Winchester v. 20th Judicial District Prosecutors Office et al

Filing 11

ORDER granting 8 Defendants' Motion to Dismiss and dismissing this case for lack of jurisdiction. Signed by Judge Billy Roy Wilson on 9/27/2017. (mef)

IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
EASTERN DISTRICT OF ARKANSAS
WESTERN DIVISION

MARK A. WINCHESTER, SR.

PLAINTIFFS
4:17-CV-00504-BRW

20TH JUDICIAL PROSECUTOR’S
OFFICE, et al.

DEFENDANTS
ORDER

Pending is Defendants’ Motion to Dismiss (Doc. No. 8). Plaintiff has not responded and
the time for doing so has passed.
Plaintiff’s Complaint sets out claims of defamation and civil conspiracy against the
Arkansas 20th Judicial Prosecutor’s Office and prosecutor Cody Hiland. The allegations are
based on Plaintiff’s employment as a Mayflower, Arkansas police officer and his termination
from that position.
Federal court diversity jurisdiction requires an amount in dispute over $75,000 and that
all the parties on one side of the controversy must be citizens of different states from all of the
parties on the other side.1 Based on the Complaint, Plaintiff alleges only state-law claims and all
of the parties involved are citizens of Arkansas.
Accordingly, Defendants’ Motion to Dismiss (Doc. No. 8) is GRANTED and this case is
DISMISSED for lack of jurisdiction.
IT IS SO ORDERED this 27th day of September, 2017.

/s/ Billy Roy Wilson
UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE

1

28 U.S.C. § 1332; Indianapolis v. Chase National Bank, 314 U.S. 63, 70 (1941).