Bell v. Muniz, et al

Filing 18

ORDER OF DISMISSAL WITH LEAVE TO AMEND. Signed by Judge Vince Chhabria on 9/18/2014. (knm, COURT STAFF) (Filed on 9/18/2014)

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UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

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NORTHERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA

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PATRICK B. BELL,

Case No. 14-cv-02947-VC

Plaintiff,
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v.

ORDER OF DISMISSAL WITH LEAVE
TO AMEND

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JONATHAN MUNIZ, et al.,
Defendants.

United States District Court
Northern District of California

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Patrick B. Bell, an inmate at San Quentin State Prison proceeding pro se, filed a civil rights

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complaint against officers of the Oakland Police Department pursuant to 42 U.S.C. § 1983. Bell

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has filed a motion for leave to proceed in forma pauperis (“IFP”) with a completed IFP

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application, which is granted in a separate order. The Court now addresses the claims asserted in

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Bell’s complaint.
DISCUSSION

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I.

Standard of Review
A federal court must screen any case in which a prisoner seeks redress from a

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governmental entity, or officer or employee of a governmental entity, to identify any cognizable

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claims and dismiss any that: (1) are frivolous or malicious; (2) fail to state a claim upon which

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relief may be granted; or (3) seek monetary relief from a defendant who is immune from such

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relief. 28 U.S.C. § 1915A(a). Pro se pleadings must be liberally construed. Balistreri v. Pacifica

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Police Dep't, 901 F.2d 696, 699 (9th Cir. 1988).

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

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

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violation was committed by a person acting under the color of state law. West v. Atkins, 487 U.S.

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42, 48 (1988).
Liability may be imposed on an individual defendant under 42 U.S.C. § 1983 if the

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plaintiff can show that the defendant’s actions both actually and proximately caused the

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deprivation of a federally protected right. Lemire v. California Dep’t of Corrections &

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Rehabilitation, 726 F.3d 1062, 1074 (9th Cir. 2013); Leer v. Murphy, 844 F.2d 628, 634 (9th Cir.

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1988). A person deprives another of a constitutional right within the meaning of Section 1983 if

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he does an affirmative act, participates in another's affirmative act or fails to perform an act which

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he is legally required to do, that causes the deprivation of which the plaintiff complains. Leer, 844

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F.2d at 633. But there is no respondeat superior liability under Section 1983. Lemire, 726 F.3d at
1074. That is, a supervisor is not liable merely because the supervisor is responsible, in general

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United States District Court
Northern District of California

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terms, for the actions of another. Taylor v. List, 880 F.2d 1040, 1045 (9th Cir. 1989); Ybarra v.

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Reno Thunderbird Mobile Home Village, 723 F.2d 675, 680-81 (9th Cir. 1984). A supervisor may

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be liable only on a showing of (1) personal involvement in the constitutional deprivation or (2) a

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sufficient causal connection between the supervisor's wrongful conduct and the constitutional

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violation. Henry A. v. Willden, 678 F.3d 991, 1003-04 (9th Cir. 2012). It is insufficient for a

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plaintiff to allege generally that supervisors knew about the constitutional violation or that they

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generally created policies and procedures that led to the violation, without alleging “a specific

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policy” or “a specific event” instigated by them that led to the constitutional violation. Hydrick v.

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Hunter, 669 F.3d 937, 942 (9th Cir. 2012).

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II.

Bell's Allegations

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In his complaint, Bell alleges the following:

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On July 7, 2012, Oakland police officers arrested him on a charge of robbery. Officer

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Jonathan Muniz's recording device is so obscured that it shows he planted inculpatory evidence.

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Officers Dill, Smith and R. Saleh acquiesced in the planting of evidence because they failed to

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record Muniz's search. Muniz and Dill failed to preserve evidence that was potentially favorable

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to Bell. Sergeant E. Mausz and Officer Joseph Jochim acquiesced in the wrongdoing.

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III.

Bell's Claims

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To recover damages for an allegedly unconstitutional conviction or imprisonment, or for

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other harm caused by actions whose unlawfulness would render a conviction or sentence invalid, a

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§ 1983 plaintiff must prove that the conviction or sentence has been reversed on direct appeal,

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expunged by executive order, declared invalid by a state tribunal authorized to make such

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determination, or called into question by a federal court's issuance of a writ of habeas corpus. See

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Heck v. Humphrey, 512 U.S. 477, 486-87 (1994). A claim for damages bearing that relationship

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to a conviction or sentence that has not been so invalidated is not cognizable under § 1983. See id.
at 487. Heck generally bars claims challenging the validity of an arrest or prosecution. See

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United States District Court
Northern District of California

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Smithart v. Towery, 79 F.3d 951, 952 (9th Cir. 1996) (Heck bars plaintiff's claims that defendants

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lacked probable cause to arrest him and brought unfounded criminal charges against him).

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Because Bell is incarcerated at San Quentin State Prison, he has been convicted of some

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crime. If he is incarcerated because he was convicted on the robbery charge at issue in his

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complaint, his claim would be barred by Heck v. Humphrey unless he can show that the conviction

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or sentence was reversed on direct appeal, expunged by executive order, declared invalid by a

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state tribunal or called into question by a court's issuance of a writ of habeas corpus.

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Therefore, Bell's complaint is dismissed with leave to amend. He must either show that he

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was not convicted of the robbery offense, or if he was that the conviction has been reversed,

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expunged, declared invalid or called into question by the issuance of a writ of habeas corpus.

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CONCLUSION

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Based on the foregoing, the Court orders as follows:

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1. Bell's Fourth Amendment claim is dismissed because of the likelihood that it is barred

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by Heck v. Humphrey. He is given leave to amend to add allegations discussed above, if he can

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show in good faith that his claim is not barred by Heck.

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2. Bell may, if he can do so in good faith, file a First Amended Complaint ("FAC"). If Bell

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files a FAC, he must do so within twenty-eight days from the date of this order. If he does not file

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a FAC within this time, the case will be closed, without prejudice to filing a new complaint if the
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status of his conviction changes such that he would be permitted to bring a civil rights action.

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3. The amended complaint must include the caption and civil case number used in this

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Order and the words AMENDED COMPLAINT on the first page. Because an amended

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complaint completely replaces the original complaint, Bell must include in it all the claims he

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wishes to present. See Ferdik v. Bonzelet, 963 F.2d 1258, 1262 (9th Cir. 1992). He may not

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incorporate material from the original complaint by reference.

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4. It is Bell’s responsibility to prosecute this case. Bell must keep the Court informed of
any change of address by filing a separate paper with the clerk headed “Notice of Change of

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Address,” and must comply with the Court's orders in a timely fashion. Failure to do so may

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result in the dismissal of this action for failure to prosecute pursuant to Federal Rule of Civil

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United States District Court
Northern District of California

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Procedure 41(b).

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IT IS SO ORDERED.
Dated: September 18, 2014
______________________________________
VINCE CHHABRIA
United States District Judge

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UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

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NORTHERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA

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PATRICK B. BELL,

Case No. 14-cv-02947-VC

Plaintiff,
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v.

CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE

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JONATHAN MUNIZ, et al.,
Defendants.

United States District Court
Northern District of California

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I, the undersigned, hereby certify that I am an employee in the Office of the Clerk, U.S.
District Court, Northern District of California.
That on 9/18/2014, I SERVED a true and correct copy(ies) of the attached, by placing said
copy(ies) in a postage paid envelope addressed to the person(s) hereinafter listed, by depositing
said envelope in the U.S. Mail, or by placing said copy(ies) into an inter-office delivery receptacle
located in the Clerk's office.

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Patrick B. Bell ID: AU4562
San Quentin State Prison
San Quentin, CA 94974

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Dated: 9/18/2014

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Richard W. Wieking
Clerk, United States District Court

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By:________________________
Kristen Melen, Deputy Clerk to the
Honorable VINCE CHHABRIA

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