Bela Animal Legal Defense v. City of Des Moines

Opinion

United States Court of Appeals For the Eighth Circuit ___________________________

No. 21-3337 ___________________________

Bela Animal Legal Defense and Rescue; Heather Hildreth; Michael Kurt Fahrney; Jordan Witbracht,

lllllllllllllllllllllPlaintiffs - Appellants,

v.

City of Des Moines; Jeffrey Lester; James Butler; Katharine Massier; Scott Sanders; Des Moines City Council; Animal Rescue League of Iowa, Inc.; Josh Colvin; Tina Updegrove; Jason M. Casini; Whitfield & Eddy, P.L.C.; Jeremy Whitaker,

lllllllllllllllllllllDefendants - Appellees. ____________

Appeal from United States District Court for the Southern District of Iowa - Central ____________

Submitted: May 9, 2023 Filed: May 18, 2023 [Unpublished] ____________

Before COLLOTON, ERICKSON, and KOBES, Circuit Judges. ____________ PER CURIAM.

In this civil action removed from state court, plaintiffs appeal the district court’s1 denial of their motion to remand to state court and subsequent dismissal of the action. On careful de novo review, we conclude that the denial of the motion to remand was appropriate for the reasons stated by the district court.

We reject plaintiffs’ arguments that the district court erroneously relied on state court records from their prior cases without converting the motion to dismiss into one for summary judgment. See Roe v. Nebraska, 861 F.3d 785, 788 (8th Cir. 2017); In re Syntax Corp. Sec. Litig., 95 F.3d 922, 926 (8th Cir. 1996). We also conclude that there is no merit to the suggestion that the district court should have recused itself sua sponte or that there was error in failing to address conclusory allegations of judicial bias. See United States v. Rubashkin, 655 F.3d 849, 858 (8th Cir. 2011). Accordingly, we deny plaintiffs’ appellate motion, and we affirm the judgment. See 8th Cir. R. 47B. ______________________________

1 The Honorable Stephanie M. Rose, Chief Judge, United States District Court for the Southern District of Iowa.

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