(PC) Reeves v. Dougherty

District Court, E.D. California·Decided August 26, 2020·No. 1:20-cv-00487·Unknown

Opinion

EMMANUEL REEVES, Case No. 1:20-cv-00487-BAM (PC) Plaintiff, ORDER DIRECTING CLERK OF COURT TO RANDOMLY ASSIGN DISTRICT JUDGE v. FINDINGS AND RECOMMENDATIONS DOUGHERTY, et al., REGARDING DISMISSAL OF ACTION Defendants. FOURTEEN-DAY DEADLINE Plaintiff Emmanuel Reeves (“Plaintiff”) is a state prisoner appearing pro se and in forma pauperis in this civil rights action pursuant to 42 U.S.C. § 1983. On August 3, 2010, the Court screened Plaintiff’s complaint and granted leave to amend. Plaintiff’s first amended complaint, filed on August 21, 2020, is currently before the Court for screening. (ECF No. 16.) I. Screening Requirement and Standard The Court is required to screen complaints brought by prisoners seeking relief against a governmental entity and/or against an officer or employee of a governmental entity. 28 U.S.C. § 1915A(a). Plaintiff’s complaint, or any portion thereof, is subject to dismissal if it is frivolous or malicious, if it fails to state a claim upon which relief may be granted, or if it seeks monetary relief from a defendant who is immune from such relief. 28 U.S.C. §§ 1915A(b). A complaint must contain “a short and plain statement of the claim showing that the pleader is entitled to relief . . . .” Fed. R. Civ. P. 8(a)(2). Detailed factual allegations are not required, but “[t]hreadbare recitals of the elements of a cause of action, supported by mere conclusory statements, do not suffice.” Ashcroft v. Iqbal, 556 U.S. 662, 678 (2009) (citing Bell Atlantic Corp. v. Twombly, 550 U.S. 544, 555 (2007)). While a plaintiff’s allegations are taken as true, courts “are not required to indulge unwarranted inferences.” Doe I v. Wal-Mart Stores, Inc., 572 F.3d 677, 681 (9th Cir. 2009) (internal quotation marks and citation omitted). To survive screening, Plaintiff’s claims must be facially plausible, which requires sufficient factual detail to allow the Court to reasonably infer that each named defendant is liable for the misconduct alleged. Iqbal, 556 U.S. at 678 (quotation marks omitted); Moss v. U.S. Secret Serv., 572 F.3d 962, 969 (9th Cir. 2009). The sheer possibility that a defendant acted unlawfully is not sufficient, and mere consistency with liability falls short of satisfying the plausibility standard. Iqbal, 556 U.S. at 678 (quotation marks omitted); Moss, 572 F.3d at 969. II. Allegations in Complaint Plaintiff is currently housed in California State Prison at Corcoran (Corcoran). The events in the complaint are alleged to have occurred while Plaintiff was housed at Corcoran. Plaintiff names the following defendants: (1) S. Dougherty, Registered Nurse, (2) E. McDaniel, CSE(A), and (3) Ken Clark, Warden. In Claim I, Plaintiff alleges a violation of Eighth Amendment by committing perjury and denied right to administrative remedy. Plaintiff alleges: “I wrote an health care 602 appeal to seek administrative remedy. On Dec. 5, 2019 Registered Nurse (RN) S. Dougherty marked that I refused my ducat for interview seeking administrative relief, but in fact that ducat was marked canceled per CTC S&E Correctional Officer Medina. On 10/9, 2019 I experience severe abdominal pain, diarrhea, chest pain and back pain. On 10/12, 2019 I was seen in the triage and treatment area for complaints and transferred to a higher level of care. To this date 8/18, 2020 claimant still suffers injuries.” (unedited text). In Claim 2, Plaintiff alleges a Fourteenth Amendment violation of his right to a remedy by conspiring against Plaintiff and depriving him of a remedy and denying equal protection. Plaintiff alleges: By S. Dougherty writing the response to my 602 claiming my refusal of interview, S. Dougherty sent response to supervisor E. McDaniel (CSE(A)) reviewed and signed report stating all is true. Which is clearly falsifying documentation when per CTC S&E Correctional Officer Medina my ducat was marked canceled, making it impossible to exercise my right to get relief through the grievance process. By doing so conspired to deny claimant of his fundamental right to remedy. E. McDaniel (CSE(A)) became subordinate to perjury, signing on to a falsified document. The warden of Corcoran State Prison (CSP) Kenneth Clark is responsible for the treatment of all inmates under his charge per CCR Title 15 Section 3380(9).” (unedited text) As remedies, Plaintiff seeks compensatory and punitive damages. III. Discussion Plaintiff’s complaint does not comply with Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 8 and fails to state a cognizable claim for relief. A. Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 8 Pursuant to Rule 8(a), a complaint must contain “a short and plain statement of the claim showing that the pleader is entitled to relief[.]” Fed. R. Civ. P. 8(a)(2). “Such a statement must simply give the defendant fair notice of what the plaintiff’s claim is and the grounds upon which it rests.” Swierkiewicz v. Sorema N.A., 534 U.S. 506, 512 (2002) (citation and internal quotation marks omitted). Detailed factual allegations are not required, but “[t]hreadbare recitals of the elements of a cause of action, supported by mere conclusory statements, do not suffice.” Iqbal, 556 U.S. at 678 (citation omitted). This is because, while factual allegations are accepted as true, legal conclusions are not. Id.; see also Twombly, 550 U.S. at 556-57; Moss v. U.S. Secret Serv., 572 F.3d 962, 969 (9th Cir. 2009). Therefore, Plaintiff must set forth “sufficient factual matter, accepted as true, to ‘state a claim to relief that is plausible on its face.’” A claim has facial plausibility when the plaintiff pleads factual content that allows the court to draw the reasonable inference that the defendant is liable for the misconduct alleged.” Iqbal, 556 U.S. at 678 (citations and internal quotation marks omitted). Plaintiff’s allegations are vague and conclusory statements. Although Plaintiff’s complaint is short, it is not a plain statement of his claims. As a basic matter, the complaint does not clearly state what happened, when it happened or who was involved. Plaintiff was previously informed that the must state allegations of what happened, when it happened or who was involved, but the amended complaint fails to correct this deficiency. /// B. Eighth Amendment – Medical Care A prisoner’s claim of inadequate medical care does not constitute cruel and unusual punishment in violation of the Eighth Amendment unless the mistreatment rises to the level of “deliberate indifference to serious medical needs.” Jett v. Penner, 439 F.3d 1091, 1096 (9th Cir. 2006) (quoting Estelle v. Gamble, 429 U.S. 97, 104 (1976)). The two-part test for deliberate indifference requires Plaintiff to show (1) “a ‘serious medical need’ by demonstrating that failure to treat a prisoner's condition could result in further significant injury or the ‘unnecessary and wanton infliction of pain,’” and (2) “the defendant's response to the need was deliberately indifferent.” Jett, 439 F.3d at 1096. A defendant does not act in a deliberately indifferent manner unless t

Free access — add to your briefcase to read the full text and ask questions with AI

(PC) Reeves v. Dougherty, (E.D. Cal. 2020).

(PC) Reeves v. Dougherty ((PC) Reeves v. Dougherty) — published by Counsel Stack Legal Research, free access to 12M+ legal documents.

Related

Wolff v. McDonnell
418 U.S. 539 (Supreme Court, 1974)
Washington v. Davis
426 U.S. 229 (Supreme Court, 1976)
Moore v. United States
429 U.S. 20 (Supreme Court, 1976)
Estelle v. Gamble
429 U.S. 97 (Supreme Court, 1976)
Ingraham v. Wright
430 U.S. 651 (Supreme Court, 1977)
City of Cleburne v. Cleburne Living Center, Inc.
473 U.S. 432 (Supreme Court, 1985)
Swierkiewicz v. Sorema N. A.
534 U.S. 506 (Supreme Court, 2002)
Bell Atlantic Corp. v. Twombly
550 U.S. 544 (Supreme Court, 2007)
Engquist v. Oregon Department of Agriculture
553 U.S. 591 (Supreme Court, 2008)
Ashcroft v. Iqbal
556 U.S. 662 (Supreme Court, 2009)
Simmons v. Navajo County, Ariz.
609 F.3d 1011 (Ninth Circuit, 2010)
United States v. Wilder
526 F.3d 1 (First Circuit, 2008)
Gary Wayne Freeman v. Richard Rideout
808 F.2d 949 (Second Circuit, 1986)
Taylor v. List
880 F.2d 1040 (Ninth Circuit, 1989)
Anderson v. County of Kern
45 F.3d 1310 (Ninth Circuit, 1995)