Peterson #477079 v. Ostrander et al
Filing
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OPINION; signed by Judge Janet T. Neff (Judge Janet T. Neff, clb)
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
FOR THE WESTERN DISTRICT OF MICHIGAN
SOUTHERN DIVISION
BRIAN DWIGHT PETERSON,
Plaintiff,
Case No. 1:16-cv-104
v.
Honorable Janet T. Neff
DAVID OSTRANDER et al.,
Defendants.
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OPINION
This is a civil rights action brought by a state prisoner pursuant to 42 U.S.C. § 1983.
The Court has granted Plaintiff leave to proceed in forma pauperis. Under the Prison Litigation
Reform Act, PUB. L. NO. 104-134, 110 STAT. 1321 (1996), the Court is required to dismiss any
prisoner action brought under federal law if the complaint is frivolous, malicious, fails to state a
claim upon which relief can be granted, or seeks monetary relief from a defendant immune from
such relief. 28 U.S.C. §§ 1915(e)(2), 1915A; 42 U.S.C. § 1997e(c). The Court must read Plaintiff’s
pro se complaint indulgently, see Haines v. Kerner, 404 U.S. 519, 520 (1972), and accept Plaintiff’s
allegations as true, unless they are clearly irrational or wholly incredible. Denton v. Hernandez, 504
U.S. 25, 33 (1992). Applying these standards, Plaintiff’s action will be dismissed for failure to state
a claim.
Factual Allegations
Plaintiff Brian Dwight Peterson presently is incarcerated at the Carson City
Correctional Facility, though the actions about which he complains occurred while he was
incarcerated at the Kalamazoo County Jail (KCJ). He sues the following Defendants: Sheriff
(unknown) Fuller, Captain (unknown) Shull, and Lieutenant (unknown) Kipp, all of the Kalamazoo
County Sheriff Department; and City of Kalamazoo Police Detectives David Caswell and Sheila
Goodell; and City of Kalamazoo Police Officer David Ostrander.
Plaintiff alleges that, while being held in KCJ in 2012, he was prevented from
sending and receiving mail for some period of time, ostensibly in violation of his First and Eighth
Amendment rights. Plaintiff alleges that he submitted a grievance to Defendant Shull on November
11, 2012, and filed another grievance with Officer Garrett (not a Defendant) on November 21, 2012.
Plaintiff claims that he received no responses to his grievances. Further, Plaintiff alleges that he was
denied access to a law library during that period. He contends that Defendants told him that his right
to access the courts was met by having an attorney. Plaintiff conclusorily suggests that, had he been
able to receive mail and access the law library, he might have been able to arrange for bail or to
obtain a change in venue. Plaintiff also complains that he learned that a warrant had issued
authorizing the search of his mail, but he was personally unable to obtain a copy of the warrant.
Plaintiff apparently ultimately received a copy of the warrant, which he attaches to his complaint.
(See ECF No. 1-1, PageID.16.)
For relief, Plaintiff seeks compensatory and punitive damages.
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Discussion
I.
Failure to state a claim
A complaint may be dismissed for failure to state a claim if it fails “‘to give the
defendant fair notice of what the . . . claim is and the grounds upon which it rests.’” Bell Atl. Corp.
v. Twombly, 550 U.S. 544, 555 (2007) (quoting Conley v. Gibson, 355 U.S. 41, 47 (1957)). While
a complaint need not contain detailed factual allegations, a plaintiff’s allegations must include more
than labels and conclusions. Twombly, 550 U.S. at 555; Ashcroft v. Iqbal, 556 U.S. 662, 678 (2009)
(“Threadbare recitals of the elements of a cause of action, supported by mere conclusory statements,
do not suffice.”). The court must determine whether the complaint contains “enough facts to state
a claim to relief that is plausible on its face.” Twombly, 550 U.S. at 570. “A claim has facial
plausibility when the plaintiff pleads factual content that allows the court to draw the reasonable
inference that the defendant is liable for the misconduct alleged.” Iqbal, 556 U.S. at 679. Although
the plausibility standard is not equivalent to a “‘probability requirement,’ . . . it asks for more than
a sheer possibility that a defendant has acted unlawfully.” Iqbal, 556 U.S. at 678 (quoting Twombly,
550 U.S. at 556). “[W]here the well-pleaded facts do not permit the court to infer more than the
mere possibility of misconduct, the complaint has alleged – but it has not ‘show[n]’ – that the
pleader is entitled to relief.” Iqbal, 556 U.S. at 679 (quoting FED. R. CIV. P. 8(a)(2)); see also Hill
v. Lappin, 630 F.3d 468, 470-71 (6th Cir. 2010) (holding that the Twombly/Iqbal plausibility
standard applies to dismissals of prisoner cases on initial review under 28 U.S.C. §§ 1915A(b)(1)
and 1915(e)(2)(B)(i)).
To state a claim under 42 U.S.C. § 1983, a plaintiff must allege the violation of a
right secured by the federal Constitution or laws and must show that the deprivation was committed
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by a person acting under color of state law. West v. Atkins, 487 U.S. 42, 48 (1988); Dominguez v.
Corr. Med. Servs., 555 F.3d 543, 549 (6th Cir. 2009). Because § 1983 is a method for vindicating
federal rights, not a source of substantive rights itself, the first step in an action under § 1983 is to
identify the specific constitutional right allegedly infringed. Albright v. Oliver, 510 U.S. 266, 271
(1994).
State statutes of limitations and tolling principles apply to determine the
timeliness of claims asserted under 42 U.S.C. § 1983. Wilson v. Garcia, 471 U.S. 261, 268-69
(1985). For civil rights suits filed in Michigan under § 1983, the statute of limitations is three years.
See MICH. COMP. LAWS § 600.5805(10); Carroll v. Wilkerson, 782 F.2d 44, 44 (6th Cir. 1986) (per
curiam); Stafford v. Vaughn, No. 97-2239, 1999 WL 96990, at *1 (6th Cir. Feb. 2, 1999). Accrual
of the claim for relief, however, is a question of federal law. Collyer v. Darling, 98 F.3d 211, 220
(6th Cir. 1996); Sevier v. Turner, 742 F.2d 262, 272 (6th Cir. 1984). The statute of limitations
begins to run when the aggrieved party knows or has reason to know of the injury that is the basis
of his action. Collyer, 98 F.3d at 220.1
Plaintiff’s complaint is untimely. He asserts claims arising in November 2012.
Plaintiff had reason to know of the “harms” done to him at the time they occurred. Hence, his
claims accrued in 1997. However, he did not file his complaint until January 26, 2016,2 beyond
Michigan’s three-year limit. Moreover, Michigan law no longer tolls the running of the statute of
1
28 U.S.C. § 1658 created a “catch-all” limitations period of four years for civil actions arising under federal
statutes enacted after December 1, 1990. The Supreme Court’s decision in Jones v. R.R. Donnelley & Sons Co., 541 U.S.
369 (2004), which applied this federal four-year limitations period to a suit alleging racial discrimination under § 1981
does not apply to prisoner claims under 28 U.S.C. § 1983 because, while § 1983 was amended in 1996, prisoner civil
rights actions under § 1983 were not “made possible” by the amended statute. Id. at 382.
2
Under Sixth Circuit precedent, the application is deemed filed when handed to prison authorities for mailing
to the federal court. Cook v. Stegall, 295 F.3d 517, 521 (6th Cir. 2002). Plaintiff states that he placed a copy of the
complaint in the prison mail on January 26, 2016. The complaint was received by the Court on February 1, 2016. The
Court has given Plaintiff the benefit of the earlier filing date.
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limitations when a plaintiff is incarcerated. See MICH. COMP. LAWS § 600.5851(9). Further, it is
well established that ignorance of the law does not warrant equitable tolling of a statute of
limitations. See Rose v. Dole, 945 F.2d 1331, 1335 (6th Cir. 1991); Jones v. Gen. Motors Corp.,
939 F.2d 380, 385 (6th Cir. 1991); Mason v. Dep’t of Justice, No. 01-5701, 2002 WL 1334756, at
*2 (6th Cir. June 17, 2002).
The statute of limitations is tolled for the period during which a plaintiff’s available
state remedies were being exhausted. See Brown v. Morgan, 209 F.3d 595, 596-97 (6th Cir. 2000).
According to Plaintiff’s allegations, however, the grievance response period at KCJ was two weeks.
Even allowing for tolling during the grievance process, therefore, more than three years have passed
since the date of Plaintiff’s alleged injury.
Where, as here, “the allegations . . . show that relief is barred by the applicable statute
of limitations, the complaint is subject to dismissal for failure to state a claim . . . .” Jones v. Bock,
549 U.S. 199, 215 (2007). The Court therefore will dismiss the action as untimely.
Conclusion
Having conducted the review required by the Prison Litigation Reform Act, the Court
determines that Plaintiff’s action will be dismissed for failure to state a claim pursuant to 28 U.S.C.
§§ 1915(e)(2) and 1915A(b), and 42 U.S.C. § 1997e(c).
The Court must next decide whether an appeal of this action would be in good faith
within the meaning of 28 U.S.C. § 1915(a)(3). See McGore v. Wrigglesworth, 114 F.3d 601, 611
(6th Cir. 1997). For the same reasons that the Court dismisses the action, the Court discerns no
good-faith basis for an appeal. Should Plaintiff appeal this decision, the Court will assess the
$505.00 appellate filing fee pursuant to § 1915(b)(1), see McGore, 114 F.3d at 610-11, unless
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Plaintiff is barred from proceeding in forma pauperis, e.g., by the “three-strikes” rule of § 1915(g).
If he is barred, he will be required to pay the $505.00 appellate filing fee in one lump sum.
This is a dismissal as described by 28 U.S.C. § 1915(g).
A Judgment consistent with this Opinion will be entered.
Dated: May 23, 2016
/s/ Janet T. Neff
Janet T. Neff
United States District Judge
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