Manning v. Pennsylvania Bureau of Correction

559 F. Supp. 220, 35 Fair Empl. Prac. Cas. (BNA) 1513, 1983 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 19608
District Court, M.D. Pennsylvania·Decided February 1, 1983·No. Civ. A. 82-0991·Published·Cited by 2 cases

Opinion

MEMORANDUM

RAMBO, District Judge.

The plaintiff, Benjamin F. Manning, has filed a complaint against the Pennsylvania Bureau of Correction; Ronald J. Marks, Commissioner of the Pennsylvania Bureau of Correction; and Charles H. Zimmerman, Superintendent, State Correctional Institution at Huntingdon, Pennsylvania. The latter two have been sued in their official capacity only. The complaint alleges violation of plaintiff’s rights under the fourteenth amendment to the United States Constitution; Title 42 of the United States Code, §§ 1981 and 1983; Title 42 of the United States Code, §§ 2000e et seq.; Article 1, § 26 of the Constitution of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania; and the Pennsylvania Human Relations Act, 43 P.S. §§ 951 et seq. This court’s jurisdiction over the federal claims is based on 42 U.S.C. § 2000e-5(f), 28 U.S.C. § 1331, and 28 U.S.C. § 1343. The state claims are alleged to be pendent to the federal claims for jurisdictional purposes.

The defendants have moved to dismiss the complaint for failure to state a claim upon which relief can be granted. Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 12(b)(6). The standard in evaluating a motion under Rule 12(b)(6) was set out in Conley v. Gibson, 355 U.S. 41, 78 S.Ct. 99, 2 L.Ed.2d 80 (1957). The Supreme Court said:

in appraising the sufficiency of the complaint we follow, of course, the accepted rule that a complaint should not be dismissed for failure to state a claim unless it appears beyond doubt that the plaintiff can prove no set of facts in support of his claim which would entitle him to relief. Id at 45-46, 78 S.Ct. at 101-102.

The plaintiff is an employee of the Pennsylvania Bureau of Correction. He alleges that he has been and continues to be discriminated against because of his race. The discrimination allegedly has been and continues to be with respect to the terms, wages, conditions, privileges, advantages and benefits of employment with the Bureau of Correction.

The defendants’ motion seeks to have the claims under 42 U.S.C. §§ 1981 and 1983 dismissed because the Bureau is immune. The theory is that the Bureau as an agency of the Commonwealth is protected by the eleventh amendment to the United States Constitution unless the sovereign immunity is waived. The Commonwealth has specially not waived its immunity under the eleventh amendment. 42 Pa.Cons.Stat.Ann. § 8521(b).

The United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit has dealt with this issue. In Helfrich v. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, Department of Military Affairs, 660 F.2d 88 (3d Cir.1981), the Third Circuit said “The state’s eleventh amendment immunity extends to the Department of Military Affairs and the home 1 because they are arms of the state.” Id. at 90. See Alabama v. Pugh, 438 U.S. 781, 98 S.Ct. 3057, 57 L.Ed.2d 1114 (1978). The Bureau of Correction is an arm of the state and thus protected by the eleventh amendment. See 438 U.S. at 781, 98 S.Ct. at 3057 (Alabama Board of Corrections was a defendant in that suit).

The defendants Marks and Zimmerman are sued in their “official capacity only.” The Third Circuit has also determined that the protection of the eleventh amendment extends to officials in their official capacity. 660 F.2d at 90. The Per Curiam opinion in Helfrich says, “Similarly, an award of retroactive monetary damages or back pay against the officials in their official capaci *222 ty is barred because it necessarily would be paid from the state treasury.” Id. (emphasis in original)

The eleventh amendment protection does not, however, prevent certain types of relief from being granted under §§ 1981 and 1983. The Third Circuit said, “The eleventh amendment does not deprive the district court of jurisdiction to grant prospective equitable relief against appellee state officials .... ” Id. (emphasis in original) The Circuit Court went on to say, “Moreover, the eleventh amendment does not insulate the state from an award of attorney fees under the Civil Rights Attorney Fees Act of 1976, 42 U.S.C. § 1988. Hutto v. Finney, 437 U.S. 678, 692-93 [98 S.Ct. 2565, 2574-2575, 57 L.Ed.2d 522] (1978).” Id. The conclusion of the court in Helfrich was that dismissal of the complaint in its entirety was an error. Id.

The plaintiff’s claims for damages to the extent they are based on §§ 1981 and 1983 are barred by the eleventh amendment. The defendants’ motion to dismiss will be granted to the extent that it seeks retroactive monetary relief.

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Manning v. Pennsylvania Bureau of Correction, 559 F. Supp. 220, 35 Fair Empl. Prac. Cas. (BNA) 1513, 1983 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 19608 (M.D. Pa. 1983).

559 F. Supp. 220 (Manning v. Pennsylvania Bureau of Correction) — published by Counsel Stack Legal Research, free access to 12M+ legal documents.

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