidence of post-contract approval from

either the City Law Department or Finance Department, so they

cannot establish ratification.

3. Contractual Damages
 The District Court molded the $2.4 million award to cover 10

the jury’s awards for the contractual emotional distress claim

and substantive due process claim.

26

Defendants contend the award of contractual emotional

distress damages should be overturned. The trial court

explained to the jury: “I instruct you that only the [Rendell

Letter] is eligible for emotional distress damages . . . .” The jury

awarded $100,000 per plaintiff in emotional distress damages.

In denying the motion for a new trial, the District Court declined

to overturn the award of emotional distress damages totaling

$2.4 million. Because the Rendell Letter was not a valid 10

contract, this award must be overturned as well.

The District Court declined to overturn the jury’s award

of $150,000 in expectation damages based on the Rendell Letter

and the 1988 Agreement. The trial court instructed the jury they

could award expectation damages for a breach of any of the

three contracts. The trial court instructed that the parties had

stipulated that expectation damages should be the same whether

the jury found that one or all of the potential contracts had been

breached: “[I]f you find that there were three contracts, and all

three of them were breached, your award would be the same as

if there was but one contract breached.” The jury found the city

breached two of the contracts, the 1988 Agreement and the

Rendell Letter. Accordingly, the breach of the 1988 Agreement

supports the jury’s award of expectation damages. We will

affirm the jury award of contractual expectation damages.
 The city and the Redevelopment Authority made repairs at 11

significant expense, but often these repairs were substandard or

temporary. Some homeowners testified they paid for their own

repairs because the city either did not respond promptly or

simply failed to correct certain problems. The problems

persisted for almost ten years. In 1997, the Army Corp of

Engineers report noted several deficiencies in the homes and

estimated the cost of repairs at slightly less than $1.7 million.

As noted, in 1999, the Redevelopment Authority hired Allied

Construction and paid approximately $2 million for repairs.

Soon thereafter, Allied Construction requested an additional

27

B. Substantive Due Process

The jury awarded $152,083.33 per plaintiff for

substantive due process violations, consisting of $70,000 per

plaintiff in compensatory damages against Mayor John Street,

$30,000 per plaintiff in compensatory damages against the city,

and $52,083.33 per plaintiff in punitive damages against Mayor

John Street in his individual capacity ($3.65 million total). The

District Court reduced this award to $2.4 million, striking the

punitive damages, and awarded this amount based on both the

emotional distress claims and the substantive due process

claims, finding the jury awards on these claims duplicative.

Chainey, 2005 WL 3263042, at *5–6.

Plaintiffs contend the jury’s substantive due process

verdict was grounded in evidence the city made inadequate

repairs and then used strong-arm tactics to remove plaintiffs 11
$800,000 to complete the repairs. But by the end of 1999, it

increased that amount to $2.9 million.

 As noted, the city determined the fair-market value of the 12

houses as of May 12, 1985, was approximately $26,000 per

house, or $1,586,000 total. Plaintiffs’ expert report estimated

that as of March 23, 2005, plaintiffs would need to be

reimbursed “in the neighborhood of $250,000” for each house

in order to relocate to a similar house in another Philadelphia

neighborhood. Plaintiffs were living in their homes at the time

of the trial.

28

from their “defective” homes. Mayor John Street took office 12

in January 2000, as work on the homes stalled. Over the next

few months, city agencies decided the continuing cost of repairs

would exceed Allied Construction’s estimates. During this time,

Mayor John Street met with homeowners on at least two

occasions. According to several homeowners, he initially gave

the impression that the repair work would resume. At a meeting

in April 2000, he stated that the city would inspect all houses.

In June 2000, after inspecting the homes, the Department

of Licenses and Inspection noted an original construction defect

involving certain air vents through which carbon monoxide

could possibly enter the homes. But the Department of Licenses

and Inspection concluded this defect did not render the homes

imminently dangerous. Less than one month later, in July 2000,

the mayor sent the homeowners a letter asking them to come to
 The offer was $125,000 for the home and $25,000 for 13

relocation expenses. 

 One homeowner, who has acute asthma, testified that a 14

carbon monoxide system she installed in 1987 had never gone

off. 

29

City Hall on July 21. 

Homeowners testified they expected Mayor John Street

to explain how the city would restart repairs. Instead, the mayor

handed each of them a letter stating that their homes were

“imminently dangerous” because of possible carbon monoxide

problems with the air vents. The letter gave the homeowners ten

days to accept $150,000 from the city in exchange for leaving

their homes within forty-seven days, by September 6, 2000.13

The letter explained that if an owner did not accept the offer,

“the City will have no choice but to take your property by

eminent domain proceedings.”

There was evidence presented at trial that the city and

Mayor John Street “manufactured” the “imminently dangerous”

designation to pressure the homeowners to accept the city’s

offer and move out. The air vents were installed in 1987, but

every homeowner who testified about the issue—most of whom

had detectors in their homes—stated they experienced no

problems with carbon monoxide. In August 2000, some of the 14

homeowners hired a private contractor who tested twelve homes

and found no signs of carbon monoxide. According to one city
 For example, one plaintiff explained that “I don’t think the 15

City has a right to force me to sell my house to them or to move

out of the neighborhood that I chose to be in,” while another

testified that he “would never trade [his neighbors] for anything

in the world.”

30

official, it would have taken only about one month to replace the

heaters if the city had chosen to remedy the “air vent issue”

rather than declare the homes imminently dangerous.

Significantly, just weeks before the July 2000 meeting, the

Department of Licenses and Inspection concluded that the

homes were not imminently dangerous. Even defendants

“accept on appeal that the jury could have found Mayor Street’s

July 21 letter was at least partly pretextual, and that the various

declarations were motivated at least in part to force [p]laintiffs

to accept the Mayor’s $150,000 offer.” Brief for Defendants at

55. But defendants also assert that these “improper motives”

were not legally cognizable because the amount offered for the

homes was reasonable and the mayor’s actions were not for

personal gain. 

Twenty-four homeowners, the plaintiffs in this suit,

rejected the city’s offer. According to their testimony, they were

upset by how the city had treated them for years, they believed

they had been lied to by Mayor John Street, they did not think

the city’s financial offer was fair, and they simply did not want

to move. Soon after deciding to reject the mayor’s offer, 15

plaintiffs obtained injunctive relief in state court. But the city
31

allegedly continued to pressure them to move out. In August,

the city gas agency turned off gas and water heaters in the

homes because of an “unsafe condition” and “red-tagged” them,

meaning they could not be used. By October, a state court

enjoined the city from demolishing the homes without

conducting full eminent domain proceedings and ordered the

city to pay for replacement heaters.

In declining to overturn the substantive due process

damages award, Judge Fullam held that “[n]ot without some

difficulty, I conclude that reasonable minds could well differ as

to whether the defendants’ actions in this case were sufficiently

egregious to constitute a violation of substantive due process.”

Chainey, 2005 WL 3263042, at *4. But the court noted that “the

issue is not of crucial importance, since . . . I conclude that most,

if not all, of the damages attributable to the substantive due

process violation would also be recoverable under some of

plaintiffs’ other theories . . . .” Id. Holding that overlapping

damages were awarded for the emotional distress and

substantive due process claims, the court molded the verdict. Id.

at *5. As noted, we will overturn the emotional distress claim.

Therefore the $2.4 million damage award will depend entirely

on the viability of the substantive due process claim.

The trial court instructed the jury that plaintiffs could

recover damages for substantive due process violations based

upon: “physical pain, emotional pain and suffering, mental

anguish, discomfort, inconvenience, loss of enjoyment of life,

distress, embarrassment, and humiliation.” The bases for the
32

substantive due process claim, instructed the trial court, were the

city’s alleged failure to repair the houses, the “red-tagging” of

houses in the neighborhood, the offer to purchase plaintiffs’

houses, the threat to seize the houses through eminent domain,

and the charge that the houses were imminently dangerous. The

jury instructions limited the relevant conduct to the city’s actions

between July 21, 2000 and the present.

Defendants contend plaintiffs cannot recover on a

substantive due process claim because plaintiffs never properly

proved damages for emotional distress. In order to recover

compensatory damages for mental distress, a plaintiff must

present evidence of actual injury. Gunby v. Pennsylvania Elec.

Co., 840 F.2d 1108, 1121 (3d Cir. 1988) (citing Carey v. Piphus,

435 U.S. 247 (1978); Spence v. Bd. of Educ. of Christina Sch.

Dist., 806 F.2d 1198, 1200 (3d Cir. 1986)). In Gunby, we held

that testimony of a disappointed job applicant that he was “very

upset” was insufficient to support an award for emotional

distress. 840 F.2d at 1120–22. In Carey, the Supreme Court

noted that “[a]lthough essentially subjective, genuine injury . .

. may be evidenced by one’s conduct and observed by others.”

435 U.S. at 264 n.20. Competent evidence is required to support

a damage award for an injury. Id. (citing Gertz v. Robert Welch,

Inc., 418 U.S. 323, 350 (1974)). Defendants contend the

testimony of several plaintiffs fails to demonstrate that the

failure to properly repair the houses caused emotional distress

damages.

Defendants point to varying testimony on injury and
33

damages from the twenty-four plaintiffs, breaking down their

testimony into five categories. First, some plaintiffs testified

they suffered no harm. See, e.g., Trial Tr. at 91 (Mar. 29, 2005)

(“Q: And Ms. Campbell, have you suffered, had any type of

medical—strike that. Have you suffered in any way because of

this incident? A: No, ma’am.”). Second, some plaintiffs failed

to testify that they suffered any emotional distress. Third, some

plaintiffs claimed emotional harm, but testified the harm was

caused by the 1985 MOVE bombing, rather than by the city’s

later actions:

Q: Mr. Williams, have you and your

family suffered from this situation?

A: Quite a bit.

Q: How?

A: Well, we’ve had counseling after

1985, my sons, my wife and I, we

sought counseling.

Q: Okay. And is counseling of the

whole family–

A: Well, back then, yes.

Q: And this is due from?

A: From the original fire, right.

Q: Are you still seeking any type of

counseling now?

A: No. Just stressed. 

Trial Tr. at 76 (Mar. 29, 2005). See also Trial Tr. at 17 (Mar.

31, 2005) (“Q: Did you or your family seek any medical
34

treatment because of this incident? A: In the beginning, after

the bomb was dropped . . . .”). Fourth, some plaintiffs were

unclear whether their harm arose from the 1985 MOVE

bombing or from the alleged July 2000 breach, and allege harm

that the city did not cause:

Q: How did your family suffer because

of this incident?

A: Well, my mother and them–she’s

old . . . and she can’t do nothing.

And my father, . . . he died last year

. . . .

Q: Well, let me ask you, is that in

relation to what happened with this

M[OVE] incident?

A: Yeah—no—I mean, yeah, yeah.

Q: Is there anything else that has

happened to them through suffering

because of the M[OVE] incident?

A: She got Old Timers, Altheimer’s

(sic), what do you call it?

Q: Alzheimer’s?

A: Yes.

Trial Tr. at 116–17 (Mar. 30, 2005). Fifth, some plaintiffs gave

vague testimony about “suffering” because of “this incident” or

not being secure because of “this situation.” See, e.g., Trial Tr.

at 109, 155 (Mar. 30, 2005). Defendants contend this testimony

is insufficient to support recovery for emotional distress and
35

could relate either to the 1985 MOVE bombing or the city’s

later actions.

At the same time, some plaintiffs testified they suffered

damages from the city’s actions. One resident testified she

developed high blood pressure, lost weight, and could not sleep

after the July 2000 meeting with Mayor John Street. Trial Tr. at

35–37 (Mar. 31, 2005). Some residents sent the city a letter in

August 2000 indicating they needed stress counseling, and

others testified to the indignity of living in a neighborhood filled

with boarded-up houses. See, e.g., Trial Tr. at 50, 98–99 (Mar.

29, 2005). 

Judge Fullam faced a difficult and sensitive task.

Inheriting a case tried by another judge, he was obliged to sort

through some contradictory rulings and jury instructions. As a

consequence, he did not reach or address defendants’ sufficiency

of the evidence argument. Nor did he analyze the substantive

due process claim because “the issue is not of crucial

importance, since . . . I conclude that most, if not all, of the

damages attributable to the substantive due process violation

would also be recoverable under some of plaintiffs’ other

theories . . . .” Chainey, 2005 WL 3263042, at *4. But as noted

supra, these damages are not recoverable under the Rendell

Letter. Thus, an analysis of the substantive due process claim is

now crucial. 

In addition, the court erroneously relied upon a fictitious

stipulation that “if plaintiffs were entitled to recover damages
36

for ‘emotional distress’ each set of plaintiffs should be awarded

the same amount of money . . . .” Id. at *1. The court held, as

a result, “counsel must be deemed to have stipulated that each

set of plaintiffs was to be awarded the same amount of damages,

if damages were found to be recoverable.” Id. But no such

stipulation exists. Post-briefing, we directed all parties to

identify the record citation for the purported stipulation, or if

written, to provide a copy. In letter brief responses, neither

party was able to identify it. Defendants asserted that “we are

not aware of such a stipulation.” The only stipulation identified

by plaintiffs was that damages for breach of one contract would

be the same regardless of how many contracts were breached.

This is not a class action suit; each plaintiff must prove

he or she is entitled to damages. There are twenty-four sets of

plaintiffs owning separate homes and presenting different and

at times contrasting views of the events in question, including

causation and damages. Even in the class action context, the

ability of each plaintiff to prove damages is often a key issue.

See Newton v. Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith, Inc., 259

F.3d 154, 188 (3d Cir. 2001) (“The ability to calculate the

aggregate amount of damages does not absolve plaintiffs from

the duty to prove each investor was harmed by the defendants’

practice.”). By relying upon the erroneous stipulation, the court

reviewed the sufficiency of the substantive due process award
 It is also likely that the court’s erroneous reliance on “the 16

stipulation” explains the absence of other important analyses.

The court did not reach defendants’ alternative motion for a new

trial based on plaintiffs’ failure to prove that defendants’ actions

caused emotional distress. The court only addressed defendants’

new trial request alleging improper cross-examination of Mayor

John Street. Also, the court noted the lack of “significant

objections to the court’s charge,” but it did not review the

charge for plain error. See Fed. R. Civ. P. 51(d)(2); Alexander

v. Riga, 208 F.3d 419, 426–27 (3d Cir. 2000). 

37

collectively instead of individually.16

Also, the court failed to address waiver with respect to

both plaintiffs and defendants on the sufficiency of the evidence

issue. “[A] defendant’s failure to raise an issue in a Rule

50(a)(2) motion with sufficient specificity to put the plaintiffs

on notice waives the defendant’s right to raise the issue in their

Rule 50(b) motion.” Williams v. Runyon, 130 F.3d 568, 571–72

(3d Cir. 1997). But if a plaintiff does not object to a defendant’s

Rule 50(b) motion “specifically on the grounds that the issue

was waived by an inadequate Rule 50(a) motion, the [plaintiff’s]

right to object on that basis is itself waived.” Id. at 572. 

Post trial, Judge Newcomer, in an August 9, 2005 Order,

directed the parties to supplement their post-trial motions with

briefing on “whether Defendants have properly maintained a
 The Order further recited: “The Parties shall specifically 17

brief this Court on (1) whether Defendants have properly made

their Rule 50 Motion against Plaintiffs’ Breach of Contract

Claims, and if they have not, (2) whether Plaintiffs have waived

their right to object on this ground.” 

38

portion of their Rule 50 Motion.” Both parties briefed this 17

issue for the trial court. But the court’s post-trial opinion neither

decides nor refers to the Rule 50 waiver motions.

For understandable reasons, the District Court did not

address the substantive due process claim, which is now critical

on appeal. Furthermore, the erroneous reliance on a stipulation

never agreed to and the absence of analysis on important

procedural issues weigh in favor of a remand. Accordingly, we

do not reach the merits of the defendants’ contentions, but

instead will remand to the district court for a substantive due

process and Fed. R. Civ. P. 50 waiver analysis and, if the issue

has not been waived, a determination of whether each plaintiff

can establish causation and prove damages. 

 Defendants contend there are more fundamental

problems with the substantive due process verdict. Section 1983

provides remedies for deprivations of rights established by the

Constitution, including substantive due process under the

Fourteenth Amendment. Kaucher v. County of Bucks, 455 F.3d

418, 423 (3d Cir. 2006). “To state a § 1983 claim, a plaintiff

must demonstrate the defendant, acting under color of state law,

deprived [plaintiff] of a right secured by the Constitution or the
39

laws of the United States.” Kaucher, 455 F.3d at 423 (citing

American Mfrs. Mut. Ins. Co. v. Sullivan, 526 U.S. 40, 49–50

(1999)). Accordingly, “[t]he first step in evaluating a section

1983 claim is to ‘identify the exact contours of the underlying

right said to have been violated’ and to determine ‘whether the

plaintiff has alleged a deprivation of a constitutional right at

all.’” Nicini v. Morra, 212 F.3d 798, 806 (3d Cir. 2000) (en

banc) (quoting County of Sacramento v. Lewis, 523 U.S. 833,

841 n.5 (1998)). Furthermore, “the core of the concept [of due

process is] protection against arbitrary action” and “only the

most egregious official conduct can be said to be arbitrary in the

constitutional sense.” Lewis, 523 U.S. at 845–46; see also

United Artists Theatre Circuit, Inc. v. Twp. of Warrington, 316

F.3d 392, 399 (3d Cir. 2003). The Supreme Court has

consistently “spoken of the cognizable level of executive abuse

of power as that which shocks the conscience.” Lewis, 523 U.S.

at 846; see also United Artists, 316 F.3d at 399. 

To establish a substantive due process claim, a plaintiff

must prove the particular interest at issue is protected by the

substantive due process clause and the government’s deprivation

of that protected interest shocks the conscience. United Artists,

316 F.3d at 400–02. For example, we have held “ownership is

a property interest worthy of substantive due process

protection.” DeBlasio v. Zoning Bd. of Adjustment for Twp. of

W. Amwell, 53 F.3d 592, 600 (3d Cir. 1995) overruled on other

grounds by United Artists, 316 F.3d at 401. In other words,

here, plaintiffs must have been deprived of a fundamental
 Defendants argue, inter alia, that the city’s offer of 18

$150,000 for each home, an amount almost double the $80,000

per home the jury awarded as just compensation on the takings

claims, cannot shock the conscience.

40

property interest under the Constitution. See Gikas v.

Washington Sch. Dist., 328 F.3d 731, 736 (3d Cir. 2003). 

As noted, plaintiffs contend the city deprived them of the

peaceful enjoyment of their residences caused by the failure to

repair the houses resulting in poor conditions, the “red-tagging”

of their houses, the declaration of eminent domain, the city’s

determination that the houses were imminently dangerous, and

the undue pressure applied by Mayor John Street to accept the

offer to purchase their houses. The crux of plaintiffs’ claim is

that the city falsely declared their homes imminently dangerous

as a pretext to avoid completing the promised repairs. Because

plaintiffs remained in their houses at all times, defendants

contend no deprivation occurred. In response, plaintiffs claim

that courts can find a deprivation of substantive due process

without an actual property loss. 

Further, defendants contend the relevant conduct after

July 21, 2000 does not “shock the conscience.” Deprivation 18

violates due process only when it “‘shocks the conscience,’”

which encompasses “‘only the most egregious official

conduct.’” United Artists, 316 F.3d at 400 (quoting Lewis, 523

U.S. at 846). Applying the “shocks the conscience” standard

“prevents us from being cast in the role of a ‘zoning board of
41

appeals.’” Id. at 402 (quoting Creative Environments, Inc. v.

Estabrook, 680 F.2d 822, 833 (1st Cir. 1982) (quoting Village

of Belle Terre v. Boraas, 416 U.S. 1, 13 (1974) (Marshall, J.,

dissenting))). While the meaning of the standard varies

depending upon factual context, merely alleging an improper

motive is insufficient, even where the motive is unrelated to the

merits of the underlying decision. Id. at 400. In Eichenlaub v.

Twp. of Indiana, 385 F.3d 274 (3d Cir. 2004), we applied the

shocks the conscience standard in a zoning dispute. Plaintiffs

alleged that the township “maligned and muzzled” them, applied

standards not applied to similar properties, delayed permits and

approvals, improperly increased tax assessments, and pursued

unannounced and unnecessary enforcement actions in denying

zoning requests. Id. at 286. But in affirming the trial court’s

finding that the alleged conduct did not shock the conscience,

we noted there were no allegations of corruption, self-dealing,

bias against an ethnic group, or additional facts that suggested

conscience-shocking behavior. Id.

We do not address these issues at this time because the

trial court did not analyze the substantive due process claim or

the Rule 50 waiver issue and erred in not requiring individual

proof of causation and damages. We will remand for an analysis

of the substantive due process claim and Fed. R. Civ. P. 50

waiver and, if the issue has not been waived, a determination of

whether each plaintiff has adequately proven causation and

damages.
 Defendants referenced three particular instances: 19

THE COURT: In the course of your tenure on City

Council and as Mayor, has there

ever been any event that has been

as traumatic in the City of

Philadelphia as this event at Osage

Avenue?

THE WITNESS: This is way up there, your Honor.

It is way up there.

THE COURT: Can you explain why you don’t

have a better understanding of all

these questions that are being asked

of you?

THE WITNESS: That’s easy to explain.

THE COURT: I wish you would.

THE WITNESS: Because I am Mayor of the fifth

largest city in the country . . . .

[describing other duties as Mayor

of Philadelphia].

THE COURT: Yet, you can’t remember—

THE WITNESS: I just can’t remember the details.

42

C. New Trial Based on Trial Court’s Questioning

of Mayor John Street

In post-trial motions, defendants contended Judge Fullam

should have ordered a new trial based on Judge Newcomer’s

prejudicial questioning of Mayor John Street.19
THE COURT: Let me finish. That’s an impressive

list [of duties of the Mayor].

THE WITNESS: That’s just short or part of the list.

THE COURT: Among your responsibilities, aren’t

you also responsible for the welfare

and the well-being of all of the

citizens of Philadelphia and

wouldn’t that include the people

who live at Osage Avenue.

THE WITNESS: Absolutely, your honor.

THE COURT: So, if that is your answer to my

question, so be it.

THE WITNESS: Can I explain?

THE COURT: I think you have.

Trial Tr. at 86–88 (Mar. 31, 2005).

[THE WITNESS]: Because there are—this is a very

complicated situation that has been

going on . . . for a long, longtime.

The incident that occurred that gave

rise to all of this litigation, occurred

in May of 1985. By the time that I

got to be the Mayor, in January of

2000, it is 15 years later . . . . I am

telling you that I do not agree that

the city was responsible . . . .

43
THE COURT: Just a minute. That’s not what your

counsel has informed the Court or

this jury. Counsel has informed the

Court and the jury unless I’m

grossly in error, that the city has

accepted responsibility for the

damage caused on that occasion.

[DEFENDANTS’ 

ATTORNEY]: Your Honor, the plaintiff counsel is

asking—

THE COURT: Am I correct or incorrect?

[DEFENDANTS’

 ATTORNEY]: I would like to explain that.

THE COURT: Just tell me am I correct or

incorrect, have you not so stated for

the record?

[DEFENDANTS’

 ATTORNEY]: I stated for the record, that the city

had accepted responsibility.

THE COURT: Very well, that’s what I thought I

just said.

[DEFENDANTS’

 ATTORNEY]: Your Honor, I would like to

explain. First of all, that—

THE COURT: No, this is not a time to explain. I

just wanted you to respond, in view

44
of the Mayor’s most recent

testimony here.

[DEFENDANTS’

ATTORNEY]: Then I have an objection to the

question as drawing on the—asking

for a legal conclusion from the

witness.

THE COURT: Overruled. Proceed.

Trial Tr. at 90–91 (Mar. 31, 2005).

THE COURT: My next question is, do you have

any way of knowing, have you ever

conducted a study or do you have

an opinion, as to what it would cost

in the aggregate to fix all of these

houses, put them in the shape that

they were intended to be in?

THE WITNESS: Today, now?

THE COURT: Today.

THE WITNESS: I don’t know.

THE COURT: Did you ever do that, ever develop

a study?

THE WITNESS: There were people who were

responsible for it, trying to figure

out how much it would cost.

THE COURT: I’m asking you.

45
THE WITNESS: Did I ever personally do it? No,

your Honor.

THE COURT: Someone working for you?

THE WITNESS: I think someone working for the

city, did that on numerous

occasions.

THE COURT: You should have some kind of

response to my question, shouldn’t

you?

THE WITNESS: I can get a response, your Honor, I

don’t have that with me. I don’t

have it in front of me. Nobody told

me to bring any documents. People

told me to bring my body.

THE COURT: You are here because you are the

Mayor of the city. You already

testified that it would not be

feasible to perform repairs, that’s

why I’m asking you the question.

Trial Tr. 115–16 (Mar. 31, 2005).

46

Defendants contend these questions demonstrated animosity

toward Mayor John Street and defendants’ counsel, and

suggested to the jury an answer to the ultimate issue before

them. Defendants maintain the trial judge misunderstood the

difference between the acceptance of responsibility for the

original MOVE incident and for the current repairs, contending
47

the jury was either left with the mistaken impression that Mayor

John Street did not accept responsibility for the 1985 MOVE

bombing or that the court believed that the city was legally

responsible for the 2000 repairs.

Judge Fullam characterized these questions by the trial

judge as “expressing surprise” that Mayor John Street could not

recall key occurrences and suggesting the Mayor should have

“been more solicitous of the welfare of his citizens.” Chainey,

2005 WL 3263042, at *6. But as Judge Fullam noted, the trial

judge immediately issued a curative instruction to the jury after

the third exchange. Id. Moreover, Judge Fullam noted the

questions might have influenced only the punitive damages

award against the Mayor, which he overturned. Id. Because the

evidence on the breach of contract claims likely entitled

plaintiffs to judgment as a matter of law, said Judge Fullam, any

error would be harmless. Id.

We review for abuse of discretion. Adedoyin, 369 F.3d

at 342 (citing Fed. R. Evid. 614(b)). Evidence Rule 614(b)

provides that the court may interrogate witnesses. Id. This has

been an important and longstanding practice on the part of trial

judges and should not be discouraged. See Riley v. Goodman,

315 F.2d 232, 234 (3d Cir. 1963) (“We have long abandoned the

adversary system of litigation which regards opposing lawyers

as players and the judge as a mere umpire whose only duty is to

determine whether infractions of the rules of the game have

been committed.”). Of course, a judge must not “abandon his

[or her] proper role and assume that of an advocate.” United
 To support their argument, defendants rely on United States 20

v. Filani, 74 F.3d 378 (2d Cir. 1996), a criminal case. In Filani,

the defendant was the only defense witness and his credibility

was determinative. The trial judge challenged the defendant

several times and interfered repeatedly with the defense

counsel’s cross-examination of witnesses. Id. at 381–82. In this

case, the crux of the claim was a written contract. Furthermore,

Judge Newcomber emphasized to the jury that they alone must

determine the facts. 

48

States v. Green, 544 F.2d 138, 147 (3d Cir. 1976). But the

abuse of discretion standard is a deferential one and in order to

meet the standard the conduct of a trial judge must be “inimical

and partisan, clearly evident and prejudicial.” Riley, 315 F.2d

at 235. In making this determination, “[e]ach case must be

viewed in its own setting.” Id. at 234.

The trial judge instructed the jury that his questioning of

Mayor John Street was directed toward the city’s acceptance of

responsibility for the MOVE bombing itself, not the city’s

responsibility to warranty the rebuilt houses, the central issue in

this case. Furthermore, we fail to see prejudice. See United 20

States v. Beaty, 722 F.2d 1090, 1093 (3d Cir. 1983) (“We must

determine whether [the trial judge’s] conduct was so prejudicial

as to deprive defendant . . . of a fair, as opposed to a perfect,

trial.”) (citations omitted). 

Defendants also contend the trial judge’s questions

affected their ability to disclaim responsibility for the repairs.
49

But insofar as the jury awarded contractual expectation

damages, they were based on the 1988 Agreement and the

expectations of the homeowners, not the testimony of Mayor

John Street. We agree with Judge Fullam that the trial judge’s

questioning did not affect the outcome. Accordingly, we will

affirm the denial of a new trial on this ground.

D. Takings Clause Verdict 

The jury entered a verdict for plaintiffs on their takings

clause claims and awarded $80,000 per plaintiff. The District

Court reversed this verdict, finding no takings occurred because

at all times plaintiffs continued to reside in their homes. Hence,

there was no deprivation. The District Court noted that if a

taking had occurred “plaintiffs would have been entitled to

pursue remedies under the state eminent domain statute . . . .”

Chainey, 2005 WL 3263042, at *4. Plaintiffs contend we

should reinstate both the verdict and the damage award because

they proved defendants deprived them of all economically viable

uses of their property. They contend they have no remedy under

the state eminent domain code because the city’s actions

“poisoned the market” for their homes.

The takings claims are not ripe because plaintiffs never

pursued their takings clause claims in state court. A plaintiff

must first “seek compensation through the procedures the State

has provided for doing so” before asserting a federal takings

claim. Williamson County Reg’l Planning Comm’n v. Hamilton

Bank of Johnson, 473 U.S. 172, 194 (1985). In Williamson,
50

after the plaintiff purchased land to develop residential housing,

defendant-county adopted a zoning ordinance restricting the

permissible density. Plaintiff alleged a taking, claiming he was

deprived of all economically viable use of the land. Id. at

177–83. The Court rejected plaintiff’s claim because, as yet,

there had been no denial of just compensation. Construing the

Fifth Amendment (“[N]or shall private property be taken for

public use, without just compensation.”), the Court explained

the “Fifth Amendment does not proscribe the taking of

property;” instead, it only “proscribes takings without just

compensation.” Id. at 194 & n.13 (emphasis in original).

The Fifth Amendment does not require at the time of the

taking that just compensation be paid, but only that a

“reasonable, certain and adequate provision for obtaining

compensation exist.” Id. at 194 (citations omitted).

Accordingly, if there is an adequate provision for compensation,

“no constitutional violation occurs until just compensation has

been [subsequently] denied.” Id. at 194 n.13. In Williamson,

because Tennessee law provided a procedure by which plaintiff

could obtain just compensation for the alleged diminution in

value of plaintiff’s property, plaintiff’s claim was not ripe. Id.

at 196; see also Stern v. Halligan, 158 F.3d 729, 734 (3d Cir.

1998) (“The plaintiffs have not, so far as the record shows,

sought compensation through state proceedings. Accordingly,

plaintiffs’ takings claim must be rejected.”); cf. County Concrete

Corp. v. Twp. of Roxbury, 442 F.3d 159, 168 (3d Cir. 2006)

(holding takings claim was ripe because plaintiff had exhausted
51

state procedures). As the Supreme Court recently stated: 

there is scant precedent for the litigation in federal

district court of claims that a state agency has

taken property in violation of the Fifth

Amendment’s takings clause. To the contrary,

most of the cases in our takings jurisprudence . .

. came to us on writs of certiorari from state

courts of last resort.

San Remo Hotel, L.P. v. City and County of San Francisco, 545

U.S. 323, 347 (2005); cf. First English Evangelical Lutheran

Church of Glendale v. County of Los Angeles, 482 U.S. 304, 312

n.6 (1987) (distinguishing Williamson because California had no

just compensation procedures).

Pennsylvania provides adequate process for plaintiffs to

obtain just compensation. Pennsylvania’s Eminent Domain

Code provides inverse condemnation procedures through which

a landowner may seek just compensation for the taking of

property. See 26 Pa. Cons. Stat. §§ 308, 502(c), 709. Here,

plaintiffs failed to pursue an inverse condemnation. They

contend they did not need to pursue the takings clause claims in

state court because they were not seeking just compensation.

But in fact that is the basis of their claim—just compensation for

the reduction in fair market value of their homes.

In Cowell v. Palmer Twp., 263 F.3d 286, 290 (3d Cir.

2001), plaintiffs in a federal suit alleged a taking when the

municipality allegedly reduced the property’s value by
52

improperly imposing liens on plaintiffs’ property. We rejected

plaintiffs’ argument that they were not required to file a claim

in state court. Id. at 291. Where there is a procedure for seeking

just compensation, “the property owner cannot claim a violation

of the [Takings] Clause until it has used the procedure and been

denied just compensation.” Williamson, 473 U.S. at 195.

Accordingly, plaintiffs claims are not ripe, and we do not

reach the issue of whether a deprivation occurred. The District

Court correctly acknowledged that if a taking had occurred,

plaintiffs must pursue their claim in state court. As noted, the

District Court held that no taking occurred and set aside the jury

award on the takings claims. We will affirm but on different

grounds. We will set aside the jury award on the ground that

plaintiffs’ takings claims are not ripe for adjudication.

III.

For the reasons set forth, we will affirm in part and

reverse in part the judgment of the District Court. We will

remand on the issues of substantive due process, Fed. R. Civ. P.

50 waiver, and, if the issue has not been waived, whether each

plaintiff proved causation and damages for the substantive due

process claims.