(PC)Winter v. California Department of Corrections & Rehabilitation

CourtDistrict Court, E.D. California
DecidedJanuary 10, 2022
Docket1:21-cv-01194
StatusUnknown

This text of (PC)Winter v. California Department of Corrections & Rehabilitation ((PC)Winter v. California Department of Corrections & Rehabilitation) 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)Winter v. California Department of Corrections & Rehabilitation, (E.D. Cal. 2022).

Opinion

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT 9 EASTERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA 10

11 ANDREANA WINTER, ) Case No. 1:21-cv-01194-SAB (PC) ) 12 Plaintiff, ) ) ORDER DIRECTING CLERK OF COURT TO 13 v. ) RANDOMLY ASSIGN A DISTRICT JUDGE TO THIS ACTION, FINDINGS AND 14 CALIFORNIA DEPARTMENT OF ) RECOMMENDATIONS RECOMMENDING CORRECTIONS AND REHABILITATION, ) DISMISSAL OF THE ACTION 15 et al., ) ) (ECF No. 7) 16 ) Defendants. ) 17 )

18 Plaintiff Andreana Winter is proceeding pro se and in forma pauperis in this civil rights action 19 pursuant to 42 U.S.C. § 1983. This matter was referred to a United States Magistrate Judge pursuant 20 to 28 U.S.C. § 636(b)(1)(B) and Local Rule 302. Plaintiff filed the instant action on November 6, 21 2020. 22 On November 4, 2021, the Court screened Plaintiff’s complaint, found no cognizable claims, 23 and granted Plaintiff thirty days to file an amended complaint. (ECF No. 6.) Plaintiff did not file an 24 amended complaint or otherwise respond to the Court’s November 4, 2021. Therefore, on December 25 14, 2021, the Court ordered Plaintiff to show cause as to why the action should not be dismissed. 26 (ECF No. 7.) Plaintiff has not responded to the order to show cause and the time to do so has passed. 27 Accordingly, dismissal is warranted. 28 /// 1 I. 2 SCREENING REQUIREMENT 3 The Court is required to screen complaints brought by prisoners seeking relief against a 4 governmental entity or officer or employee of a governmental entity. 28 U.S.C. § 1915A(a). The 5 Court must dismiss a complaint or portion thereof if the prisoner has raised claims that are legally 6 “frivolous or malicious,” that “fail[] to state a claim on which relief may be granted,” or that “seek[] 7 monetary relief against a defendant who is immune from such relief.” 28 U.S.C. § 1915(e)(2)(B); see 8 also 28 U.S.C. § 1915A(b). 9 A complaint must contain “a short and plain statement of the claim showing that the pleader is 10 entitled to relief. . . .” Fed. R. Civ. P. 8(a)(2). Detailed factual allegations are not required, but 11 “[t]hreadbare recitals of the elements of a cause of action, supported by mere conclusory statements, do 12 not suffice.” Ashcroft v. Iqbal, 556 U.S. 662, 678 (2009) (citing Bell Atlantic Corp. v. Twombly, 550 13 U.S. 544, 555 (2007)). Moreover, Plaintiff must demonstrate that each defendant personally participated 14 in the deprivation of Plaintiff’s rights. Jones v. Williams, 297 F.3d 930, 934 (9th Cir. 2002). 15 Prisoners proceeding pro se in civil rights actions are entitled to have their pleadings liberally 16 construed and to have any doubt resolved in their favor. Wilhelm v. Rotman, 680 F.3d 1113, 1121 (9th 17 Cir. 2012) (citations omitted). To survive screening, Plaintiff’s claims must be facially plausible, which 18 requires sufficient factual detail to allow the Court to reasonably infer that each named defendant is 19 liable for the misconduct alleged. Iqbal, 556 U.S. at 678-79; Moss v. U.S. Secret Service, 572 F.3d 962, 20 969 (9th Cir. 2009). The “sheer possibility that a defendant has acted unlawfully” is not sufficient, and 21 “facts that are ‘merely consistent with’ a defendant’s liability” falls short of satisfying the plausibility 22 standard. Iqbal, 556 U.S. at 678; Moss, 572 F.3d at 969. 23 II. 24 COMPLAINT ALLEGATIONS 25 In July 2019, Plaintiff sought to submit a CDCR Form 1074 in order to correspond with inmate 26 Kohut. The form was submitted to CCI Gates (not named, possible Doe) to which no response was 27 received. 28 /// 1 In mid-November 2019, Plaintiff received a copy of an approved Form 1074 via institutional 2 mail. A couple days later, Plaintiff sent a letter to inmate Kohut as well as a copy of the completed 3 form to advise him of the authorization. The reverse side of the Form 1074 copy contained an 4 advisement/request to Pleasant Valley State Prison mailroom officials so the document would be 5 properly filed. A couple of weeks later, Plaintiff received a response from inmate Kohut, and the 6 envelope bore the stamp “correspondence on file.” Plaintiff sent Kohut a letter the following day. On 7 December 30, 2019, Plaintiff received the letter back with a notice on the envelope that stated there 8 was no Form 1074 on file. On January 2, 2020, Plaintiff meet with Defendant Gaona in an attempt to 9 fix the problem. Plaintiff explained the situation to Gaona and provided copies of the approved Form 10 1074, which contained Gaona’s signature. Gaona retained the documents and Plaintiff was 11 rescheduled to be seen the following week. 12 On January 13, 2020, Plaintiff was summoned and informed by Defendant Gaona that the 13 approval had not yet been entered in either Plaintiff or inmate Kohut’s files. One copy of the Form 14 1074 was returned to Plaintiff, and Plaintiff was directed to return the following week. 15 Plaintiff made repeated attempts to write inmate Kohut throughout the period described 16 following the Form 1074’s approval. Plaintiff received mail from inmate Kohut, but Plaintiff’s mail 17 was returned from Pleasant Valley State Prison with a notation that there was no Form 1074 on file. 18 On January 27, 2020, Plaintiff was advised by Defendant Gaona that the Form 1074 was still 19 not entered in either Plaintiff or inmate Kohut’s files. Plaintiff presented more mail she had received 20 from inmate Kohut which bore the stamp “correspondence on file.” Defendant Gaona advised 21 Plaintiff to submit another Form 1074. Gaona could have looked on the computer and resolved the 22 whole issue. Instead, Gaona chose to give Plaintiff the runaround. 23 In early February 2020, Plaintiff filed an inmate appeal to the appeals coordinator. Plaintiff 24 was subsequently interviewed by Defendant Ollison. Plaintiff presented documentation and Ollison 25 advised Plaintiff that there was Form 1074 in either Plaintiff of Kohut’s files. Plaintiff was later 26 summoned for a follow-up interview and Ollison claimed that measures had been taken in the form of 27 phone calls and e-mails and the issue was resolved. 28 1 On April 3, 2020, an outgoing letter addressed to inmate Kohut was “held up in the unit office 2 at CCWF due to a nightwatch official’s claim of there being no 1074 on file.” Plaintiff filed another 3 inmate appeal and was given assurance by an official that “it would not be recurring.” 4 III. 5 DISCUSSION 6 A. First Amendment-Mail Interference 7 Under the First Amendment, inmates have the right to send and receive mail. See Thornburgh 8 v. Abbott, 490 U.S. 401, 407 (1989); Witherow v. Paff, 52 F.3d 264, 265 (9th Cir. 1995). However, a 9 prison may adopt regulations that impinge on an inmate’s constitutional rights if those regulations are 10 “reasonably related to legitimate penological interests.” Turner v. Safley, 482 U.S. 78, 89 (1987); 11 Prison Legal News v. Lehman, 397 F.3d 692, 699 (9th Cir.

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Bluebook (online)
(PC)Winter v. California Department of Corrections & Rehabilitation, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/pcwinter-v-california-department-of-corrections-rehabilitation-caed-2022.