Opinion ID: 775758
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 4

Heading: Refusal of New Trial on Damages

Text: 35 In his charge, the district judge instructed the jury that if it found defendants had violated Shain's constitutional rights but he had not suffered a compensable injury, it should award nominal damages not to exceed one dollar. The judge also instructed the jury that he previously had found defendants' strip search policy to be unconstitutional. When the jury returned its verdict, the court asked what compensatory and punitive damages the jury had awarded on the strip search claim and the foreman responded Zero. The judge did not ask what nominal damages the jury had awarded. Plaintiff then moved to set aside the verdict and for a new trial, and the court denied both motions. However, the court did enter a nominal damages judgment of one dollar. On appeal, Shain argues only that the court should have granted him a new trial on damages. 36 We review a district court's decision not to grant a new trial on damages solely for abuse of discretion. See Amato v. City of Saratoga Springs, 170 F.3d 311, 314 (2d Cir. 1999). The district court should not grant such a motion unless [it] is convinced that the jury has reached a seriously erroneous result or that the verdict is a miscarriage of justice. Id. (internal quotation marks omitted). Shain cannot meet this high standard. He produced no objective medical or psychological testimony linking a psychological or physical injury to the strip search, and although he and his former girl friend testified that he was emotionally traumatized by the search, the jury was not required to credit this testimony. See id. at 314-15. Nor was it error for the court to correct the jury's verdict by entering a nominal damages award of one dollar since nominal damages are appropriate for the violation of a constitutional right. See Dawes v. Walker, 239 F.3d 489, 497 (2d Cir. 2001) (collecting cases holding that it is error not to award nominal damages where a constitutional violation is established).