Opinion ID: 729159
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Alleged False Arrest and Malicious Prosecution

Text: 10 Plaintiffs contend that the District Court erred in granting defendants' motion to dismiss because the court failed to resolve all issues in their favor, failed to liberally construe the complaint, and misapplied Ohio's savings statute. We agree with defendants that the statute of limitations bars plaintiffs' action under § 1983. 11 Because FED.R.CIV.P. 9(f) makes allegations of time material, 2 a complaint can be dismissed pursuant to Rule 12(b)(6) as barred by the applicable statute of limitations when the statement of a claim affirmatively shows that the plaintiff can prove no set of facts that would entitle him to relief. Ott v. Midland-Ross Corp., 523 F.2d 1367, 1369 (6th Cir.1975).  '[A]lthough Rule 9(f) apparently was designed simply to require a higher level of information in the pleadings, the federal courts have employed the rule as a screening device for time-barred claims....'  Hoover v. Langston Equip. Assocs., Inc., 958 F.2d 742, 744 (6th Cir.1992) (quoting 5 WRIGHT & MILLER, FEDERAL PRACTICE AND PROCEDURE, § 1308, at 695 (West 1990)). 12 The statute of limitations for § 1983 civil rights actions arising in Ohio is contained in OHIO REV.CODE ANN § 2305.10 (Anderson 1995), which requires that actions for bodily injury be filed within two years after their accrual. LRL Properties v. Portage Metro Hous. Auth., 55 F.3d 1097, 1105 (6th Cir.1995). A cause of action accrues under § 1983 when the plaintiff knows or had reason to know of the injury which is the basis of the action. See Dixon v. Anderson, 928 F.2d 212, 215 (6th Cir.1991). However, this Circuit has adopted the view that, at least in cases where the face of the complaint discloses a failure to file within the time allowed, the plaintiff may come forward with allegations explaining why the statute of limitations should be tolled. Hoover, 958 F.2d at 744. 13 Here, the face of plaintiffs' complaint discloses a failure to file their § 1983 action based on the alleged false arrest and malicious prosecution within the time allowed. The latest possible triggering event, according to plaintiffs' factual allegations, occurred on January 16, 1992, which means that plaintiffs would have had to file a complaint on or before January 16, 1994. This matter was commenced on August 23, 1994. Thus, plaintiffs failed to bring their § 1983 cause of action within two years. 14 Plaintiffs assert, however, that these claims are saved under OHIO REV.CODE ANN. § 2305.19 (Anderson 1995), which would provide, if properly invoked, an additional year from the date of the voluntary dismissal of the prior state court proceeding within which the filing of this action would be timely. 3 Four criteria must be met for this provision to apply: (1) the action must have been commenced or attempted to be commenced within the applicable period of limitations; (2) the failure of the plaintiff in the action was otherwise than upon the merits; (3) at the date of such failure, the time limit for commencing the action had expired; and (4) the plaintiff refiled the action within one year of such failure. Harris v. City of Canton, 725 F.2d 371, 375 (6th Cir.1984). Furthermore, this provision applies only if the original action and the subsequent action are substantially the same. See Children's Hosp. v. Ohio Dep't of Pub. Welfare, 433 N.E.2d 187, 189 (Ohio 1982). The actions are not substantially the same ... when the parties in the original action and those in the new action are different. Id. 15 Focusing on the false arrest and malicious prosecution allegations, the complaint shows that the earliest possible triggering event occurred on August 28, 1991, when Garcia was charged with cruelty to animals. The statute of limitations would not have expired on an action based on this incident until two years later, on August 28, 1993. The entire state court proceeding was dismissed on August 23, 1993, five days prior to the earliest possible date of expiration of the § 1983 statute of limitations. 4 Therefore, at the time of the dismissal of the state action, the statute of limitations on Garcia's federal cause of action based on the alleged false arrest and malicious prosecution could not have expired. In addition, the federal and state actions involved different defendants and plaintiffs. 5 Accordingly, Ohio's savings provision does not apply. 16 In sum, plaintiffs' § 1983 cause of action based on the false charge and malicious prosecution allegations is barred by the statute of limitations, and plaintiffs have failed to demonstrate any tolling of the limitation period. 17