Opinion
Civil Action. No. 06-0370, C/W: 06-00494, 06-0531, 06-0532, 06-1302, 06-1303, 06-1306, 06-1336, 06-1338, 06-1339, Ref: 06-370, 06-494, 06-531, 06-1303, 06-1336 Section: I/1.
August 16, 2006
ORDER AND REASONS
Before the Court is a motion, filed on behalf of defendant, the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development ("HUD"), and against plaintiffs, Loretta Haqq, Ida M. Cambrice, Sheila M. Honore, and Albert O. Honore, Sr., seeking dismissal of plaintiffs' Freedom of Information Act claim for failure to state a claim pursuant to Rule 12(b)(6) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure. Defendant also seeks dismissal of plaintiffs' other claims against HUD pursuant to Rule 12(b)(1), which provides a defense for lack of jurisdiction over the subject matter. In the alternative, HUD asks the Court to require plaintiffs to produce a more definite statement of their claims pursuant to Rule 12(e).
Rec. Doc. No. 31.
Also before the Court is HUD's motion to dismiss plaintiff Karen White, which was filed prior to the consolidation of plaintiffs' claims and which raises identical arguments to those presented in HUD's motion to dismiss the claims of Haqq, Cambrice, Sheila M. Honore, and Albert O. Honore, Sr. For the following reasons, defendant's motions to dismiss are GRANTED.
Rec. Doc. No. 20.
BACKGROUND
Plaintiffs, residents of the Christopher Park Community and members of the Christopher Park Homeowners Association ("CPHA"), have filed suit against HUD, the city of New Orleans ("City"), and the Housing Authority of New Orleans ("HANO"), alleging violations of the Freedom of Information Act ("FOIA"), neglect and abuse, misappropriation of funds, Section 3 hiring policy violations, and Turnkey III violations. Plaintiffs argue that HUD and HANO have refused several formal requests for information regarding the finances of CPHA, which are under the control of a HANO appointed manager. Plaintiffs are proceeding pro se and are seeking, inter alia, $60,000,000 for 35 years of emotional, physical, and financial abuse.Plaintiffs filed their identical claims on January 30, 2006. The City of New Orleans, another defendant in this case, was earlier dismissed as a party to the White, Haqq, and Cambrice actions. The instant motion was filed by HUD on June 14, 2006. Plaintiffs Haqq and White filed opposition to defendant's motion that reiterates the complaints against HUD and does not address the substantive arguments in HUD's motion.
See Rec. Doc. No. 7; Case No. 06-494, Rec. Doc. No. 13; Case No. 06-531, Rec. Doc. No. 13.
Rec. Doc. No. 31.
Rec. Doc. Nos. 22, 23, 35.
LAW AND ANALYSIS
1. Standards of Law A. Motion to Dismiss for Failure to State a ClaimA district court cannot dismiss a complaint, or any part of it, for failure to state a claim upon which relief can be granted "unless it appears beyond doubt that the plaintiff can prove no set of facts in support of his claim which would entitle him to relief." Conley v. Gibson, 355 U.S. 41, 45-46, 78 S. Ct. 99, 102, 2 L. Ed. 2d 80 (1957); Blackburn v. City of Marshall, 42 F.3d 925, 931 (5th Cir. 1995). This Court will not look beyond the factual allegations in the pleadings to determine whether relief should be granted however. See Spivey v. Robertson, 197 F.3d 772, 774 (5th Cir. 1999). In assessing the complaint, a court must accept all well-pleaded facts in the complaint as true and liberally construe all factual allegations in the light most favorable to the plaintiff. Id.; Lowry v. Tex. A M Univ. Sys., 117 F.3d 242, 247 (5th Cir. 1997). "However, `[i]n order to avoid dismissal for failure to state a claim, a plaintiff must plead specific facts, not mere conclusory allegations. . . .'" Guidry v. Bank of LaPlace, 954 F.2d 278, 281 (5th Cir. 1992) (quoting Elliott v. Foufas, 867 F.2d 877, 881 (5th Cir. 1989)) (alteration in original). "[T]he complaint must contain either direct allegations on every material point necessary to sustain a recovery . . . or contain allegations from which an inference fairly may be drawn that evidence on these material points will be introduced at trial." Campbell v. City of San Antonio, 43 F.3d 973, 975 (5th Cir. 1995) (internal quotation and citation omitted). Accordingly, "[d]ismissal is proper if the complaint lacks an allegation regarding a required element necessary to obtain relief." Id. (internal quotation and citation omitted); Blackburn, 42 F.3d at 931 (internal quotation and citation omitted).
B. Motion to Dismiss for Lack of Jurisdiction
A motion to dismiss filed pursuant to Rule 12(b)(1) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure "allow[s] a party to challenge the subject matter jurisdiction of the district court to hear a case." Ramming v. United States, 281 F.3d 158, 161 (5th Cir. 2001). Such a motion may be decided by the court on one of three bases: (1) the complaint alone; (2) the complaint and the undisputed facts in the record; or (3) the complaint, the undisputed facts in the record, and the court's own resolution of disputed facts. Ynclan v. Dep't of the Air Force, 943 F.2d 1388, 1390 (5th Cir. 1991) (citing Williamson v. Tucker, 645 F.2d 404, 413 (5th Cir. 1981)). In a Rule 12(b)(1) motion, the burden of proving that jurisdiction does exist falls to the party asserting jurisdiction. Ramming, 281 F.3d at 161. The motion to dismiss should only be granted "if it appears certain that the plaintiff cannot prove any set of facts in support of his claim that would entitle plaintiff to relief." Id. (citation omitted).
II. FOIA Claim
HUD argues that plaintiffs have failed to exhaust their administrative remedies, creating a deficiency in plaintiffs' FOIA claims that is grounds for a Rule 12(b)(6) dismissal. In particular, HUD alleges that although FOIA does not state that plaintiffs must exhaust their administrative remedies before filing a suit, the Fifth Circuit has held it to require such an exhaustion.
Rec. Doc. No. 31, p. 4.
Rec. Doc. No. 31, p. 4.
FOIA, 5 U.S.C. § 552, was enacted by Congress to provide a statutory right of access to documents in the possession of the federal government in order "to permit access to official information long shielded unnecessarily from public view." EPA v. Mink, 410 U.S. 73, 80, 93 S. Ct. 827, 832, 35 L. Ed. 2d 119, 127 (1973). Pursuant to § 552(a)(4)(B), a plaintiff may enjoin a federal agency from improperly withholding records. In re United States Dep't of Homeland Sec., No. 06-20330, 2006 U.S. App. LEXIS 16976, at *7-8 (5th Cir. May 8, 2006) (quoting United States v. Murdock, 548 F.2d 599, 602 (5th Cir. 1977)). FOIA requires broad disclosure of information. 33 Charles Alan Wright Charles H. Koch, Jr., Federal Practice and Procedure § 8439 ("Any person, without giving a reason, may request any information in an agency's files."). Each federal agency is independently responsible for publishing its own individual rules and requirements necessary for complying with FOIA in the Federal Register. 5 U.S.C. § 552(a)(3)(A). HUD's FOIA rules require a party to submit a written request for copies of records in person or by mail. 24 CFR § 15.103.
FOIA does not explicitly state that administrative remedies must be exhausted before any judicial action can be brought. Looking, however, at the language of § 552(a)(6)(C), which provides, in part, that "[a]ny person making a request to any agency for records under paragraph (1), (2), or (3) of this subsection shall be deemed to have exhausted his administrative remedies with respect to such request if the agency fails to comply with the applicable time limits of this paragraph," the Fifth Circuit has held that the FOIA should be interpreted such that the party bringing the action must show proof of exhaustion of administrative remedies before seeking judicial remedies. Hedley v. United States, 594 F.2d 1043, 1044 (5th Cir. 1979); see also Voinche v. U.S. Dep't of Air Force, 983 F.2d 667, 669 (5th Cir. 1993); Almy v. U.S. Dep't of Justice, 114 F.3d 1191, 1191 (7th Cir. 1997). The Fifth Circuit's holding follows the general principle that exhaustion of administrative remedies is always a prerequisite to judicial remedies. Hedley, 594 F.2d at 1044; Robinett v. U.S. Postal Serv., No. 02-1094, 2002 WL 1728582, at *3 (E.D. La. Jul. 24, 2002) (Vance, J.).
In the instant case, plaintiffs allege violations of the FOIA after "many meetings making formal requests for information concerning . . . operating funds, and invested funds." HUD guidelines state that HUD is required to treat any request for information as a FOIA request, even if it is not stated. 24 CFR § 15.103(d)(1). A written request, however, must still be made . Id. § 15.103(a). Plaintiffs make no mention of any formal FOIA requests made or their pursuit of other administrative remedies. Without an official request for the desired information, a party cannot be deemed to have extinguished administrative remedies. See Dannhausen v. First Nat'l Bank, 538 F. Supp 551, 561 (E.D. Wis. 1982) (finding that, by failing to state what steps plaintiff took to comply with FOIA rules, plaintiff failed to state a FOIA claim).
Rec. Doc. No. 1, p. 6.
Even with this Court's liberal interpretation of plaintiffs' pro se pleadings, see Levitt v. Univ. of Tex. at El Paso, 847 F.2d 221, 224 (5th Cir. 1988), plaintiffs must still set out facts that give rise to a claim for which relief can be granted. In the instant case, plaintiffs have not stated a claim sufficient to survive the defendant's motion with respect to their FOIA claims.
III. Lack of Subject Matter Jurisdiction
HUD argues that plaintiffs' other claims should be dismissed for lack of subject matter jurisdiction against HUD, a federal agency, for failure to make a statement of jurisdiction or state a basis by which jurisdiction can be reasonably inferred.
Rec. Doc. No. 31, p. 5.
The doctrine of sovereign immunity bars lawsuits brought against the United States government, its employees, and its agencies except as consented to by a clear and unequivocal wavier of immunity by Congress. United States v. Mitchell, 445 U.S. 535, 538, 100 S. Ct. 1349, 1351, 63 L. Ed. 2d 607 (1980) (citing United States v. Sherwood, 312 U.S. 584, 586, 61 S. Ct. 767, 769, 85 L. Ed. 1058 (1941)). A wavier of immunity cannot be implied, but instead must be unequivocally expressed. Id. (quoting United States v. King, 395 U.S. 1, 4, 89 S. Ct. 1501, 1504, 23 L. Ed. 2d 52 (1969)). "The burden is on a plaintiff to allege and invoke jurisdiction." McGovern v. Am. Airlines, Inc., 511 F.2d 653, 654 (5th Cir. 1975).
In their complaint, plaintiffs fail to allege any basis for subject matter jurisdiction and fail to cite any acts of Congress that would support subject matter jurisdiction. Plaintiffs do not address the issue of subject matter jurisdiction or sovereign immunity in either their complaint or their responses to defendant's motion. Additionally, after independent research, this Court has been unable to locate any justification for waiving sovereign immunity and permitting claims against HUD to proceed. Accepting all facts in plaintiffs' complaints as true and construing all factual allegations in the light most favorable to plaintiffs, this Court cannot conclude that plaintiffs have alleged sufficient facts to support their claims against HUD.
Finding defendant's arguments with respect to jurisdiction and plaintiffs' FOIA claim persuasive, the Court finds no need to address defendant's alternative motion for a more definite statement pursuant to Rule 12(e).
Accordingly,
IT IS ORDERED that the motion filed by defendant, the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development ("HUD"), and against plaintiffs, Loretta Haqq, Ida M. Cambrice, Sheila M. Honore, and Albert O. Honore, Sr., seeking dismissal of plaintiffs' Freedom Of Information Act claim for failure to state a claim pursuant to Rule 12(b)(6) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure and seeking dismissal of plaintiffs' remaining claims against HUD pursuant to Rule 12(b)(1), is GRANTED. Plaintiffs' claims against HUD are DISMISSED WITHOUT PREJUDICE. IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that the motion filed by HUD seeking dismissal of the claims of plaintiff Karen White is GRANTED, and plaintiff's claims against HUD are DISMISSED WITHOUT PREJUDICE.
Rec. Doc. No. 31.
Rec. Doc. No. 20.