Dupree Carr v. True

District Court, D. Nebraska·Decided July 23, 2021·No. 8:21-cv-00117·Unknown

Opinion

IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE DISTRICT OF NEBRASKA

TRALAN DEVONTE JOVONNI DUPREE CARR, 8:21CV117 Plaintiff,

vs. MEMORANDUM PATRICIA TRUE, LARRY SOBLER, AND ORDER JULIE BATENHORST, ANDREW CORBIN, HUNTER LEWIS, ALYSSA COLVER, BONNIE BERGLAND, CHRIS LUEBE, TODD PHELPS, CHERYL HEIMAN, MARSHA SCHWARTZ, and DR. JUVET CH’E,

Defendants.

Plaintiff, a patient at the Norfolk Regional Center (“NRC”), has been given leave to proceed in forma pauperis. (Filing 5.) The court now conducts an initial review of Plaintiff’s Complaint to determine whether summary dismissal is appropriate under 28 U.S.C. § 1915(e)(2).

I. SUMMARY OF COMPLAINT

Plaintiff sues several NRC staff members—who are Plaintiff’s “treatment team”—in their individual capacities pursuant to 42 U.S.C. § 1983 for violations of his First and Fourteenth Amendment rights. Plaintiff alleges that in March 2021, the Defendants placed a telephone restriction on him that allowed the Defendants to “listen in to my phone calls and to violate my privacy.” (Filing 1 at CM/ECF p. 7.) That same month, Plaintiff was prohibited from having personal or Skype visits with his girlfriend because Plaintiff would be “manipulating a fellow peer because she was his sister.” (Id.) Plaintiff requests $300,000 per Defendant and a “full pardon.” (Filing 1 at CM/ECF p. 5.)

In motions filed after his Complaint, Plaintiff requests that several other defendants and claims be added to this lawsuit. (Filings 6, 8, 9, 10, 11.)

II. LEGAL STANDARDS ON INITIAL REVIEW

The court is required to review in forma pauperis complaints to determine whether summary dismissal is appropriate. See 28 U.S.C. § 1915(e). The court must dismiss a complaint or any portion of it that states a frivolous or malicious claim, that fails to state a claim upon which relief may be granted, or that seeks monetary relief from a defendant who is immune from such relief. 28 U.S.C. § 1915(e)(2)(B).

Pro se plaintiffs must set forth enough factual allegations to “nudge[] their claims across the line from conceivable to plausible,” or “their complaint must be dismissed.” Bell Atlantic Corp. v. Twombly, 550 U.S. 544, 569-70 (2007); see also Ashcroft v. Iqbal, 556 U.S. 662, 678 (2009) (“A claim has facial plausibility when the plaintiff pleads factual content that allows the court to draw the reasonable inference that the defendant is liable for the misconduct alleged.”).

“The essential function of a complaint under the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure is to give the opposing party ‘fair notice of the nature and basis or grounds for a claim, and a general indication of the type of litigation involved.’” Topchian v. JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A., 760 F.3d 843, 848 (8th Cir. 2014) (quoting Hopkins v. Saunders, 199 F.3d 968, 973 (8th Cir. 1999)). However, “[a] pro se complaint must be liberally construed, and pro se litigants are held to a lesser pleading standard than other parties.” Topchian, 760 F.3d at 849 (internal quotation marks and citations omitted).

2 III. DISCUSSION

Plaintiff complains about two conditions of his confinement at the Norfolk Regional Center—restrictions on his telephone use and visitation by his girlfriend.

A. Telephone Restriction

“Any form of involuntary confinement, whether incarceration or involuntary commitment, may necessitate restrictions on the right to free speech.” Beaulieu v. Ludeman, 690 F.3d 1017, 1038-39 (8th Cir. 2012) (internal quotation marks and citations omitted). In Beaulieu, the parties agreed that the standard set forth in Turner v. Safley, 482 U.S. 78 (1987), applied in determining the constitutionality of a policy limiting the telephone usage of civilly committed patients, and the court applied that standard:

(1) whether there is a valid, rational connection between the regulation and legitimate governmental interests put forward to justify it; (2) whether alternative means of exercising their rights remain open to the prisoners; (3) whether accommodation of the asserted rights will trigger a “ripple effect” on fellow inmates and prison officials; and (4) whether a ready alternative to the regulation would fully accommodate the prisoners’ rights at de minimis cost to the valid penological interest.

Beaulieu, 690 F.3d at 1039 (internal quotation marks and citation omitted). See also Bennett v. Turner, No. C15-4197, 2015 WL 9165926, at *5 (N.D. Iowa Dec. 16, 2015) (applying Turner v. Safley factors to First Amendment claim by civilly committed plaintiff challenging telephone-use restrictions; noting courts’ holdings that prisons and hospitals have great latitude to restrict telephone access and very rigid restrictions are permissible as long as detainees can still “communicate with the outside world”).

3 Here, Plaintiff has not identified the details of the specific policy at issue, nor is the court able to apply the Turner factors based on Plaintiff’s allegations alone. Nevertheless, Plaintiff’s allegations raise a plausible claim that his First Amendment rights might be violated by an overly restrictive telephone policy, and this claim will be allowed to proceed. See Karsjens v. Jesson, 6 F. Supp. 3d 916, 939 (D. Minn. 2014) (civilly committed plaintiffs raised plausible claim that First Amendment rights may be violated by overly restrictive policies limiting phone use despite fact that plaintiff had not identified specific policy at issue and court could not apply Turner factors at pleading stage); Williams v. Johnston, No. CIV. 14-369, 2015 WL 1333991, at *7 (D. Minn. Jan. 28, 2015), report and recommendation adopted, No. CIV. 14-369, 2015 WL 1334015 (premature to analyze Turner factors on motion to dismiss; discovery necessary to identify context and objectives of policy).

B. Visitation Restriction

“Although the jurisprudence regarding the extent of a civil detainee’s right to visitation through the First Amendment is far from settled, the case law indicates that some version of such a right exists . . . .” Meyer v. Stacken, No. 17-CV-1761, 2019 WL 4675353, at *3 (D. Minn. July 25, 2019), report and recommendation adopted, No. CV 17-1761, 2019 WL 4673941 (D. Minn. Sept. 25, 2019) (First Amendment and due process challenge to state sex-offender program’s prohibition of visitation by civilly committed detainee’s niece); Williams, 2015 WL 1333991, at *8-9 (First Amendment and due process challenge to state sex-offender program’s prohibition of visitation by civilly committed detainee’s daughter and granddaughter; “it is clear to this Court that Plaintiff has at least some right of association under the First Amendment, even though he is civilly committed”).

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Dupree Carr v. True, (D. Neb. 2021).

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Related

Turner v. Safley
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United States v. Frances Slade
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