Stubblefield Construction Co. v. City of San Bernardino

This is an action for violation of plaintiffs’ civil rights under 42 United States Code section 1983 . The action arose out of defendant city’s handling of plaintiffs’ application to build apartment buildings on a 29.3-acre parcel in the northeastern foothills of the city. Plaintiffs contend that the city violated their substantive due process and equal protection rights by allegedly deliberately inflicting harm “when [city officials] irrationally and arbitrarily manipulated City processes and procedures, for no legitimate reason, so as to prevent Stubblefield from building a development Project it was unquestionably entitled to build.”

Procedural History

On April 18, 1988, plaintiffs Stubblefield Construction Company and Stubblefield Properties (herein plaintiffs or Stubblefield) filed a petition for writ of mandate and complaint for declaratory relief, preliminary and permanent injunctions and damages against the City of San Bernardino (the City), the members of its common council, the mayor, and Steve Marks, a former councilman (case No. 242998; herein Stubblefield I). Eleven causes of action were alleged, including an eighth cause of action for deprivation of civil…