Cody C. Dantin v. Michele Dauzat

CourtDistrict Court, W.D. Louisiana
DecidedMay 12, 2026
Docket5:25-cv-00580
StatusUnknown

This text of Cody C. Dantin v. Michele Dauzat (Cody C. Dantin v. Michele Dauzat) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, W.D. Louisiana primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Cody C. Dantin v. Michele Dauzat, (W.D. La. 2026).

Opinion

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT WESTERN DISTRICT OF LOUISIANA SHREVEPORT DIVISION

CODY C. DANTIN CIV. ACTION NO. 5:25-00580 SEC P

VERSUS JUDGE S. MAURICE HICKS, JR.

MICHELE DAUZAT MAG. JUDGE KAYLA D. MCCLUSKY

REPORT AND RECOMMENDATION

Before the undersigned Magistrate Judge, on reference from the District Court, is a Rule 12(b)(6) motion to dismiss or, in the alternative, motion to strike [doc. # 65] filed by Defendants Captain Davis and Major Nathaniel Gillentine. The motions are unopposed. For reasons detailed below, IT IS RECOMMENED that the motion to dismiss be GRANTED IN PART and DENIED IN PART. IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that the motion to strike be DENIED. Background Plaintiff Cody Dantin (“Dantin”) is an inmate at David Wade Correctional Center (“DWCC”), who is proceeding in forma pauperis and representing himself in this matter. He filed the instant civil rights complaint pursuant to 42 U.S.C. § 1983 on April 21, 2025, against various Defendants, including, as pertinent here, two officers at the DWCC: Captain Davis (“Davis”) and Major Nathaniel Gillentine (“Gillentine”). On July 23, 2025, pursuant to an initial review of the record, as reflected in the associated report and recommendation (“R&R”), the Court dismissed all of Dantin’s claims against myriad Defendants sustaining only his Eighth Amendment excessive force claims against Davis and Gillentine. See Aug. 26, 2025 Judgment and July 23, 2025 R&R [doc. #s 44 & 36, respectively]. The Court ordered service on Davis and Gillentine, which the U.S. Marshal Service perfected on September 15, 2025. (Service Order and Return of Service [doc. #s 37 & 45, respectively]). Over three months later, on December 26, 2025, Davis and Gillentine (collectively, “Defendants”) filed the instant Rule 12(b)(6) motion to dismiss Dantin’s amended complaint for failure to state a claim upon which relief can be granted on the basis of qualified immunity. Also, embedded within their motion, Defendants alternatively urged the Court to strike

immaterial and prejudicial allegations from the Amended Complaint pursuant to Rule 12(f) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure. Dantin did not file a response to the motion and the time to do so has passed. See Notice of Motion Setting [doc. # 66]. Accordingly, the motion is deemed unopposed. Id. The matter is ripe. Analysis I. Motion to Dismiss a) Rule 12(b)(6) Standard The Federal Rules of Civil Procedure sanction dismissal where the plaintiff fails “to state a claim upon which relief can be granted.” FED. R. CIV. P. 12(b)(6). A pleading states a claim for relief when, inter alia, it contains a “short and plain statement . . . showing that the pleader is

entitled to relief . . .” FED. R. CIV. P. 8(a)(2). To withstand a motion to dismiss, “a complaint must contain sufficient factual matter, accepted as true, to “state a claim to relief that is plausible on its face.” Ashcroft v. Iqbal, 556 U.S. 662, 667-668 (2009) (citing Bell Atl. Corp. v. Twombly, 550 U.S. 544, 555 (2007)). A claim is facially plausible when it contains sufficient factual content for the court “to draw the reasonable inference that the defendant is liable for the misconduct alleged.” Id. Plausibility does not equate to possibility or probability; it lies somewhere in between. Iqbal, 556 U.S. at 2 556. Plausibility simply calls for enough factual allegations to raise a reasonable expectation that discovery will reveal evidence to support the elements of the claim. See Twombly, 550 U.S. at 556. Assessing whether a complaint states a plausible claim for relief is a “context-specific task that requires the reviewing court to draw on its judicial experience and common sense.” Iqbal, 556 U.S. at 679 (citation omitted). A well-pleaded complaint may proceed even if it strikes the court that actual proof of the asserted facts is improbable, and that recovery is unlikely. Twombly, 550 U.S. at 556. Although the court must accept as true all factual allegations set forth in the complaint, the same presumption does not extend to legal conclusions. Iqbal, 556 U.S. at 678. A pleading

comprised of “labels and conclusions” or “a formulaic recitation of the elements of a cause of action” does not satisfy Rule 8. Id. Moreover, Rule 12(b)(6) authorizes courts to dismiss a claim on the basis of a dispositive issue of law, notwithstanding that it otherwise might be well- pleaded. See Neitzke v. Williams, 490 U.S. 319, 326-327 (1989) (citations omitted). Nevertheless, “[t]he notice pleading requirements of Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 8 and case law do not require an inordinate amount of detail or precision.” Gilbert v. Outback Steakhouse of Florida Inc., 295 Fed. App’x. 710, 713 (5th Cir. 2008) (citations and internal quotation marks omitted). Further, “a complaint need not pin plaintiff’s claim for relief to a precise legal theory. Rule 8(a)(2) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure generally requires only a plausible ‘short and plain’ statement of the plaintiff’s claim, not an exposition of [her] legal argument.” Skinner v. Switzer, 562 U. S. 521, 530 (2011) (citation omitted). Indeed, “[c]ourts must focus on the substance of the relief sought and the allegations pleaded, not on the label used.” Gearlds v. Entergy Servs., Inc., 709 F.3d 448, 452 (5th Cir. 2013) (citations omitted). “Specific facts are not necessary; the statement need only ‘give the defendant fair notice of what 3 the . . . claim is and the grounds upon which it rests.’” Erickson v. Pardus, 551 U.S. 89, 93 (2007) (quoting Twombly, 550 U.S. at 555). When considering a motion to dismiss, courts generally are limited to the complaint and its proper attachments. Dorsey v. Portfolio Equities, Inc., 540 F.3d 333, 338 (5th Cir. 2008) (citation omitted). However, courts may rely upon “documents incorporated into the complaint

by reference, and matters of which a court may take judicial notice.” Id. b) Qualified Immunity Section 1983 provides that any person who, under color of state law, deprives another of “any rights, privileges or immunities secured by the Constitution and laws shall be liable to the party injured in an action at law, suit in equity, or other proper proceeding for redress . . .” Harrington v. Harris, 118 F.3d 359, 365 (5th Cir. 1997) (citing 42 U.S.C. § 1983). Section 1983, however, does not create any substantive rights; it simply provides a remedy for the rights designated therein. Id. “Thus, an underlying constitutional or statutory violation is a predicate to liability under § 1983.” Id. (citation omitted). To state a cognizable claim for relief under 42 U.S.C. § 1983, “a plaintiff must plead

two—and only two—allegations . . . First, the plaintiff must allege that some person has deprived him of a federal right.

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Cody C. Dantin v. Michele Dauzat, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/cody-c-dantin-v-michele-dauzat-lawd-2026.