Taylor v. Norman

Filing 6

MEMORANDUM AND ORDER: IT IS HEREBY ORDERED that this action is DISMISSED without prejudice. An Order of Dismissal will be filed with this Memorandum and Order. Signed by District Judge Catherine D. Perry on May 17, 2013. (BRP)

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
EASTERN DISTRICT OF MISSOURI
EASTERN DIVISION
STEVEN E. TAYLOR,
Petitioner,
v.
JEFF NORMAN,
Respondent.

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No. 4:13CV259 CDP

MEMORANDUM AND ORDER
Petitioner has failed to comply with the Court’s Order dated February 25, 2013,
in which the Court directed petitioner to submit an amended petition that complied
with the Rules Governing § 2254 Cases and the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure.
As a result, the Court will dismiss this action for failure to prosecute.
The petition is comprised of twenty-three pages of rambling allegations
regarding petitioner’s trial and incidents that occurred before and after the trial, such
as complaints about his arrest and complaints about the law library at the St. Louis
City Justice Center. False arrest claims and First Amendment access to court claims
are not cognizable under § 2254. Rather, they must be pursued in a civil rights action
under 42 U.S.C. § 1983.
Moreover, while Rule 2(c)(2) of the Rules Governing § 2254 Cases requires
that a petitioner “state the facts supporting each ground” of the petition, Rule 8 of the

Federal Rules of Civil Procedure requires that a claim for relief contain “a short and
plain statement showing that the pleader is entitled to relief.” This means that the
petitioner must not ramble needlessly about matters extraneous to the challenge to the
validity of his confinement in his habeas petition.
The Court sent petitioner the forms for filing a habeas petition and a civil rights
action on February 25, 2013, and ordered him to submit an amended petition no later
than March 27, 2013. Petitioner has not complied with the Order. As a result, the
Court will dismiss this action for failure to prosecute. See Fed. R. Civ. P. 41(b).
Accordingly,
IT IS HEREBY ORDERED that this action is DISMISSED without
prejudice.
An Order of Dismissal will be filed with this Memorandum and Order.
Dated this 17th day of May, 2013.

CATHERINE D. PERRY
UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE

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