Morton v. St. Francois County

Filing 4

MEMORANDUM AND ORDER: IT IS HEREBY ORDERED that plaintiff's motion for leave to proceed in forma pauperis [ECF No. 2 ] is GRANTED. IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that this action is DISMISSED without prejudice. An Order of Dismissal will be filed separately. Signed by District Judge Rodney W. Sippel on 3/5/15. (JWD)

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
EASTERN DISTRICT OF MISSOURI
EASTERN DIVISION
CRISTOPHER MORTON,

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Plaintiff,
v.
ST. FRANCOIS COUNTY,
Defendant,

No. 4:15CV379 RWS

MEMORANDUM AND ORDER
Plaintiff seeks relief under 42 U.S.C. § 1983 from a state court hearing on whether his
probation should be revoked. This Court lacks jurisdiction over the matter.
The Circuit Court for St. Francois County handed plaintiff a suspended imposition of
sentence for age misrepresentation with intent to solicit a minor via the internet for sexual
misconduct. Missouri v. Norton, No. 12SF-CR02204. Under the suspended sentence, plaintiff
was placed on probation. On December 30, 2014, the Missouri Board of Probation and Parole
filed a notice of probation violation in the state court. The same day, the court ordered that
plaintiff’s probation suspended and issued a warrant for his arrest. A probation violation hearing
has been set for April 24, 2015.
In his complaint, plaintiff asks the Court “to reopen [his state court] case” because of
“false claims” made against him by the court.
Federal district courts are courts of original jurisdiction; they lack subject matter
jurisdiction to engage in appellate review of state court decisions. Postma v. First Fed. Sav. &
Loan, 74 F.3d 160, 162 (8th Cir. 1996). AReview of state court decisions may be had only in the

Supreme Court.@ Id. As a result, this action must be dismissed under Rule 12(h)(3) of the
Federal Rules of Civil Procedure.
Accordingly,
IT IS HEREBY ORDERED that plaintiff’s motion for leave to proceed in forma
pauperis [ECF No. 2] is GRANTED.
IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that this action is DISMISSED without prejudice.
An Order of Dismissal will be filed separately.
Dated this 5th day of March, 2015.

RODNEY W. SIPPEL
UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE

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