Keliihoomalu v. Derr

District Court, D. Hawaii·Decided June 13, 2022·No. 1:22-cv-00124·Unknown

Opinion

IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

FOR THE DISTRICT OF HAWAII REIN KELIIHOOMALU, CIVIL NO. 22-00124 LEK-KJM #04343-122, ORDER DISMISSING FIRST Plaintiff, AMENDED COMPLAINT WITH LEAVE GRANTED TO AMEND vs.

ESTELA DERR, et al.,

Defendants.

ORDER DISMISSING FIRST AMENDED COMPLAINT WITH LEAVE GRANTED TO AMEND

Before the Court is a First Amended Prisoner Civil Rights Complaint (“FAC”), ECF No. 6, filed by pro se Plaintiff Rein Keliihoomalu (“Keliihoomalu”) pursuant to Bivens v. Six Unknown Named Agents of Federal Bureau of Narcotics, 403 U.S. 388 (1971). Keliihoomalu is a federal pretrial detainee incarcerated at the Federal Detention Center in Honolulu, Hawaii (“FDC Honolulu”). See ECF No. 6 at PageID # 1. Keliihoomalu alleges that four officials1 at FDC Honolulu violated the Fifth Amendment’s prohibition on punishing pretrial detainees by threatening his safety (Count I) and retaliated against him by submitting “incident reports”

1 Keliihoomalu names Warden Estela Derr, Corrections Officer Shannon Bautista, Corrections Officer S. Brunello, and Unit Counselor Dwayne Bautista in their individual capacities. ECF No. 6 at PageID ## 56–58. (Count II). Id. at PageID ## 61–64. For the following reasons, the FAC is DISMISSED pursuant to 28 U.S.C. §§ 1915(e)(2) and 1915A(b)(1). If

Keliihoomalu wants this action to proceed, he must file an amended pleading that cures the noted deficiencies in his claims on or before July 13, 2022. In the alternative, Keliihoomalu may voluntarily dismiss this action pursuant to Fed. R.

Civ. P. 41(a)(1), and he will not incur a “strike” pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1915(g). I. STATUTORY SCREENING The Court is required to screen all in forma pauperis prisoner pleadings against government officials pursuant to 28 U.S.C. §§ 1915(e)(2) and 1915A(a).

See Byrd v. Phx. Police Dep’t, 885 F.3d 639, 641 (9th Cir. 2018). Claims or complaints that are frivolous, malicious, fail to state a claim for relief, or seek damages from defendants who are immune from suit must be dismissed. See

Lopez v. Smith, 203 F.3d 1122, 1126–27 (9th Cir. 2000) (en banc); Rhodes v. Robinson, 621 F.3d 1002, 1004 (9th Cir. 2010). Screening under 28 U.S.C. §§ 1915(e)(2) and 1915A(a) involves the same standard of review as that used under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 12(b)(6).

See Rosati v. Igbinoso, 791 F.3d 1037, 1039 (9th Cir. 2015) (per curiam). Under this standard, 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, 678 (2009) (internal quotation marks and citation omitted). A claim is “plausible” when the facts alleged support a reasonable inference that the plaintiff is entitled to relief from a specific defendant for specific misconduct. See id.

In conducting this screening, the Court liberally construes pro se litigants’ pleadings and resolves all doubts in their favor. See Hebbe v. Pliler, 627 F.3d 338, 342 (9th Cir. 2010) (citations omitted). The Court must grant leave to amend if it

appears the plaintiff can correct the defects in the complaint. See Lopez, 203 F.3d at 1130. When a claim cannot be saved by amendment, dismissal with prejudice is appropriate. See Sylvia Landfield Tr. v. City of Los Angeles, 729 F.3d 1189, 1196 (9th Cir. 2013).

II. BACKGROUND2 Keliihoomalu is a pretrial detainee at FDC Honolulu. See ECF No. 6 at 1; Federal Bureau of Prisons (“BOP”), https://www.bop.gov/inmateloc/ (select “Find

By Number,” enter “04343-122” in “Number” field, and select “Search”) (last visited May 26, 2022). He is awaiting trial in United States v. Keliihoomalu, Cr. No. 19-00156 JMS (D. Haw.).3

2 Keliihoomalu’s factual allegations are accepted as true for purposes of screening. See Nordstrom v. Ryan, 762 F.3d 903, 908 (9th Cir. 2014).

3 Pursuant to Fed. R. Evid. 201, the Court takes judicial notice of relevant federal records available electronically. See United States v. Raygoza-Garcia, 902 F.3d 994, 1001 (9th Cir. 2018) (“A court may take judicial notice of undisputed matters of public record, which may include court records available through [public access to court electronic records].” (citations omitted)). Keliihoomalu commenced this action by signing the original Complaint on March 19, 2022. ECF No. 1 at PageID # 12. Keliihoomalu alleged in the

Complaint that Warden Derr, Shannon Bautista, Dwayne Bautista, and Brunello violated the Eighth Amendment’s prohibition on cruel and unusual punishment by: (1) housing him with members of other gangs; (2) failing to provide him with two

“incident reports” in a timely manner; and (3) retaliating against him. Id. at PageID ## 6–11. The Court dismissed the original Complaint on April 21, 2022. See ECF No. 4. The Court began by explaining that Keliihoomalu could not pursue Bivens

claims against Defendants in their official capacities. Id. at PageID ## 33–34. The Court next explained that Bivens does not allow officers to be held responsible for the acts of their subordinates. Id. at PageID ## 34–36. The Court also explained

that there is no Bivens remedy for a violation of Bureau of Prisons policies. Id. at PageID ## 36–37. The Court explained that the Eight Amendment did not apply to Keliihoomalu because he is not a convicted inmate, and the Court provided Keliihoomalu with the relevant legal standards. Id. at PageID ## 37–44. Finally,

the Court explained that injunctive relief is unavailable under Bivens. Id. at PageID # 44–45. The Court received the FAC on May 6, 2022. ECF No. 6. Keliihoomalu

alleges in Count I that Warden Derr violated the Fifth Amendment’s prohibition on punishing pretrial detainees by threatening his safety. Id. at PageID ## 61–62. Keliihoomalu has been incarcerated at FDC Honolulu for more than two years. Id.

at PageID # 61. During this time, he has been housed in a “unit 5A,” along with convicted inmates, gang members, and deportable aliens. Id. at PageID ## 61–62. According to Keliihoomalu, a gambling dispute in unit 5A caused a “gang riot” on

July 12, 2021. Id. at PageID # 62. Keliihoomalu alleges in Count II that Shannon Bautista, Dwayne Bautista, and Brunello retaliated against him by submitting “incident reports.” Id. at PageID ## 63–64. According to Keliihoomalu, the reports were based on “minor” and

“petty” infractions. Id. Keliihoomalu seeks $75,000. Id. at PageID # 66. III. DISCUSSION A. Improper Joinder

Keliihoomalu alleges that Warden Derr violated the Fifth Amendment by threatening his safety (Count I), and that Shannon Bautista, Dwayne Bautista, and Brunello retaliated against him by submitting incident reports (Count II). ECF No.

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