James v. Seairs

CourtDistrict Court, D. Alaska
DecidedMay 27, 2025
Docket3:25-cv-00012
StatusUnknown

This text of James v. Seairs (James v. Seairs) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, D. Alaska primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
James v. Seairs, (D. Alaska 2025).

Opinion

THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE DISTRICT OF ALASKA PAUL R. JAMES, JR.,

Plaintiff, Case No. 3:25-cv-00011-SLG v. HUNT, LINCONLIN, and CLARK, Defendants, PAUL R. JAMES, JR., Plaintiff, Case No. 3:25-cv-00012-SLG

v. SEAIRS, QUEENSON and BYRON, Defendants, SCREENING ORDER & NOTICE OF THIRD STRIKE On January 17, 2025, self-represented prisoner Paul R. James, Jr.

(“Plaintiff”) filed the above-captioned civil actions. Upon review, the two cases have similar deficiencies and contain overlapping claims and related factual allegations. Therefore, the Court now screens the cases collectively pursuant to 28 U.S.C. §§ 1915(e) and 1915A. Pursuant to Rule 201 of the Federal Rules of Evidence, the Court takes judicial notice of the other cases Plaintiff has filed in federal court.1

1 Judicial notice is the “court’s acceptance, for purposes of convenience and without requiring a party’s proof, of a well-known and indisputable fact; the court’s power to accept such a fact.” Black’s Law Dictionary (12th ed. 2024); see also United States ex rel. Robinson Rancheria Citizens Council v. Borneo, Inc., 971 F.2d 244, 248 (9th Cir. 1992) (“[W]e may take notice of proceedings in other courts, both within and without the federal judicial system, if those The Court has now screened Plaintiff’s Complaints in accordance with 28 U.S.C. §§ 1915(e) and 1915A. For the reasons discussed in this order, each of Plaintiff's Complaints fails to adequately state a claim for which relief may be

granted. Therefore, the Complaint in each of the above cases is DISMISSED. However, Plaintiff is accorded 60 days from the date of this order to file an amended complaint in Case No. 3:25-cv-00011-SLG (“Case 11”) as to only his retaliation claim against Correctional Officer (“CO”) Clark. The Court finds that no additional facts could be added that would give rise to a plausible claim of

a constitutional violation against the remaining Defendants named in both cases. For the reasons explained in this order, Case No. 3:25-cv-00012-SLG (“Case 12”) must be dismissed without leave to amend. This dismissal counts as a “strike” against Plaintiff. Plaintiff has now accumulated three strikes. Therefore, Plaintiff must not file any new cases in federal court without prepaying

the full filing fee or demonstrating that he qualifies for the imminent danger exception as explained below. SCREENING STANDARD Under the Prison Litigation Reform Act, a federal district court must screen complaints brought by prisoners seeking relief against a governmental entity or

proceedings have a direct relation to matters at issue”) (internal citations and quotation marks omitted.). Case No. 3:25-cv-00011-SLG, James v. Hunt, et al. Case No. 3:25-cv-00012-SLG, James v. Seairs, et al. officer or employee of a governmental entity.2 In this screening, a district court shall dismiss the case at any time if the court determines that the action: (i) is frivolous or malicious;

(ii) fails to state a claim on which relief may be granted; or (iii) seeks monetary relief against a defendant who is immune from such relief.3

In conducting its screening review, a district court must accept as true the allegations of the complaint, construe the pleading in the light most favorable to the plaintiff, and resolve all doubts in the plaintiff's favor.4 However, a court is not required to accept as true conclusory allegations, unreasonable inferences, or unwarranted deductions of fact.5 Although the scope of review generally is limited to the contents of the complaint, a court may also consider documents attached to the complaint, documents incorporated by reference in the complaint, or matters of judicial notice.6 Such documents that contradict the allegations of a complaint may fatally undermine the complaint's allegations.7

2 28 U.S.C. §§ 1915, 1915A. 3 28 U.S.C. § 1915(e)(2)(B). 4 Bernhardt v. L.A. County, 339 F.3d 920, 925 (9th Cir. 2003) (holding that a court must construe pleadings filed by self-represented litigants liberally and afford the complainant the benefit of any doubt). 5 Doe I v. Wal–Mart Stores, Inc., 572 F.3d 677, 681 (9th Cir. 2009) (internal quotation marks and citation omitted). 6 United States v. Ritchie, 342 F.3d 903, 908 (9th Cir. 2003). 7 Sprewell v. Golden State Warriors, 266 F.3d 979, 988 (9th Cir. 2001), amended by 275 F.3d 1187 Case No. 3:25-cv-00011-SLG, James v. Hunt, et al. Case No. 3:25-cv-00012-SLG, James v. Seairs, et al. Before a court may dismiss any portion of a complaint, a court must provide a plaintiff with a statement of the deficiencies in the complaint and an opportunity to file an amended complaint, unless to do so would be futile.8 Futility exists when

“the allegation of other facts consistent with the challenged pleading could not possibly cure the deficiency.”9 DISCUSSION I. Requirements to State a Claim Rule 8 of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure instructs that a complaint

must contain a “short and plain statement of the claim showing that the [complainant] is entitled to relief[.]”10 While a complaint need not, and should not, contain every factual detail, “unadorned, the defendant-unlawfully-harmed-me accusation[s]” are insufficient to state a claim.11 To determine whether a complaint states a valid claim for relief, a district court considers whether the complaint

contains enough facts that, if accepted as true, “state[s] a claim to relief that is

(2001) (noting that a plaintiff can “plead himself out of a claim by including . . . details contrary to his claims”). 8 Gordon v. City of Oakland, 627 F.3d 1092, 1094 (9th Cir. 2010) (citing Albrecht v. Lund, 845 F.2d 193, 195 (9th Cir. 1988)). 9 Schreiber Distributing Co. v. Serv-Well Furniture Co., 806 F.2d 1393, 1401 (9th Cir. 1986). 10 Fed. R. Civ. P. 8(a)(2). 11 Ashcroft v. Iqbal, 556 U.S. 662, 678 (2009) (citing Bell Atlantic Corp. v. Twombly, 550 U.S. 544, 555 (2007)). Case No. 3:25-cv-00011-SLG, James v. Hunt, et al. Case No. 3:25-cv-00012-SLG, James v. Seairs, et al. plausible on its face.”12 A claim is plausible “when the plaintiff pleads factual content that allows the court to draw the reasonable inference that the defendant is liable for the misconduct alleged.”13

II. Civil Rights Claims under 42 U.S.C.

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