Derry Beck, II v. Kelsey Miller

Opinion

United States Court of Appeals For the Eighth Circuit

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No. 25-3245

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Derry L. Beck, II

lllllllllllllllllllllPlaintiff - Appellant

v.

Kelsey Miller, CO II, MO DOC, Caldwell County Jail; Carlos Quezada, CO I, Crossroads Correctional Center

lllllllllllllllllllllDefendants - Appellees

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Appeal from United States District Court for the Western District of Missouri - St. Joseph

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Submitted: August 19, 2026 Filed: August 24, 2026

[Unpublished]

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Before GRASZ, ERICKSON, and STRAS, Circuit Judges.

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PER CURIAM.

Derry Beck, II appeals the district court’s1 adverse grant of summary judgment in his pro se 42 U.S.C. § 1983 action. Upon de novo review, we affirm. See Johnson v. Exide Techs., Inc., 137 F.4th 676, 679 (8th Cir. 2025) (standard of review). We agree with the district court that, based on the uncontroverted facts, defendant Miller’s use of force was a good-faith effort to restore discipline, and defendant Quezada’s use of force was minimal. See Richardson v. Duncan, 117 F.4th 1025, 1029 (8th Cir. 2024) (de minimis use of force); Jackson v. Gutzmer, 866 F.3d 969, 974 (8th Cir. 2017) (excessive force inquiry turns on whether force was applied in good-faith effort to restore discipline, or maliciously and sadistically to cause harm).

The judgment is affirmed. See 8th Cir. R. 47B.

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1 The Honorable Roseann A. Ketchmark, United States District Judge for the Western District of Missouri.