Mack v. Easley

Opinion

IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT WESTERN DISTRICT OF ARKANSAS TEXARKANA DIVISION

MALCOM C. MACK PETITIONER

v. Case No. 4:24-cv-4016

SHERIFF WAYNE EASLEY RESPONDENT

ORDER

Before the Court is a Report and Recommendation (“R&R”) issued by the Honorable Barry A. Bryant, United States Magistrate Judge for the Western District of Arkansas. ECF No. 14. Judge Bryant recommends that Petitioner’s petition for writ of habeas corpus (ECF No. 1) be denied as moot and dismissed with prejudice. Judge Byrant recommends so because Petitioner is no longer detained in the Miller County Detention Center (“MCDC”) following a plea agreement and thus no habeas relief can be granted. Petitioner filed a timely objection. ECF No. 15. However, Petitioner does not address the reasoning underlying Judge Bryant’s recommendation. Petitioner does not refute that he has been released from custody following a plea agreement sentencing him to a probationary period. Rather, Petitioner asserts his grievances with bond matters and disagreements with his Public Defender counsel even though neither issue was among the grounds for relief listed in his petition. Therefore, the Court does not view Plaintiff’s objection as sufficiently specific to require a de novo review of Judge Bryant’s R&R. See Griffini v. Mitchell, 31 F.3d 690, 692 (8th Cir. 1994) (noting that a specific objection is necessary to require a de novo review of a magistrate’s recommendation instead of a review for plain error). Upon review, finding that there is no clear error on the face of the record and that Judge Bryant’s reasoning is sound, the Court adopts the R&R (ECF No. 14) in toto. Petitioner’s petition for writ of habeas corpus (ECF No. 1) is hereby DENIED AS MOOT and DISMISSED WITH PREJUDICE.

IT IS SO ORDERED, this 16th day of May, 2024.

/s/ Susan O. Hickey Susan O. Hickey Chief United States District Judge