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Shufelt v. Davis

UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE NINTH CIRCUIT
Oct 17, 2012
486 F. App'x 649 (9th Cir. 2012)

Opinion

No. 11-55474 D.C. No. 5:07-cv-01188-PA-PLA

10-17-2012

GEORGE W. SHUFELT, III, Plaintiff - Appellant, v. LINDA DAVIS, in her official & individual capacity, ISP's Litigation Coordinator; et al., Defendants - Appellees.


NOT FOR PUBLICATION


MEMORANDUM

This disposition is not appropriate for publication and is not precedent except as provided by 9th Cir. R. 36-3.


Appeal from the United States District Court

for the Central District of California

Percy Anderson, District Judge, Presiding

Before: RAWLINSON, MURGUIA, and WATFORD, Circuit Judges.

California state prisoner George W. Shufelt, III, appeals pro se from the district court's summary judgment in his 42 U.S.C. § 1983 action alleging access- to-courts and retaliation claims. We review de novo, Brodheim v. Cry, 584 F.3d 1262, 1267 (9th Cir. 2009), and we affirm.

The district court properly granted summary judgment on Shufelt's access-to-courts claims because Shufelt failed to raise a genuine dispute of material fact as to whether he suffered actual injury as a result of prison officials' alleged conduct. See Lewis v. Casey, 518 U.S. 343, 348-49 (1996) (access-to-courts claim requires actual prejudice to contemplated or existing litigation, such as inability to meet a filing deadline or to present a claim); Alvarez v. Hill, 518 F.3d 1152, 1155 n.1 (9th Cir. 2008) (an inmate's failure to show that a nonfrivolous legal claim has been frustrated is fatal to his access-to-courts claim).

The district court properly granted summary judgment on Shufelt's retaliation claims because Shufelt failed to raise a genuine dispute of material fact as to whether prison officials' alleged actions served legitimate penological goals or whether those actions would have chilled an inmate of ordinary firmness. See Brodheim, 584 F.3d at 1269 (setting forth the elements of a retaliation claim); Pratt v. Rowland, 65 F.3d 802, 806 (9th Cir. 1995) (plaintiff must show that allegedly retaliatory action did not advance legitimate correctional goals).

AFFIRMED.


Summaries of

Shufelt v. Davis

UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE NINTH CIRCUIT
Oct 17, 2012
486 F. App'x 649 (9th Cir. 2012)
Case details for

Shufelt v. Davis

Case Details

Full title:GEORGE W. SHUFELT, III, Plaintiff - Appellant, v. LINDA DAVIS, in her…

Court:UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE NINTH CIRCUIT

Date published: Oct 17, 2012

Citations

486 F. App'x 649 (9th Cir. 2012)