Richel v. Village of Angola

—Order unanimously affirmed without costs. Memorandum: Supreme Court properly granted the motion of defendant, Village of Angola (Village),

*865for summary judgment dismissing the complaint. Joseph Richel (plaintiff), an inmate at the Gowanda Correctional Facility, was injured in a fall from a scaffold while assigned to a work crew that was spray painting the Village salt barn. We reject plaintiffs’ contention that the court erred in dismissing the Labor Law § 240 (1) claim. As an inmate, plaintiff was not an employee of the Village or the State of New York when he was injured, and thus he is not…