◆ SpookStack

74 Nos. 77-1698, 77-1210 & 77-1870 IX. DISMISSAL OF BREWER’S DIVERSITY COUNTS The state defendants challenge the appealability of the trial court’s dismissal of Counts 15, 16, and 17 of the amended complaint. Plaintiff Verlina Brewer originally filed a separate complaint against the state defendants, including the City of Chicago and Cook County, Illinois. The complaint alleged common law torts of assault and battery, false imprisonment, and malicious prosecution. Jurisdiction was based on diversity of citizenship. 28 U.S.C. § 1822. In the consolidated amended complaint the three counts of the original complaint became Counts 15, 16, and 17, respectively. : Prior to trial, state defendants moved to dismiss the Brewer counts for lack of diversity or, in the alternative, to sever them for trial. The district court granted severance, and took under advisement the dismissal aspect of the motion. At the conclusion of trial and after the state defendants had again moved to dismiss the Brewer counts, the district court on June 30, 1977 filed an order which read in pertinent part: For the reasons set forth in the State defendants’ original motion, their recent motion and in the arguments of counsel for the State defendants and based upon the entire record of this case, the court finds a said counts 15, 16 and 17 should be dis- missed. The actual dismissal order was entered July 1, 1977. Prior to the events just described, the district court on April 15, 1977 granted motions for directed verdicts in favor of all defendants except the seven shooters. Later, on June 20, 1977, the court granted directed verdicts in favor of these seven and entered judgment for all the defendants on the basis of the directed verdicts. The court’s order reads: continued . reasonable expenses, including attorney’s fees, caused by the failure, unless the court finds that the failure was sub- stantially justified or that other circumstances make an award of expenses unjust.