Holland v. Farrow et al

Filing 14

ORDER GRANTING DEFENDANT'S MOTION TO DISMISS WITHOUT PREJUDICE by Judge Jon S. Tigar granting 9 Motion to Dismiss. (Attachments: # 1 Certificate/Proof of Service) (wsn, COURT STAFF) (Filed on 6/6/2014)

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UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

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NORTHERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA

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CELESTE HOLLAND,

Case No. 14-cv-01349-JST

Plaintiff,
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v.
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JOSEPH A. FARROW, et al.,
Defendants.

ORDER GRANTING DEFENDANT’S
MOTION TO DISMISS WITHOUT
PREJUDICE
Re: ECF Nos. 1, 9

United States District Court
Northern District of California

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Before the Court is Defendant Joseph Farrow’s Motion to Dismiss Plaintiff’s Complaint.

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ECF No. 9.

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I.

BACKGROUND
Plaintiff alleges she was pulled over and arrested on March 23, 2012 by California

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Highway Patrol (“CHP”) Officers after she refused to provide them with her driver’s license or

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insurance information. ECF No. 1. She alleges that she was sexually assaulted by the arresting

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officer, falsely imprisoned, and denied the counsel of her choice. ECF No. 1 ¶¶ 30-31, 33-36, 86.

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Plaintiff brought this lawsuit against the officers, multiple public officials including Defendant

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CHP Commissioner Joseph Farrow (“Defendant” or “Farrow”), and all of these individuals’

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spouses or significant others. She alleges these Defendants conspired to commit the

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aforementioned acts and thereby violated her rights under the First, Fifth, Sixth, Eighth, Ninth,

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Tenth, Thirteenth, and Fourteenth Amendments. Id. ¶¶ 30, 34-42, 50-63.

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II.

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DEFENDANT’S MOTION TO DISMISS
Defendant now moves for dismissal on the grounds that Plaintiff has failed to state a

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cognizable claim for relief pursuant to Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 12(b)(6). He argues the

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claims against him should be dismissed because state officials acting in their official capacity are

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not “persons” that may be sued under 42 U.S.C. § 1983, and that Plaintiff has failed to identify

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any overt act that would support a claim for conspiracy to deprive Plaintiff of her constitutional

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rights.

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III.

LEGAL STANDARD
A court should grant a motion to dismiss for failure to state a claim under Rule 12(b)(6) if

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the complaint does not proffer “enough facts to state a claim to relief that is plausible on its face.”

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Bell Atlantic Corp. v. Twombly, 550 U.S. 544, 570 (2007). “A claim has facial plausibility when

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the plaintiff pleads factual content that allows the court to draw the reasonable inference that the

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defendant is liable for the misconduct alleged.” Id. In considering a motion to dismiss, the court

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“must accept as true all of the factual allegations contained in the complaint,” Erickson v. Pardus,

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551 U.S. 89, 94 (2007), but “the tenet that a court must accept a complaint’s allegations as true is

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United States District Court
Northern District of California

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inapplicable to threadbare recitals of a cause of action’s elements, supported by mere conclusory

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statements.” Ashcroft v. Iqbal, 556 U.S. 662, 678 (2009). Dismissal can be based on the lack of a

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cognizable legal theory or the absence of sufficient facts alleged under a cognizable legal theory.

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Balistreri v. Pacifica Police Dep’t, 901 F.2d 696, 699 (9th Cir. 1990).

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IV.

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DISCUSSION
Plaintiff fails to specify whether she brings her claims against Farrow in his official or

personal capacity. The Court addresses each in turn.

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A.

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The Eleventh Amendment bars damages actions against state officials acting in their

The Eleventh Amendment Bars Suit Against Farrow In His Official Capacity

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official capacities because these actions are treated as suits against the state itself, Hafer v. Melo,

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502 U.S. 21, 25 (1991), and the Amendment bars federal suits against states or their agencies. See

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Regents of Univ. of Cal. v. Doe, 519 U.S. 425, 429 (1997). Section 1983 does not abrogate the

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states’ Eleventh Amendment immunity because a state or state agency is not a “person” for

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purposes of the statute. Will v. Mich. Dep’t of State Police, 491 U.S. 58, 65-66 (1989). Thus, if

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Holland is suing Farrow in his official capacity as Commissioner of the CHP, her suit is barred.

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But because it is unclear whether Plaintiff is bringing this suit against Defendant in his
official capacity, the Court reserves judgment as to whether the Eleventh Amendment bars

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Plaintiff’s claims against Defendant. Assuming that Plaintiff is suing Farrow in his individual

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capacity, her claims must meet the aforementioned pleading requirements in order to state a

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cognizable claim for relief under § 1983 and avoid dismissal. They do not.

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B.

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Plaintiff Has Not Pled Sufficient Facts To State a Claim Against Farrow In His
Individual Capacity.

The Eleventh Amendment does not bar damages actions against state officials acting in
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their individual capacities. Hafer, 502 U.S. at 31. To state a claim under § 1983 against a state
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official in his or her individual capacity, a plaintiff must plead that the official, “acting under color
of state law, caused the deprivation of a federal right.” OSU Student Alliance v. Ray, 699 F.3d

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1053, 1061 (9th Cir. 2012), cert. denied, Ray v. OSU Student Alliance, 134 S. Ct. 70 (2013)
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(mem.).
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United States District Court
Northern District of California

It is not enough to allege that a defendant’s subordinate or employee caused the
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deprivation of the plaintiff’s rights. “Government officials may not be held liable for the

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unconstitutional conduct of their subordinates under a theory of respondeat superior.” Iqbal, 556
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U.S. at 676. Instead, a supervisor—such as Farrow—may be liable under § 1983 only upon a
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showing of: (1) personal involvement in the constitutional deprivation; or (2) a sufficient causal
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connection between the supervisor’s wrongful conduct and the constitutional violation, such as by
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implementing a policy that is “the moving force of the violation.” Hansen v. Black, 885 F.2d 642,

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645–46 (9th Cir. 1989) (quoting Thompkins v. Belt, 828 F.2d 298, 304 (5th Cir.1987)). Thus, in
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order to state a cognizable claim for relief, Plaintiff must plead facts demonstrating that Farrow
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either personally deprived her of her rights, or that his behavior was causally related to such a
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deprivation.
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Plaintiff’s complaint fails to connect Farrow, personally, to any alleged constitutional
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violation. The complaint merely identifies Farrow as the CHP Commissioner. See ECF No. 1 ¶
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17. Plaintiff does not allege any particular acts on his part other than the broad allegation that
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every Defendant conspired to deprive Plaintiff of her constitutional rights. ECF No. 1 ¶ 51. The
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complaint also contains no factual material in support of its conclusory conspiracy allegations.
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V.

CONCLUSION
Plaintiff’s complaint fails to allege sufficient facts to state a cognizable claim for relief.

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Therefore, the Court GRANTS Defendant Farrow’s motion to dismiss, and the claims against
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Defendant Farrow are DISMISSED WITHOUT PREJUDICE. Plaintiff may amend her complaint
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within thirty days of this Order.
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Any amended complaint must specify which allegations and claims are directed against
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each Defendant. Plaintiff must plead each claim with sufficient specificity to give each Defendant
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notice of the nature of the claims leveled against him or her. Plaintiff is advised that a failure to
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attribute allegations and causes of action to particular defendants can result in dismissal.
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Plaintiff is encouraged to seek the assistance of the Legal Help Center in amending her
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complaint. The Legal Help Center is located at 450 Golden Gate Avenue, 15th Floor, Room 2796,
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United States District Court
Northern District of California

San Francisco, California. Assistance is provided by appointment only. A litigant may schedule
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an appointment by signing up in the appointment book located on the table outside the door of the
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Center or by calling the Legal Help Center appointment line at 415–782–8982. Plaintiff may also
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wish to consult the Northern District of California manual, Representing Yourself in Federal
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Court: A Handbook for Pro Se Litigants, a copy of which may be downloaded at
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http://www.cand.uscourts.gov/prosehandbook or obtained free of charge from the Clerk’s office.
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IT IS SO ORDERED.
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Dated: June 6, 2014
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______________________________________
JON S. TIGAR
United States District Judge

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