(PC) Howes v. Superior Court of California

CourtDistrict Court, E.D. California
DecidedMay 10, 2021
Docket2:21-cv-00664
StatusUnknown

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

Bluebook
(PC) Howes v. Superior Court of California, (E.D. Cal. 2021).

Opinion

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT 9 FOR THE EASTERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA 10 11 DAVON HOWES, No. 2: 21-cv-0664 KJN P 12 Plaintiff, 13 v. ORDER 14 SUPERIOR COURT, et al., 15 Defendants. 16 17 Plaintiff is a county prisoner, proceeding pro se. Plaintiff seeks relief pursuant to 42 18 U.S.C. § 1983, and has requested leave to proceed in forma pauperis pursuant to 28 U.S.C. 19 § 1915. This proceeding was referred to this court by Local Rule 302 pursuant to 28 U.S.C. 20 § 636(b)(1). 21 Plaintiff submitted a declaration that makes the showing required by 28 U.S.C. § 1915(a). 22 Accordingly, the request to proceed in forma pauperis is granted. 23 Plaintiff is required to pay the statutory filing fee of $350.00 for this action. 28 U.S.C. 24 §§ 1914(a), 1915(b)(1). By this order, plaintiff is assessed an initial partial filing fee in 25 accordance with the provisions of 28 U.S.C. § 1915(b)(1). By separate order, the court will direct 26 the appropriate agency to collect the initial partial filing fee from plaintiff’s trust account and 27 forward it to the Clerk of the Court. Thereafter, plaintiff is obligated to make monthly payments 28 of twenty percent of the preceding month’s income credited to plaintiff’s trust account. These 1 payments will be forwarded by the appropriate agency to the Clerk of the Court each time the 2 amount in plaintiff’s account exceeds $10.00, until the filing fee is paid in full. 28 U.S.C. 3 § 1915(b)(2). 4 The court is required to screen complaints brought by prisoners seeking relief against a 5 governmental entity or officer or employee of a governmental entity. 28 U.S.C. § 1915A(a). The 6 court must dismiss a complaint or portion thereof if the prisoner has raised claims that are legally 7 “frivolous or malicious,” that fail to state a claim upon which relief may be granted, or that seek 8 monetary relief from a defendant who is immune from such relief. 28 U.S.C. § 1915A(b)(1), (2). 9 A claim is legally frivolous when it lacks an arguable basis either in law or in fact. 10 Neitzke v. Williams, 490 U.S. 319, 325 (1989); Franklin v. Murphy, 745 F.2d 1221, 1227-28 (9th 11 Cir. 1984). The court may, therefore, dismiss a claim as frivolous when it is based on an 12 indisputably meritless legal theory or where the factual contentions are clearly baseless. Neitzke, 13 490 U.S. at 327. The critical inquiry is whether a constitutional claim, however inartfully 14 pleaded, has an arguable legal and factual basis. See Jackson v. Arizona, 885 F.2d 639, 640 (9th 15 Cir. 1989), superseded by statute as stated in Lopez v. Smith, 203 F.3d 1122, 1130-31 (9th Cir. 16 2000) (“[A] judge may dismiss [in forma pauperis] claims which are based on indisputably 17 meritless legal theories or whose factual contentions are clearly baseless.”); Franklin, 745 F.2d at 18 1227. 19 Rule 8(a)(2) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure “requires only ‘a short and plain 20 statement of the claim showing that the pleader is entitled to relief,’ in order to ‘give the 21 defendant fair notice of what the . . . claim is and the grounds upon which it rests.’” Bell Atlantic 22 Corp. v. Twombly, 550 U.S. 544, 555 (2007) (quoting Conley v. Gibson, 355 U.S. 41, 47 (1957)). 23 In order to survive dismissal for failure to state a claim, a complaint must contain more than “a 24 formulaic recitation of the elements of a cause of action;” it must contain factual allegations 25 sufficient “to raise a right to relief above the speculative level.” Bell Atlantic, 550 U.S. at 555. 26 However, “[s]pecific facts are not necessary; the statement [of facts] need only ‘give the 27 defendant fair notice of what the . . . claim is and the grounds upon which it rests.’” Erickson v. 28 Pardus, 551 U.S. 89, 93 (2007) (quoting Bell Atlantic, 550 U.S. at 555, citations and internal 1 quotations marks omitted). In reviewing a complaint under this standard, the court must accept as 2 true the allegations of the complaint in question, Erickson, 551 U.S. at 93, and construe the 3 pleading in the light most favorable to the plaintiff. Scheuer v. Rhodes, 416 U.S. 232, 236 4 (1974), overruled on other grounds, Davis v. Scherer, 468 U.S. 183 (1984). 5 Named as defendants are Superior Court Judge Bowers, the Vallejo Police Department, 6 the Superior Court and District Attorney Ring. 7 In claim one, plaintiff alleges that defendant Bowers violated plaintiff’s right to equal 8 protection during plaintiff’s preliminary hearing regarding a probation violation by allowing a 9 criminal to falsely accuse plaintiff of shooting him (the criminal). Plaintiff alleges that defendant 10 Bowers then gave the criminal favorable treatment. 11 In claim two, plaintiff alleges that defendant Bowers violated plaintiff’s right to due 12 process by continuing plaintiff’s preliminary hearing beyond the 60-day time limit. Plaintiff 13 alleges that he did not waive time when defendant Bowers continued his preliminary hearing. 14 Plaintiff alleges that the charges against him should be dismissed due to the untimely preliminary 15 hearing. 16 In claim three, plaintiff alleges that defendant Vallejo Police Department wrongfully 17 arrested plaintiff based on “mere speculation” and had no right to search his family residence. 18 Plaintiff alleges that he did not live at the family residence and that defendant did not have a 19 search warrant. Plaintiff also alleges that “they” used unnecessary force by jumping on plaintiff’s 20 back with their knee and aiming their guns at plaintiff. Plaintiff alleges that he was “frightened 21 for my life.” 22 As relief, plaintiff seeks immediate dismissal of the charges and money damages. 23 With respect to plaintiff’s claims against defendant Bowers, “[j]udges are immune from 24 damage actions for judicial acts taken within the jurisdiction of their courts.... Judicial immunity 25 applies ‘however erroneous the act may have been, and however injurious in its consequences it 26 may have proved to the plaintiff.’” Ashelman v. Pope, 793 F.2d 1072, 1075 (9th Cir. 1986) 27 (quoting Cleavinger v. Saxner, 474 U.S. 193, 199–200 (1985)). In his complaint, plaintiff 28 challenges judicial acts taken by defendant Bowers within the jurisdiction of his court.

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Related

Conley v. Gibson
355 U.S. 41 (Supreme Court, 1957)
Younger v. Harris
401 U.S. 37 (Supreme Court, 1971)
Scheuer v. Rhodes
416 U.S. 232 (Supreme Court, 1974)
Rizzo v. Goode
423 U.S. 362 (Supreme Court, 1976)
Imbler v. Pachtman
424 U.S. 409 (Supreme Court, 1976)
Monell v. New York City Dept. of Social Servs.
436 U.S. 658 (Supreme Court, 1978)
Davis v. Scherer
468 U.S. 183 (Supreme Court, 1984)
Cleavinger v. Saxner
474 U.S. 193 (Supreme Court, 1985)
Neitzke v. Williams
490 U.S. 319 (Supreme Court, 1989)
Graham v. Connor
490 U.S. 386 (Supreme Court, 1989)
Heck v. Humphrey
512 U.S. 477 (Supreme Court, 1994)
Erickson v. Pardus
551 U.S. 89 (Supreme Court, 2007)
Bell Atlantic Corp. v. Twombly
550 U.S. 544 (Supreme Court, 2007)
Wallace v. Kato
127 S. Ct. 1091 (Supreme Court, 2007)
Dougherty v. City of Covina
654 F.3d 892 (Ninth Circuit, 2011)
In Re Ellen Brogna
589 F.2d 24 (First Circuit, 1978)
Harry Franklin v. Ms. Murphy and Hoyt Cupp
745 F.2d 1221 (Ninth Circuit, 1984)

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Bluebook (online)
(PC) Howes v. Superior Court of California, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/pc-howes-v-superior-court-of-california-caed-2021.