Warren v. Jefferys

CourtDistrict Court, S.D. Illinois
DecidedOctober 10, 2023
Docket3:22-cv-00508
StatusUnknown

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

Bluebook
Warren v. Jefferys, (S.D. Ill. 2023).

Opinion

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF ILLINOIS

TRENT WARREN, ) ) Plaintiff, ) ) vs. ) Case No. 3:22-cv-00508-GCS ) ROB JEFFREYS, ) KWAME RAOUL, ) ) Defendants. )

MEMORANDUM & ORDER

SISON, Magistrate Judge:

Pending before the Court is Defendants’ Motion for Summary Judgment filed on September 13, 2022. (Doc. 34). Defendants argue that their Motion should be granted because Plaintiff’s request for injunctive relief became moot upon his release from the Illinois Department of Corrections (“IDOC”), and moreover, it is barred by the Eleventh Amendment. (Doc. 34, p. 3-4). Defendants also argue that Plaintiff’s claim for compensatory damages is barred by Heck v. Humphrey, 512 U.S. 477 (1994). Id. at p. 4. Lastly, Defendants believe that Plaintiff has failed to exhaust his administrative remedies as required under the Prison Litigation Reform Act (“PLRA”). Id. at p. 5. On March 27, 2023, Plaintiff filed a response in opposition, contesting each of Defendants’ arguments. (Doc. 46). For the reasons outlined below, the Court GRANTS Defendants’ Motion for Summary Judgment. (Doc. 34). PROCEDURAL BACKGROUND Plaintiff Trent Warren filed this suit pursuant to 42 U.S.C. § 19831 on March 11,

2022, against IDOC Director Jeffreys, Illinois Attorney General Raoul, the Illinois Department of Corrections, and the Parole Review Board. (Doc. 1). During that time, Plaintiff was in the custody of the IDOC at Pinckneyville Correctional Center. (Doc. 1). In his Complaint, Plaintiff alleges that Defendants’ failure to release him to begin his two- year term of mandatory supervised release (“MSR”) when he became eligible on

September 7, 2021, constitutes cruel and unusual punishiment and violates his right to Equal Protection. (Doc. 9, p. 2). On May 4, 2022, the Court completed a preliminary review of Plaintiff’s Complaint pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1915A and construed it into the following claims: Claim 1: Fourteenth Amendment Equal Protection claim against Defendants because 730 ILCS 5/3-3-7(B-1)(1) treats indigent individuals differently than wealthier individuals;

Claim 2: Eighth Amendment cruel and unusual punishment claim against Defendants based on involuntarily prolonged detention;

Claim 3: Defendants lengthened Plaintiff’s ten-year term to register as a sex offender because the clock does not begin until he is released from IDOC;

Claim 4: Eighth Amendment violation for holding Plaintiff in very restricted custody up to 23 hours a day, and then denying him the

1 Rather than a writ of habeas corpus, 42 U.S.C. § 1983 is the appropriate vehicle for prisoners who do not contest the facts or duration of custody but challenge the procedures used for parole-release decisions. See Moran v. Sondalle, 218 F.3d 647, 650-651 (7th Cir. 2000) (citations omitted). See also Wilkinson v. Dotson, 544 U.S. 74, 81 (2005) (stating that “§ 1983 remains available for procedural challenges where success in the action would not necessarily spell immediate or speedier release for the prisoner.”). opportunity to learn reintegration skills via MSR;

Claim 5: Fourteenth Amendment Due Process claim against Defendant Raoul for failing to ensure that Plaintiff understood the consequences and terms of MSR at the time he pled guilty to this offense in March of 2017.

(Doc. 9, p. 2). Claims 1 through 5 survived screening against Defendants Jeffreys and Raoul. Id. at p. 4. However, Plaintiff’s claims against the Illinois Department of Corrections and the Parole Review Board were dismissed because the Eleventh Amendment provides immunity to these state agencies. Id. at p. 3. FACTUAL BACKGROUND Plaintiff’s Grievance Record contains five relevant grievances that concern his release date for MSR. (Doc. 34, p. 2). Each will be discussed in turn. Grievance No. 569-02-21 Grievance No. 569-02-21 was filed by Plaintiff on February 23, 2021. (Doc. 34, Exh. 1, p. 29). In this grievance, Plaintiff claims that he made repeated requests to Counselor King for assistance with various social services resources to prepare for his release and that his requests were ignored. Id. at p. 27. Plaintiff reportedly informed Counselor Hill of this issue, but she informed Plaintiff that she could not help. Id. at p. 28. Plaintiff received a response from Counselor J. Reid on February 25, 2010, who indicated that Plaintiff must be “within 6 months of MSR date to request a social security application.”

Id. The Counselor also indicated that Counselor King responds to inmate requests in the order which they are received. Id. The grievance was received by the Grievance Office on April 1, 2021, and it was reviewed by a Grievance Officer on April 20, 2021. (Doc. 34, Exh. 1, p. 27). The Grievance Officer recommended that Plaintiff’s grievance be denied because CHAMP records revealed that Counselor King had been in contact with Plaintiff regarding preparations

for his MSR. Id. On April 22, 2021, the Chief Administrative Officer (“CAO”) concurred with the Grievance Officer’s determination. Id. Plaintiff sought to appeal the CAO’s decision on October 20, 2021. Id. The Administrative Review Board (“ARB”) received Plaintiff’s grievance on October 25, 2021, and the ARB deemed the appeal untimely on November 12, 2021. Id. at p. 26. Grievance No. 1385-06-21

Grievance No. 1385-06-21 was submitted by Plaintiff on June 28, 2021. (Doc. 34, Exh. 1, p. 14). In this grievance, Plaintiff alleges that “field services” is misleading him and “telling him things that are unture” regarding his MSR. Id. Plaintiff notes in the grievance that his two parole sites were denied – but that his mother was told there were halfway houses specifically for persons with “sex offenses” in Illinois. Id. at p. 15. Plaintiff

states that he believes field services is lying to him because they informed him that there are “no halfway houses or reentry programs available” for him. Id. The grievance was received by a Counselor on July 1, 2021, and July 14, 2021. Id. The Counselor recommended that the grievance be denied because Plaintiff was “assigned to the Parole Re-Entry Group and Sex Offender Services since 4/13/21 . . . [and that] field services

department ha[d] done their part by reporting the grievant’s need for housing.” Id. The grievance was received by the Grievance Office on July 16, 2021, and it was reviewed by a Grievance Officer on September 23, 2021. (Doc. 34, Exh. 1, p. 12). The Grievance Officer recommended that the grievance be denied because “based on all available information . . . Field Services has performed their job according to policy and procedure.” Id. The CAO concurred with the Grievance Officer’s determination on

September 23, 2021. Id. Plaintiff sought to appeal the decision on October 20, 2021. Id. The ARB received Plaintiff’s Grievance on October 25, 2021, and the ARB denied it on November 12, 2021, again noting that the appeal was untimely. Id. at p. 11. Grievance No. 1251-06-21 Grievance No. 1251-06-21 was filed by Plaintiff on June 9, 2021 (Doc. 34, Exh. 1, p. 23). In this grievance, Plaintiff alleges that Pinckneyville Correctional Center failed to

restore “the time that was [taken] away from a disciplinary ticket . . . from 2019[.]” Id.

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Warren v. Jefferys, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/warren-v-jefferys-ilsd-2023.