Moody v. Woods

Filing 12

ORDER OF DISMISSAL WITH LEAVE TO AMEND re 1 Complaint filed by Ronnie Lee Moody. Signed by Judge James Donato on 10/12/17. (lrcS, COURT STAFF) (Filed on 10/12/2017)

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UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

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NORTHERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA

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RONNIE LEE MOODY,
Plaintiff,

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ORDER OF DISMISSAL WITH
LEAVE TO AMEND

v.
WOODS,
Defendant.

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United States District Court
Northern District of California

Case No. 17-cv-02688-JD

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Ronnie Lee Moody, a state prisoner, has filed a pro se civil rights complaint under 42
U.S.C. § 1983. He has been granted leave to proceed in forma pauperis.

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STANDARD OF REVIEW

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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). In its review, the Court must identify any cognizable claims, and dismiss any claims

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which are frivolous, malicious, fail to state a claim upon which relief may be granted, or seek

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monetary relief from a defendant who is immune from such relief. Id. at 1915A(b)(1),(2). Pro se

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pleadings must be liberally construed. Balistreri v. Pacifica Police Dep’t, 901 F.2d 696, 699 (9th

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Cir. 1990).

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Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 8(a)(2) requires only “a short and plain statement of the

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claim showing that the pleader is entitled to relief.” Although a complaint “does not need detailed

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factual allegations, . . . a plaintiff’s obligation to provide the ‘grounds’ of his ‘entitle[ment] to

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relief’ requires more than labels and conclusions, and a formulaic recitation of the elements of a

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cause of action will not do. . . . Factual allegations must be enough to raise a right to relief above

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the speculative level.” Bell Atlantic Corp. v. Twombly, 550 U.S. 544, 555 (2007) (citations

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omitted). A complaint must proffer “enough facts to state a claim to relief that is plausible on its

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face.” Id. at 570. The United States Supreme Court has explained the “plausible on its face”

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standard of Twombly: “While legal conclusions can provide the framework of a complaint, they

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must be supported by factual allegations. When there are well-pleaded factual allegations, a court

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should assume their veracity and then determine whether they plausibly give rise to an entitlement

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to relief.” Ashcroft v. Iqbal, 556 U.S. 662, 679 (2009).

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

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the Constitution or laws of the United States was violated, and (2) the alleged deprivation was

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committed by a person acting under the color of state law. West v. Atkins, 487 U.S. 42, 48 (1988).
LEGAL CLAIMS

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United States District Court
Northern District of California

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Plaintiff alleges that a police officer used excessive force during his arrest. He seeks

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money damages. In order to recover damages for an allegedly unconstitutional conviction or

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imprisonment, or for other harm caused by actions whose unlawfulness would render a conviction

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or sentence invalid, a 42 U.S.C. § 1983 plaintiff must prove that the conviction or sentence has

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been reversed on direct appeal, expunged by executive order, declared invalid by a state tribunal

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authorized to make such determination, or called into question by a federal court’s issuance of a

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writ of habeas corpus. Heck v. Humphrey, 512 U.S. 477, 486-487 (1994). A claim for damages

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bearing that relationship to a conviction or sentence that has not been so invalidated is not

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cognizable under § 1983. Id. at 487.

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Plaintiff was arrested on February 7, 2015, after stealing a car, attempting to rob a tourist

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and causing a hit and run accident. People v. Moody, No. A145921, 2017 WL 2591278, at *1

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(Cal. Ct. App. June 15, 2017) He was convicted of these crimes and two counts of resisting a

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police officer, resisting an executive officer and the attempted taking of a firearm while resisting a

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police officer. Id. at *2.

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Plaintiff alleges that one of the officers used his metal baton striking plaintiff during the

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incident. However, plaintiff was found guilty of resisting the police officer and attempting to take

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his gun. Proceeding with this civil rights case would call into question the underlying criminal

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conviction. Plaintiff can only proceed with this action if the conviction has been reversed or
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expunged. The complaint is dismissed with leave to amend to show that his conviction is no

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longer valid.
CONCLUSION

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1.

The complaint is DISMISSED with leave to amend. The amended complaint must

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be filed within twenty-eight (28) days of the date this order is filed and must include the caption

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and civil case number used in this order and the words AMENDED COMPLAINT on the first

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page. Because an amended complaint completely replaces the original complaint, plaintiff must

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include in it all the claims he wishes to present. See Ferdik v. Bonzelet, 963 F.2d 1258, 1262 (9th

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Cir. 1992). He may not incorporate material from the original complaint by reference. Failure to

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United States District Court
Northern District of California

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amend within the designated time will result in the dismissal of this action.
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It is the plaintiff’s responsibility to prosecute this case. Plaintiff must keep the

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Court informed of any change of address by filing a separate paper with the clerk headed “Notice

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of Change of Address,” and must comply with the Court’s orders in a timely fashion. Failure to

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do so may result in the dismissal of this action for failure to prosecute pursuant to Federal Rule of

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Civil Procedure 41(b)

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IT IS SO ORDERED.
Dated: October 12, 2017

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JAMES DONATO
United States District Judge

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UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

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NORTHERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA

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RONNIE LEE MOODY,

Case No. 17-cv-02688-JD

Plaintiff,
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v.

CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE

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WOODS,
Defendant.

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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.

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That on October 12, 2017, 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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Ronnie Lee Moody ID: Prisoner AX4388
R.J.D. Correctional Facility C-14-103up
480 Alta Road
San Diego, CA 92179

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Dated: October 12, 2017

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Susan Y. Soong
Clerk, United States District Court

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By:________________________
LISA R. CLARK, Deputy Clerk to the
Honorable JAMES DONATO
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