Walker v. Harris

Filing 13

ORDER DISMISSING CASE WITHOUT PREJUDICE. Signed by Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers on 10/30/13. (Attachments: # 1 Certificate/Proof of Service)(fs, COURT STAFF) (Filed on 10/30/2013)

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IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
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FOR THE NORTHERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA

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v.
KAMALA HARRIS,
Defendant.

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United States District Court
For the Northern District of California

ORDER OF DISMISSAL WITHOUT
PREJUDICE

Plaintiff,

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No. C 13-02198 YGR (PR)

JEFFERY E. WALKER,

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This case was opened when Plaintiff, a state prisoner currently incarcerated at the California
Medical Facility ("CMF"), filed a complaint on the Court's civil rights form. The Clerk of the Court
sent him a notice that he had failed to pay the $350.00 filing fee or apply for leave to proceed in
forma pauperis ("IFP"). Plaintiff thereafter filed an application to proceed IFP.
Although Plaintiff submitted his claims on a civil rights form, it is apparent that he intended
to file a petition for a writ of habeas corpus because he challenges his 1991 plea agreement in a "sex
offense conviction," that resulted in: (1) a requirement for him to "register as a sex offender for life;"
(2) placement on Megan's Law Internet web site pursuant to California Penal Code § 290; and (3)
the prison restricting from "custody status and jobs." (Comp. at 3.) Plaintiff claims "[t]here was no
such advisement [prior to the plea] making it illegal for claims 1-3 to be implemented" because the
aforementioned were "never agreed to." (Id.) As relief, Plaintiff seeks: (1) an immediate injunction
prohibiting continued placement on the Megan's Law Internet web site; (2) a release from the sex
offender registry requirement; (3) the Court to prohibit prison restrictions to his custody status and
job placements;1 and (4) for his 1991 plea agreement to be "withdrawn." (Id.)

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Should Plaintiff seek to allege that some of his claims extend to the conditions of his
confinement at CMF, those claims must be brought in a separate lawsuit in the United States District
Court for the Eastern District of California, the proper venue for claims arising in Solano County, where
CMF is located. See 28 U.S.C. § 1391(b); 28 U.S.C. § 84(b).

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DISCUSSION
I.

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Standard of Review
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. See 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. See id. at 1915A(b)(1), (2). Pro

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se pleadings must be liberally construed. See Balistreri v. Pacifica Police Dep't, 901 F.2d 696, 699

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(9th Cir. 1990).

United States District Court
For the Northern District of California

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

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

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and (2) that the alleged deprivation was committed by a person acting under the color of state law.

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See West v. Atkins, 487 U.S. 42, 48 (1988).

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II.

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Legal Claim
In this case, Plaintiff has improperly filed his claim as a civil rights action. Traditionally,

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challenges to prison conditions have been cognizable only via § 1983, while challenges implicating

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the fact or duration of confinement must be brought through a habeas petition. Docken v. Chase,

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393 F.3d 1024, 1026 (9th Cir. 2004).

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Any claim by a prisoner attacking the validity or duration of his confinement must be

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brought under the habeas sections of Title 28 of the United States Code. Calderon v. Ashmus, 523

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U.S. 740, 747 (1998); Preiser v. Rodriguez, 411 U.S. 475, 500 (1973). A prisoner must bring a

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habeas petition if the nature of his claim is such that it would necessarily imply the invalidity of his

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conviction or continuing confinement. Butterfield v. Bail, 120 F.3d 1023, 1024 (9th Cir. 1997) (§

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1983 claim).

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A district court may construe a habeas petition by a prisoner attacking the conditions of his

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confinement as a civil rights action under 42 U.S.C. § 1983. Wilwording v. Swenson, 404 U.S. 249,

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251 (1971). The opposite is not true, however: a civil rights complaint seeking habeas relief should

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be dismissed without prejudice to bringing it as a petition for writ of habeas corpus. Trimble v. City

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of Santa Rosa, 49 F.3d 583, 586 (9th Cir. 1995).

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In this case, Plaintiff's allegations attack his 1991 plea agreement rather than the conditions

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of his confinement. When a state prisoner's § 1983 suit implicates the invalidity of his conviction

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(which, in the instant action, resulted from an allegedly unconstitutional plea agreement), the

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complaint must be dismissed unless the plaintiff can demonstrate that he has succeeded in getting

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the duration of the sentence changed in another forum, for instance by succeeding with a state or

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federal habeas petition. This Plaintiff has not done; therefore, he has failed to state a cognizable

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claim under section 1983. Accordingly, the instant complaint is DISMISSED without prejudice.

United States District Court
For the Northern District of California

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CONCLUSION
Based on the foregoing, the Court concludes that Plaintiff's complaint fails to challenge the

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conditions of his confinement. His claims implicate the invalidity of his conviction and are more

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appropriately addressed in a petition for a writ of habeas corpus pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 2254.

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Therefore, the complaint is DISMISSED without prejudice to Plaintiff filing a habeas action.

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Plaintiff's motion for leave to proceed in forma pauperis will be addressed in a separate
written Order.
The Clerk shall close the file, terminate all pending motions, and enter judgment in
accordance with this Order.
IT IS SO ORDERED.

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DATED:

October 30, 2013
YVONNE GONZALEZ ROGERS
UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT JUDGE

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