McCright v. Brown et al

Filing 6

ORDER OF DISMISSAL. For the reasons set forth above, this action is DISMISSED without prejudice. Signed by Judge Edward J. Davila on 7/10/2012. (ecg, COURT STAFF) (Filed on 7/10/2012)

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IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

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FOR THE NORTHERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA

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For the Northern District of California

United States District Court

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COLVIN MCCRIGHT,
Plaintiff,

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vs.

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EDMUND G. BROWN, JR., et al.,
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Defendants.
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No. C 12-01502 EJD (PR)
ORDER OF DISMISSAL

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Plaintiff, a California prisoner at Pelican Bay State Prison (“PBSP”) in

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Crescent City, has filed a pro se civil rights action under 42 U.S.C. § 1983 alleging

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that state officials have denied him good time and work credits to which he is

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entitled and have failed to revise his sentence as required by state law. Plaintiff

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seeks damages as well as injunctive and declaratory relief. Plaintiff’s motion for

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leave to proceed in forma pauperis, (Docket Nos. 2 & 4), will be addressed in a

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separate order. The Court now reviews the complaint pursuant to 28 U.S.C. §

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1915A(a).
DISCUSSION

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A.

Standard of Review
Federal courts must engage in a preliminary screening of cases in which

Order of Dismissal
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prisoners seek redress from a governmental entity or officer or employee of a

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governmental entity. 28 U.S.C. § 1915A(a). The court must identify cognizable

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claims or dismiss the complaint, or any portion of the complaint, if the complaint “is

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frivolous, malicious, or fails to state a claim upon which relief may be granted,” or

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“seeks monetary relief from a defendant who is immune from such relief.” Id. §

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1915A(b). Pro se pleadings must be liberally construed, however. Balistreri v.

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

elements: (1) that a right secured by the Constitution or laws of the United States

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was violated, and (2) that the alleged violation was committed by a person acting

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For the Northern District of California

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

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United States District Court

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under the color of state law. West v. Atkins, 487 U.S. 42, 48 (1988).

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B.

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Legal Claims
According to the complaint, Plaintiff was sentenced to 7 years to life in state

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prison under the Indeterminate Sentencing Law (“ISL”). (Compl. 5.) Plaintiff

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claims that a change in state law required the Board of Prison Terms (“BPT”) to

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“recompute and revise” his ISL term to a term under the new Determinate

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Sentencing Law (“DSL”) as well as grant him good-behavior credits. (Id.) Plaintiff

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alleges that defendants have not complied with state law because they have

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“maintained a policy and practice that expressly prohibits Plaintiff from being

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granted said credits.” (Id.) Plaintiff alleges that the BPT’s failure to grant Plaintiff

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credits has “resulted in Plaintiff[’s] current sentence exceeding the ISL and DSL

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guidelines.” (Id. at 6.)

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The Court notes that Plaintiff alleged almost identical claims in a previous §

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1983 action which was dismissed without prejudice pursuant to Heck v. Humphrey,

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512 U.S. 477 (1994). See McCright v. Schwarzenegger, No. C 08-00804 JW (PR)

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(N.D. Cal. Aug. 14, 2008) ). The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed the

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dismissal in an unpublished opinion, finding that dismissal was proper under Heck.

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See McCright v. Schwarzenegger, No. 08-16994, slip op. at 2 (9th Cir. Apr. 20,
Order of Dismissal
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2010) ). For the same reasons, the instant action must be dismissed.
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

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

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the conviction or sentence has been reversed on direct appeal, expunged by

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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

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

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

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For the Northern District of California

United States District Court

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invalidated is not cognizable under § 1983. Id. at 487.
Heck also bars a claim of unconstitutional deprivation of time credits because

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such a claim necessarily calls into question the lawfulness of the plaintiff’s

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continuing confinement, i.e., it implicates the duration of the plaintiff's sentence.

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See Sheldon v. Hundley, 83 F.3d 231, 233 (8th Cir. 1996). Plaintiff’s claims fall

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squarely within this realm of cases barred by Heck. Plaintiff essentially claims that

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the defendants’ allegedly unlawful actions are the cause of his prolonged

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confinement, which directly implicate the duration of his sentence. Id. at 233.

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Furthermore, Plaintiff has failed to allege that the BPT’s decisions with respect to

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his credits or their failure to revise his sentence from ISL ro DSL has since been

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reversed, expunged, set aside or called into question. See Littles v. Bd. of Pardons

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and Paroles Div., 68 F.3d 122, 123 (5th Cir. 1995). Until then, Plaintiff’s action is

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barred by Heck. Id. Accordingly, Plaintiff’s claims are DISMISSED without

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prejudice.
CONCLUSION

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For the reasons set forth above, this action is DISMISSED without prejudice.

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DATED:

7/10/2012

EDWARD J. DAVILA
United States District Judge

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Order of Dismissal
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UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
FOR THE
NORTHERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA

COLVIN MCCRIGHT,

Case Number: CV12-01502 EJD

Plaintiff,

CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE

v.
EDMUND G. BROWN, JR., et al.,
Defendants.

/

I, the undersigned, hereby certify that I am an employee in the Office of the Clerk, U.S. District
Court, Northern District of California.
7/10/2012
That on
, 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.

Colvin McCright B-08892
Pelican Bay State Prison
5905 Lake Earl Drive
P. O. Box 7500
Crescent City, Ca 95532
Dated:

7/10/2012
Richard W. Wieking, Clerk
/s/By: Elizabeth Garcia, Deputy Clerk