Dinapoli v City of New York

Plaintiff, Dominick DiNapoli, a 62 year old disabled veteran brought about this action against the City of New York challenging the revocation of his firearm license and the failure to accommodate his appeal in violation of the Americans with Disabilities Act. The City moved for summary judgment.

Plaintiff was issued a license to possess a rifle or shotgun in 1970. In 2002, his license was revoked due to an arrest where plaintiff was charged with sending threatening correspondence to employees of the US Department of Agriculture. Additionally, plaintiff was evicted from his apartment and homeless for 2 years and failed to inform the NYPD. Plaintiff appealed the revocation of his license in 2002 but the hearing officer upheld the NYPD’s decision due to plaintiff not timely informing the NYPD that he had become homeless and that the prior arrest, even though the charges were dropped, indicated a lack of good moral character required for firearms possession.

In this action, the Court agreed with the previous decision and felt that since the NYPD’s revocation was not based solely on plaintiff’s disability, the City’s motion for summary judgment was granted on his claim that the City discriminated against him in revoking his license. Also, plaintiff’s allegations that defendant did not accommodate his disabilities was not substantiated. The City made reasonable accommodations for plaintiff by holding the hearing in a wheelchair-accessible facility and offering to reschedule the hearing to accommodate plaintiff’s transportation difficulties.

Accordingly, the Supreme Court granted City’s motion for summary judgment and dismissed action.