Opinion ID: 533006
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Right to Be Informed About and Comment Upon Adverse Evidence

Text: 13 Francis alleges Greiner did not inform him of the testimony of an inmate witness and that Greiner did not inform him of the testimony of the accusing officers. Francis contends that the right to be informed about and to comment upon such evidence was clearly established in 1982. We agree. The applicable law was clearly established by our in banc decision in Sostre v. McGinnis, 442 F.2d 178 (2d Cir.1971), cert. denied, 404 U.S. 1049, 92 S.Ct. 719, 30 L.Ed.2d 740 (1972). In Sostre, [w]e held that, at a minimum, a prisoner is entitled to be 'confronted with the accusation, informed of the evidence against him ... and afforded a reasonable opportunity to explain his actions.'  Nieves v. Oswald, 477 F.2d 1109, 1113 (2d Cir.1973) (quoting Sostre, 442 F.2d at 198); see also Wilkinson v. Skinner, 34 N.Y.2d 53, 58, 356 N.Y.S.2d 15, 21, 312 N.E.2d 158, 161 (1974) (citing Sostre, New York Court of Appeals holds that an inmate's minimum due process rights include the right to know the charges and evidence against him and to explain his action.). 14 Greiner correctly notes that in Wolff v. McDonnell, 418 U.S. 539, 94 S.Ct. 2963, 41 L.Ed.2d 935 (1974), in discussing the procedural due process rights of prisoners, the Supreme Court was silent on the right of an inmate to be informed of the evidence during the course of a disciplinary hearing, holding in that case only that an inmate is entitled to a 'written statement by the factfinders as to the evidence relied on,'  id. at 564, 94 S.Ct. at 2979 (quoting Morrissey v. Brewer, 408 U.S. 471, 489, 92 S.Ct. 2593, 2604, 33 L.Ed.2d 484 (1972)), after the hearing is concluded and sanctions assessed. Nothing in Wolff, however, hints that Sostre's clear holding is to be limited; indeed, the two cases are entirely consistent. In Sostre, quoting the Supreme Court, we made clear the factors that were to be taken into account in deciding  '[w]hether the Constitution requires that a particular right obtain in a specific proceeding[:] [t]he nature of the alleged right involved, the nature of the proceeding, and the possible burden on that proceeding.'  442 F.2d at 196 (quoting Hannah v. Larche, 363 U.S. 420, 80 S.Ct. 1502, 4 L.Ed.2d 1307 (1960)). Here, the nature of the proceeding is the same as it was in Wolff, and the possible burden on that proceeding and the nature of the right involved are essentially the same. Thus, far from eviscerating the holding of Sostre, Wolff actually reinforces it. 15 We recognize, of course, as the Supreme Court did in Wolff, 418 U.S. at 565, 94 S.Ct. at 2979, that institutional safety concerns may provide a sufficient reason for prison officials to decline to inform an inmate of adverse evidence. Here, however, Greiner does not claim Francis was denied knowledge of such evidence for reasons of institutional safety. Contrary to Francis's claims, Greiner contends that, following his standard practice, he either summarized or played a tape recording of the interviews of witnesses and allowed Francis to comment upon those interviews. Presented with Francis's contradictory allegations and with genuine issues of material fact, we conclude that the district court was correct in denying Greiner's motion for judgment on the pleadings or for summary judgment based upon the defense of qualified immunity. 16