Larson v. Runnels

Full title: HARVEY EUGENE LARSON, Plaintiff, v. WARDEN RUNNELS, et al., Defendants

Court: United States District Court, E.D. California

Date published: May 1, 2007

No. CIV S-06-1985 LKK KJM P (E.D. Cal. May. 1, 2007)

Opinion

No. CIV S-06-1985 LKK KJM P.

May 1, 2007

ORDER

KIMBERLY MUELLER, Magistrate Judge

Plaintiff is a state prisoner proceeding pro se. Plaintiff seeks relief pursuant to 42 U.S.C. § 1983 and has requested leave to proceed in forma pauperis pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1915. This proceeding was referred to this court by Local Rule 72-302 pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 636(b)(1).

Plaintiff has submitted a declaration that makes the showing required by 28 U.S.C. § 1915(a). Accordingly, the request to proceed in forma pauperis will be granted.

Plaintiff is required to pay the statutory filing fee of $350.00 for this action. 28 U.S.C. §§ 1914(a), 1915(b)(1). Plaintiff has been without funds for six months and is currently without funds. Accordingly, the court will not assess an initial partial filing fee. 28 U.S.C. § 1915(b)(1). Plaintiff is obligated to make monthly payments of twenty percent of the preceding month's income credited to plaintiff's prison trust account. These payments shall be collected and forwarded by the appropriate agency to the Clerk of the Court each time the amount in plaintiff's account exceeds $10.00, until the filing fee is paid in full. 28 U.S.C. § 1915(b)(2).

The court is required to screen complaints brought by prisoners seeking relief against a governmental entity or officer or employee of a governmental entity. 28 U.S.C. § 1915A(a). The court must dismiss a complaint or portion thereof if the prisoner has raised claims that are legally "frivolous or malicious," that fail to state a claim upon which relief may be granted, or that seek monetary relief from a defendant who is immune from such relief. 28 U.S.C. § 1915A(b)(1), (2).

A claim is legally frivolous when it lacks an arguable basis either in law or in fact. Neitzke v. Williams, 490 U.S. 319, 325 (1989); Franklin v. Murphy, 745 F.2d 1221, 1227-28 (9th Cir. 1984). The court may, therefore, dismiss a claim as frivolous where it is based on an indisputably meritless legal theory or where the factual contentions are clearly baseless. Neitzke, 490 U.S. at 327. The critical inquiry is whether a constitutional claim, however inartfully pleaded, has an arguable legal and factual basis. See Jackson v. Arizona, 885 F.2d 639, 640 (9th Cir. 1989); Franklin, 745 F.2d at 1227.

A complaint, or portion thereof, should only be dismissed for failure to state a claim upon which relief may be granted if it appears beyond doubt that plaintiff can prove no set of facts in support of the claim or claims that would entitle him to relief.Hishon v. King Spalding, 467 U.S. 69, 73 (1984) (citing Conley v. Gibson, 355 U.S. 41, 45-46 (1957)); Palmer v. Roosevelt Lake Log Owners Ass'n, 651 F.2d 1289, 1294 (9th Cir. 1981). In reviewing a complaint under this standard, the court must accept as true the allegations of the complaint in question, Hospital Bldg. Co. v. Rex Hosp. Trustees, 425 U.S. 738, 740 (1976), construe the pleading in the light most favorable to the plaintiff, and resolve all doubts in the plaintiff's favor,Jenkins v. McKeithen, 395 U.S. 411, 421 (1969).

The court finds the complaint to be too vague to determine whether the current action is frivolous or fails to state a claim for relief. The court has determined that the complaint does not contain a short and plain statement as required by Fed.R.Civ.P. 8(a)(2). Although the Federal Rules adopt a flexible pleading policy, a complaint must give fair notice and state the elements of the claim plainly and succinctly. Jones v. Community Redev. Agency, 733 F.2d 646, 649 (9th Cir. 1984). Plaintiff must allege with at least some degree of particularity overt acts which defendants engaged in that support plaintiff's claim. Id. Because plaintiff has failed to comply with the requirements of Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 8(a)(2), the complaint must be dismissed. The court will, however, grant leave to file an amended complaint.

Notwithstanding the foregoing, the court surmises that plaintiff may have a complaint with regard to the processing of his mail. Although allegations of interference with mail may be sufficient to state a claim for violation of the First Amendment, see Antonelli v. Sheahan, 81 F.3d 1422, 1432 (7th Cir. 1996), plaintiff fails to allege such interference with sufficient specificity.

If plaintiff chooses to amend the complaint, plaintiff must demonstrate how the conditions complained of have resulted in a deprivation of plaintiff's constitutional rights. See Ellis v. Cassidy, 625 F.2d 227 (9th Cir. 1980). Also, the complaint must allege in specific terms how each named defendant is involved. There can be no liability under 42 U.S.C. § 1983 unless there is some affirmative link or connection between a defendant's actions and the claimed deprivation. Rizzo v. Goode, 423 U.S. 362 (1976);May v. Enomoto, 633 F.2d 164, 167 (9th Cir. 1980); Johnson v. Duffy, 588 F.2d 740, 743 (9th Cir. 1978). Furthermore, vague and conclusory allegations of official participation in civil rights violations are not sufficient. Ivey v. Board of Regents, 673 F.2d 266, 268 (9th Cir. 1982).

In accordance with the above, IT IS HEREBY ORDERED that:

1. Plaintiff's complaint is dismissed.

2. Plaintiff is granted thirty days from the date of service of this order to file an amended complaint that complies with the requirements of the Civil Rights Act, the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, the Local Rules of Practice and is fully legible; the amended complaint must bear the docket number assigned this case and must be labeled "Amended Complaint"; plaintiff must file an original and two copies of the amended complaint; failure to file an amended complaint in accordance with this order will result in a recommendation that this action be dismissed.

3. The Clerk of Court is directed to send plaintiff the form for use in filing civil rights actions in this district.

INSTRUCTIONS FOR FILING A COMPLAINT BY A PRISONER UNDER THE CIVIL RIGHTS STATUTE, 42 U.S.C. § 1983

I. Scope of Section 1983

An action under Section 1983 is available to challenge violations of the federal constitution or federal statutes which affect the conditions of your confinement or your treatment by government employees while in custody. Although you may ask for and obtain money damages or an injunction under Section 1983, the court cannot issue an order which could affect the length of your sentence in any way. Those types of claims may only be raised through a petition for a writ of habeas corpus. If you want to file a petition for a writ of habeas corpus, you must do so on the correct forms, which are provided by the Clerk of the Court on request.

II. Packet

Three copies of a complaint form are attached to this instruction sheet. In addition, included in the packet are an information sheet for prisoners seeking leave to proceed in forma pauperis (without prepayment of filing fees) and two copies of an application to proceed in forma pauperis. To start an action, the following items must be included:

1. An original and one copy of the complaint. You must keep an additional copy of the complaint for your own records. All copies of the complaint must be identical to the original.

2. Either a completed in forma pauperis application or the $350.00 filing fee.

III. Complaint Form

Your complaint must be legibly handwritten or typewritten. You must sign each copy of the complaint and declare under penalty of perjury that the facts stated in the complaint are correct. If you need additional space to answer a question, you should attach an additional blank page. You are required to state facts in support of each claim. The complaint should refer to the provision of the federal constitution or federal law on which you are relying, but should not contain legal arguments or citations.

IV. Venue

Your complaint should be brought in the Sacramento Division of this court only if one or more of the named defendants is located in the Sacramento Division of the Eastern District of California or if your claim arose in the Sacramento Division of this district. The Sacramento Division of the Eastern District of California is comprised of the following counties: Alpine, Amador, Butte, Colusa, El Dorado, Glenn, Lassen, Modoc, Mono, Nevada, Placer, Plumas, Sacramento, San Joaquin, Shasta, Sierra, Siskiyou, Solano, Sutter, Tehama, Trinity, Yolo, and Yuba.

Your complaint should be brought in the Fresno Division of this court only if one or more of the named defendants is located in the Fresno Division of the Eastern District of California or if your claim arose in the Fresno Division of this district. The Fresno Division of the Eastern District of California is comprised of the following counties: Fresno, Calaveras, Inyo, Kern, Kings, Madera, Mariposa, Merced, Stanislaus, Tulare, and Tuolumne.

V. Mailing the Forms

When all of the forms described in part II are completed, if you are bringing your case in the Sacramento Division, mail the original and copies to:

Clerk of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of California 501 I Street, Room 4-400 Sacramento, California 95814

If you are bringing your case in the Fresno Division, mail the original and copies to:

Clerk of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of California 2500 Tulare Street Fresno, California 93721

VI. After the Complaint is Filed

Once the complaint is filed, the court will review it and decide whether to order service of the complaint on the defendants. You will be sent a copy of any order the court issues. Because of the large volume of cases filed by inmates pending in this court, the court WILL NOT ANSWER INQUIRIES concerning the status of your complaint.

You must keep the Clerk of the Court informed of any change of address. If you fail to do so, the Clerk cannot be responsible for your failure to receive Court orders. This could result in the dismissal of your suit.

The Clerk of the Court does not provide copies of documents to litigants, Copies of any volume may be obtained from Attorney's Diversified Services (ADS): 1424 21st Street, Sacramento, CA 95814. Their phone number is 916-441-4396. We will, however, provide copies of dockets at the rate of fifty cents ($0.50) per page. Checks in the exact amount are made payable to "Clerk, USDC." In forma pauperis status does not waive the cost of copies. Therefore you must keep copies of all documents submitted to the court for your own records. FORM TO BE USED BY A PRISONER IN FILING A COMPLAINT UNDER THE CIVIL RIGHTS ACT, 42 U.S.C. § 1983 facts FORM TO BE USED BY A PRISONER IN FILING A COMPLAINT UNDER THE CIVIL RIGHTS ACT, 42 U.S.C. § 1983 facts FORM TO BE USED BY A PRISONER IN FILING A COMPLAINT UNDER THE CIVIL RIGHTS ACT, 42 U.S.C. § 1983 facts

IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE EASTERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA _________________________________ __________________________ (Name of Plaintiff) (Case Number) _________________________________ (Address of Plaintiff) _________________________________ vs. COMPLAINT _________________________________ _________________________________ _________________________________ (Names of Defendants) I. Previous Lawsuits: A. Have you brought any other lawsuits while a prisoner: Yes No B. If your answer to A is yes, how many?: __________ Describe the lawsuit in the space below. (If there is more than one lawsuit, describe the additional lawsuits on another piece of paper using the same outline.) 1. Parties to this previous lawsuit: Plaintiff _____________________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________ Defendants ____________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 2. Court (if Federal Court, give name of District; if State Court, give name of County) _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ 3. Docket Number _________________________________________________________________________________ 4. Name of judge to whom case was assigned _______________________________________________________ 5. Disposition (For example: Was the case dismissed? Was it appealed? Is it still pending?) _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 6. Approximate date of filing lawsuit ____________________________________________________________ 7. Approximate date of disposition _______________________________________________________________ II. Exhaustion of Administrative Remedies A. Is there a grievance procedure available at your institution? Yes No B. Have you filed a grievance concerning the facts relating to this complaint? Yes No If your answer is no, explain why not _______________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________ C. Is the grievance process completed? Yes No III. Defendants (In Item A below, place the full name of the defendant in the first blank, his/her official position in the second blank, and his/her place of employment in the third blank. Use item B for the names, positions and places of employment of any additional defendants.) A. Defendant _________________________ is employed as ________________________________________________ ___________________________________________ at ______________________________________________________ B. Additional defendants ____________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ IV. Statement of Claim (State here as briefly as possible the of your case. Describe how each defendant is involved, including dates and places. Do not give any legal arguments or cite any cases or statutes. Attach extra sheets if necessary.) ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________ V. Relief. (State briefly exactly what you want the court to do for you. Make no legal arguments. Cite no cases or statutes.) ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________ Signed this _____ day of ____________________, 20__. _______________________________________________________________________ (Signature of Plaintiff) I declare under penalty of perjury that the foregoing is true and correct. _______________ _______________________________________________________________________ (Date) (Signature of Plaintiff) IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE EASTERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA _________________________________ __________________________ (Name of Plaintiff) (Case Number) _________________________________ (Address of Plaintiff) _________________________________ vs. COMPLAINT _________________________________ _________________________________ _________________________________ (Names of Defendants) I. Previous Lawsuits: A. Have you brought any other lawsuits while a prisoner: Yes No B. If your answer to A is yes, how many?: __________ Describe the lawsuit in the space below. (If there is more than one lawsuit, describe the additional lawsuits on another piece of paper using the same outline.) 1. Parties to this previous lawsuit: Plaintiff _____________________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________ Defendants ____________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 2. Court (if Federal Court, give name of District; if State Court, give name of County) _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ 3. Docket Number _________________________________________________________________________________ 4. Name of judge to whom case was assigned _______________________________________________________ 5. Disposition (For example: Was the case dismissed? Was it appealed? Is it still pending?) _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 6. Approximate date of filing lawsuit ____________________________________________________________ 7. Approximate date of disposition _______________________________________________________________ II. Exhaustion of Administrative Remedies A. Is there a grievance procedure available at your institution? Yes No B. Have you filed a grievance concerning the facts relating to this complaint? Yes No If your answer is no, explain why not _______________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________ C. Is the grievance process completed? Yes No III. Defendants (In Item A below, place the full name of the defendant in the first blank, his/her official position in the second blank, and his/her place of employment in the third blank. Use item B for the names, positions and places of employment of any additional defendants.) A. Defendant _________________________ is employed as _______________________________________________ _________________________________________ at ________________________________________________________ B. Additional defendants ____________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ IV. Statement of Claim (State here as briefly as possible the of your case. Describe how each defendant is involved, including dates and places. Do not give any legal arguments or cite any cases or statutes. Attach extra sheets if necessary.) ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________ V. Relief. (State briefly exactly what you want the court to do for you. Make no legal arguments. Cite no cases or statutes.) ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________ Signed this _____ day of ____________________, 20__. _______________________________________________________________________ (Signature of Plaintiff) I declare under penalty of perjury that the foregoing is true and correct. ________________ _______________________________________________________________________ (Date) (Signature of Plaintiff) IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE EASTERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA _________________________________ __________________________ (Name of Plaintiff) (Case Number) _________________________________ (Address of Plaintiff) _________________________________ vs. COMPLAINT _________________________________ _________________________________ _________________________________ (Names of Defendants) I. Previous Lawsuits: A. Have you brought any other lawsuits while a prisoner: Yes No B. If your answer to A is yes, how many?: __________ Describe the lawsuit in the space below. (If there is more than one lawsuit, describe the additional lawsuits on another piece of paper using the same outline.) 1. Parties to this previous lawsuit: Plaintiff _____________________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________ Defendants ____________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 2. Court (if Federal Court, give name of District; if State Court, give name of County) _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ 3. Docket Number _________________________________________________________________________________ 4. Name of judge to whom case was assigned _______________________________________________________ 5. Disposition (For example: Was the case dismissed? Was it appealed? Is it still pending?) _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 6. Approximate date of filing lawsuit ____________________________________________________________ 7. Approximate date of disposition _______________________________________________________________ II. Exhaustion of Administrative Remedies A. Is there a grievance procedure available at your institution? Yes No B. Have you filed a grievance concerning the facts relating to this complaint? Yes No If your answer is no, explain why not _______________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________ C. Is the grievance process completed? Yes No III. Defendants (In Item A below, place the full name of the defendant in the first blank, his/her official position in the second blank, and his/her place of employment in the third blank. Use item B for the names, positions and places of employment of any additional defendants.) A. Defendant _________________________ is employed as ____________________________________________ __________________________________________ at ______________________________________________________ B. Additional defendants ____________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ IV. Statement of Claim (State here as briefly as possible the of your case. Describe how each defendant is involved, including dates and places. Do not give any legal arguments or cite any cases or statutes. Attach extra sheets if necessary.) ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________ V. Relief. (State briefly exactly what you want the court to do for you. Make no legal arguments. Cite no cases or statutes.) ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________ Signed this _____ day of ____________________, 20__. _______________________________________________________________________ (Signature of Plaintiff) I declare under penalty of perjury that the foregoing is true and correct. ________________ _______________________________________________________________________ (Date) (Signature of Plaintiff)

INFORMATION TO PRISONERS SEEKING LEAVE TO PROCEED WITH A CIVIL ACTION IN FEDERAL COURT IN FORMA PAUPERIS PURSUANT TO 28 U.S.C. § 1915

In accordance with 1996 amendments to the in forma pauperis (IFP) statute, as a prisoner you will be obligated to pay the full filing fee of $350.00 for a civil action. If you later file an appeal, the filing fee for the appeal is $455.00.

If you have the money to pay the filing fee, you should send a cashier's check or money order to the court with your complaint, petition, or notice of appeal and, if appropriate, your IFP application.

If you do not have enough money to pay the full filing fee when your action is filed, you can file the action without prepaying the filing fee. However, the court will assess an initial partial filing fee at the time your action is filed. The initial partial filing fee will be equal to 20 percent of the average monthly deposits to your prison or jail account for the six months immediately preceding the filing of the lawsuit, or 20 percent of the average monthly balance in your prison or jail account for that same six month period, whichever is greater. The court will order the agency that has custody of you to take that initial partial filing fee out of your prison or jail account as soon as funds are available and to forward the money to the court.

After the initial partial filing fee has been paid, you will owe the balance of the filing fee. Until the amount of the filing fee is paid in full, each month you will owe 20 percent of your preceding month's income toward the balance. The agency that has custody of you will collect that money and send payments to the court any time the amount in the account exceeds $10.00. The balance of the filing fee may be collected even if the action is later dismissed, summary judgment is granted against you or you fail to prevail at trial.

In order to proceed with an action in forma pauperis you must complete the attached form and return it to the court with your complaint. You must have a prison or jail official complete the Certification section on the back of the form and attach to the form a certified copy of your prison or jail account statement for the last six months. If you submit an incomplete form or do not submit a prison or jail account statement with the form, your request to proceed in forma pauperis will be denied.

Regardless of whether some or all of the filing fee has been paid, the court is required to screen your complaint and to dismiss the complaint if (1) your allegation of poverty is untrue; (2) the action is frivolous or malicious; (3) your complaint does not state a claim on which relief can be granted; or (4) you sue a defendant for money damages and that defendant is immune from liability for money damages.

If you file more than three actions or appeals while you are a prisoner which are dismissed as frivolous or malicious or for failure to state a claim on which relief can be granted, then you will be prohibited from bringing any other actions in forma pauperis unless you are in imminent danger of serious physical injury. UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT APPLICATION TO PROCEED IN FORMA PAUPERIS BY A PRISONER CASE NUMBER: 28 U.S.C. § 1915 Have the institution fill out the Certificate portion of this application and attach a certified copy of your prison trust account statement showing transactions for the past six months. and 28 U.S.C. § 1915 CERTIFICATE

EASTERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA Plaintiff vs. Defendant I, ________________________________________, declare that I am the plaintiff in the above-entitled proceeding; that, in support of my request to proceed without prepayment of fees under , I declare that I am unable to pay the fees for these proceedings or give security therefor and that I am entitled to the relief sought in the complaint. In support of this application, I answer the following questions under penalty of perjury: 1. Are you currently incarcerated: Yes No (If "No" DO NOT USE THIS FORM) If "Yes" state the place of your incarceration. _____________________________________________ 2. Are you currently employed? Yes No a. If the answer is "Yes" state the amount of your pay. b. If the answer is "No" state the date of your last employment, the amount of your take-home salary or wages and pay period, and the name and address of your last employer. 3. In the past twelve months have you received any money from any of the following sources? a. Business, profession or other self-employment Yes No b. Rent payments, interest or dividends Yes No c. Pensions, annuities or life insurance payments Yes No d. Disability or workers compensation payments Yes No e. Gifts or inheritances Yes No f. Any other sources Yes No If the answer to any of the above is "Yes" describe by that item each source of money and state the amount received what you expect you will continue to receive. Please attach an additional sheet if necessary. 4. Do you have cash or checking or savings accounts? Yes No If "Yes" state the total amount: ___________________ 5. Do you own any real estate, stocks, bonds, securities, other financial instruments, automobiles or other valuable property? Yes No If "Yes" describe the property and state its value. _____________________________________________ 6. Do you have any other assets? Yes No If "Yes" list the asset(s) and state the value of each asset listed. 7. List the persons who are dependent on you for support, state your relationship to each person and indicate how much you contribute to their support. I hereby authorize the agency having custody of me to collect from my trust account and forward to the Clerk of the United States District Court payments in accordance with (b)(2). I declare under penalty of perjury that the above information is true and correct. ________________________ ______________________________________________________________________ DATE SIGNATURE OF APPLICANT (To be completed by the institution of incarceration) I certify that the applicant named herein has the sum of $__________ on account to his/her credit at ________________________________________ (name of institution). I further certify that during the past six months the applicant's average monthly balance was $__________. I further certify that during the past six months the average of monthly deposits to the applicant's account was $__________. (Please attach a certified copy of the applicant's trust account statement showing transactions for the past six months.) ________________________ ______________________________________________________________________ DATE SIGNATURE OF AUTHORIZED OFFICER