Murray v. Aramark, et al.

Filing 6

ORDER signed by Magistrate Judge Edmund F. Brennan on 4/29/15 ORDERING that Plaintiffs request to proceed in forma pauperis (ECF No. 2 ) is granted. Plaintiff shall pay the statutory filing fee of $350. All payments shall be collected in accordance with the notice to the Sheriff of Solano County filed concurrently herewith. This action is dismissed for failure to state a claim and the Clerk is directed to close the case. (Dillon, M)

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UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

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FOR THE EASTERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA

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WESLEY THOMAS MURRAY,

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Plaintiff,

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No. 2:15-cv-0730-EFB P

v.
ARAMARK, et al.,

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ORDER GRANTING IFP AND DISMISSING
FOR FAILURE TO STATE A CLAIM
PURSUANT TO 28 U.S.C. § 1915A

Defendants.

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Plaintiff is a county inmate proceeding without counsel in an action brought under 42

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U.S.C. § 1983.1 In addition to filing a complaint, he has filed an application to proceed in forma

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pauperis pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1915.

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I.

Request to Proceed In Forma Pauperis
Plaintiff’s application makes the showing required by 28 U.S.C. § 1915(a)(1) and (2).

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Accordingly, by separate order, the court directs the agency having custody of plaintiff to collect

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and forward the appropriate monthly payments for the filing fee as set forth in 28 U.S.C.

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§ 1915(b)(1) and (2).

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This proceeding was referred to this court by Local Rule 302 pursuant to 28 U.S.C.
§ 636(b)(1) and is before the undersigned pursuant to plaintiff’s consent (ECF No. 1 at 22). See
E.D. Cal. Local Rules, Appx. A, at (k)(4).
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II.

Screening Requirement and Standards

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Federal courts must engage in a preliminary screening of cases in which prisoners seek

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redress from a governmental entity or officer or employee of a governmental entity. 28 U.S.C.

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§ 1915A(a). The court must identify cognizable claims or dismiss the complaint, or any portion

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of the complaint, if the complaint “is frivolous, malicious, or fails to state a claim upon which

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relief may be granted,” or “seeks monetary relief from a defendant who is immune from such

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relief.” Id. § 1915A(b).

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A pro se plaintiff, like other litigants, must satisfy the pleading requirements of Rule 8(a)
of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure. Rule 8(a)(2) “requires a complaint to include a short and

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plain statement of the claim showing that the pleader is entitled to relief, in order to give the

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defendant fair notice of what the claim is and the grounds upon which it rests.” Bell Atl. Corp. v.

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Twombly, 550 U.S. 544, 554, 562-563 (2007) (citing Conley v. Gibson, 355 U.S. 41 (1957)).

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While the complaint must comply with the “short and plaint statement” requirements of Rule 8,

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its allegations must also include the specificity required by Twombly and Ashcroft v. Iqbal, 556

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U.S. 662, 679 (2009).

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To avoid dismissal for failure to state a claim a complaint must contain more than “naked

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assertions,” “labels and conclusions” or “a formulaic recitation of the elements of a cause of

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action.” Twombly, 550 U.S. at 555-557. In other words, “[t]hreadbare recitals of the elements of

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a cause of action, supported by mere conclusory statements do not suffice.” Iqbal, 556 U.S. at

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678.

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Furthermore, a claim upon which the court can grant relief must have facial plausibility.

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Twombly, 550 U.S. at 570. “A claim has facial plausibility when the plaintiff pleads factual

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content that allows the court to draw the reasonable inference that the defendant is liable for the

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misconduct alleged.” Iqbal, 556 U.S. at 678. When considering whether a complaint states a

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claim upon which relief can be granted, the court must accept the allegations as true, Erickson v.

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Pardus, 551 U.S. 89 (2007), and construe the complaint in the light most favorable to the

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plaintiff, see Scheuer v. Rhodes, 416 U.S. 232, 236 (1974).

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III.

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Screening Order
The court has reviewed plaintiff’s complaint pursuant to § 1915A and finds it must be

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dismissed for failure to state a claim. The complaint alleges that defendant Aramark, the jail’s

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canteen supplier, charges “outrageous prices” and improperly sells items marked “not for

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individual sale.” ECF No. 1. The complaint states that Aramark is “clearly making money by

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breaking some sales law,” and asks that the company “stop ripping off inmates and provide the

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whole item.” Id.

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To state a claim under 42 U.S.C. § 1983, a plaintiff must allege two essential elements: (1)

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that a right secured by the Constitution or laws of the United States was violated, and (2) that the

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alleged violation was committed by a person acting under the color of state law. West v. Atkins,

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487 U.S. 42, 48 (1988). Inflated commissary prices do not provide a basis for a constitutional

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claim because there is no constitutional right to purchase items from the canteen. See Keenan v.

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Hall, 83 F.3d 1083, 1092 (9th Cir. 1996); Dushane v. Sacramento Cty. Jail, No. 2:13-cv-2518-

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EFB, 2014 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 108628, at *17 (E.D. Cal. Aug. 6, 2014) (same); Sanchez v. Lerdo

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Kern Cnty. Det. Facility, No. 1:14-cv-1424-MJS, 2015 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 36144, at *16 (E.D. Cal.

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Mar. 20, 2015) (same). Moreover, the complaint does not identify any specific claims for relief,

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and the factual allegations are not sufficient to state a cognizable claim for a violation of

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plaintiff’s federal constitutional or statutory rights.

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Because the deficiencies in plaintiff’s claim cannot be cured by further amendment, the

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complaint must be dismissed without leave to amend. Silva v. Di Vittorio, 658 F.3d 1090, 1105

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(9th Cir. 2011) (“Dismissal of a pro se complaint without leave to amend is proper only if it is

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absolutely clear that the deficiencies of the complaint could not be cured by amendment.”

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(internal quotation marks omitted)); Doe v. United States, 58 F.3d 494, 497 (9th Cir. 1995) (“[A]

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district court should grant leave to amend even if no request to amend the pleading was made,

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unless it determines that the pleading could not be cured by the allegation of other facts.”).

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IV.

Summary
Accordingly, IT IS HEREBY ORDERED that:

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1. Plaintiff’s request to proceed in forma pauperis (ECF No. 2) is granted.

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2. Plaintiff shall pay the statutory filing fee of $350. All payments shall be collected in

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accordance with the notice to the Sheriff of Solano County filed concurrently herewith.

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3. This action is dismissed for failure to state a claim and the Clerk is directed to close the

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case.
DATED: April 29, 2015.

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