Hawes v. Krause et al
Filing
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ORDER OF DISMISSAL. Signed by Judge William H. Orrick on 10/30/2017. (Attachments: # 1 Certificate/Proof of Service) (jmdS, COURT STAFF) (Filed on 10/30/2017)
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UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
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NORTHERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA
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TERRY RAY HAWES,
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Plaintiff,
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ORDER OF DISMISSAL
v.
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PETER KRAUSE, et al.,
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United States District Court
Northern District of California
Case No. 17-cv-05968-WHO (PR)
Defendants.
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For the fifth time this year, plaintiff Terry Hawes seeks relief for injuries allegedly
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caused by his 2009 state convictions for rape and other crimes. In two of the civil rights
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actions, he attempted to sue the governor (whose connection to Hawes’s convictions
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plaintiff never established) and the trial judge who presided over his criminal trial (who is
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absolutely immune from civil liability for damages for acts performed in a judicial
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capacity).1 The third was dismissed because Hawes failed to pay the filing fee or submit a
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complete application to proceed in forma pauperis.2 The fourth, which named the district
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and assistant district attorneys, was dismissed because it, like the present action, was
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barred by Heck.3 In the fifth and present action, Hawes sues the state governor and his
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legal affairs secretary for failing to free him even after he gave them evidence that his trial
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was unfair.
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Hawes v. Brown, 17-cv-02400-WHO; and Hawes v. Brown, 17-cv-05166-WHO.
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Hawes v. State of California, 17-cv-01168-WHO.
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Hawes v. Berberian, 17-cv-05566-WHO.
As with the prior actions, the current 42 U.S.C. § 1983 suit is barred by Heck v.
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Humphrey, 512 U.S. 477 (1994). As was made clear in the prior dismissal orders, Heck
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bars section 1983 actions for damages for an allegedly unconstitutional conviction or
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imprisonment, or for other harm caused by actions whose unlawfulness would render a
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conviction or sentence invalid. Id. at 486-487. When a state prisoner seeks damages in a
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section 1983 suit, the district court must therefore consider whether a judgment in favor of
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the plaintiff would necessarily imply the invalidity of his conviction or sentence; if it
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would, the complaint must be dismissed unless the plaintiff can demonstrate that the
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conviction or sentence has already been invalidated. Id. at 487. The Heck bar applies here
because a judgment that defendants failed to free him would necessarily imply the
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United States District Court
Northern District of California
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invalidity of his convictions and sentence.
The Heck bar can be avoided if a plaintiff can prove that the conviction or sentence
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has been reversed on direct appeal, expunged by executive order, declared invalid by a
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state tribunal authorized to make such determination, or called into question by a federal
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court’s issuance of a writ of habeas corpus. Id.
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Hawes has made no showing that Heck does not bar his case.
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Accordingly, this action is DISMISSED without prejudice. Hawes may refile his
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suit if he can show that his conviction has been invalidated in one of the ways specified in
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Heck.
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CONCLUSION
This federal civil rights action is DISMISSED without prejudice. The Clerk shall
enter judgment in favor of defendants, and close the file.
IT IS SO ORDERED.
Dated: October 30, 2017
_________________________
WILLIAM H. ORRICK
United States District Judge
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