ROARY v. ATLANTIC COUNTY JUSTICE FACILITY et al

Filing 3

OPINION. Signed by Judge Renee Marie Bumb on 6/8/17. (jbk, )

NOT FOR PUBLICATION
IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
FOR THE DISTRICT OF NEW JERSEY
CAMDEN VICINAGE
DAVID C. ROARY,

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Plaintiff,
v.

ATLANTIC COUNTY JUSTICE
FACILITY et al.,
Defendants.

Civ. Action No. 17-2674 (RMB)

OPINION

BUMB, District Judge:
Plaintiff David C. Roary, an inmate confined in Atlantic
County Justice Facility (“ACJF”), in Atlantic City, New Jersey,
filed a civil rights action under 42 U.S.C. § 1983 on April 19,
2017.

(Compl., ECF No. 1.)

prepayment

of

fees

U.S.C. § 1915(a).

(“in

Plaintiff seeks to proceed without

forma

pauperis”

(IFP App., ECF No. 1-2.)

or

“IFP”)

under

28

Plaintiff has filed

a properly completed IFP application, establishing his financial
eligibility to proceed in forma pauperis, and his application
will be granted.
The Court must review the complaint pursuant to 28 U.S.C.
§§ 1915(e)(2)(B); 1915A(b) to determine whether it should be
dismissed as frivolous or malicious, for failure to state a

claim upon which relief may be granted, or because it seeks
monetary relief from a defendant who is immune from such relief.
I. STANDARDS FOR A SUA SPONTE DISMISSAL
A pleading must contain a “short and plain statement of the
claim showing that the pleader is entitled to relief.”
Civ. P. 8(a)(2).

Fed. R.

“To survive a motion to dismiss, a complaint

must contain sufficient factual matter, accepted as true, to
‘state

a

Ashcroft

claim
v.

to

relief

Iqbal,

556

that

U.S.

is

plausible

662,

678

on

(2009)

its

(quoting

Atlantic Corp. v. Twombly, 550 U.S. 544, 570 (2007)).
has

facial

plausibility

when

the

plaintiff

face.’”

pleads

Bell

“A claim
factual

content that allows the court to draw the reasonable inference
that the defendant is liable for the misconduct alleged.”

Id.

(quoting Twombly, 550 U.S. at 556.)
“[A]

court

must

accept

contained in a complaint.”
conclusions

as

true.

as

Id.

Id.

true

all

of

the

allegations

A court need not accept legal

Legal

conclusions,

together

with

threadbare recitals of the elements of a cause of action, do not
suffice to state a claim.

Id.

Thus, “a court considering a

motion to dismiss can choose to begin by identifying pleadings
that,

because

they

are

no

more

than

conclusions,

entitled to the assumption of truth.” Id. at 679.

are

not

“While legal

conclusions can provide the framework of a complaint, they must
be supported by factual allegations.”
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Id.

If a complaint can

be remedied by an amendment, a district court may not dismiss
the complaint with prejudice, but must permit the amendment.
Grayson v. Mayview State Hospital, 293 F.3d 103, 108 (3d Cir.
2002).

A court must liberally construe a pro se complaint.

Erickson v. Pardus, 551 U.S. 89, 94 (2007).
II.

DISCUSSION
A.

The Complaint

Plaintiff
(Compl.,
Justice

ECF

asserts
No.

Facility,

jurisdiction

1.)

Plaintiff

Warden

under
named

Geraldine

42
the

U.S.C.

§

1983.
County

Executive

Cohen,

Atlantic

Dennis

Levinson, and Chairman Frank Formica as defendants in this civil
rights

action

(Id.)

Plaintiff

alleges

the

Atlantic

County

Justice Facility does not have a law library where inmates can
do independent legal research.

(Id. at 4.)

Plaintiff asserts

the lack of a law library prevents him from properly defending
his two indictments, denying him the right of access to the
courts and causing him to suffer depression.
B.

(Id. at 4-5.)

Section 1983 claims

A plaintiff may have a cause of action under 42 U.S.C. §
1983

for

certain

violations

of

his

constitutional

Section 1983 provides in relevant part:
Every person who, under color of any
statute, ordinance, regulation, custom, or
usage, of any State or Territory ...
subjects, or causes to be subjected, any
citizen of the United States or other person
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rights.

within the jurisdiction thereof to the
deprivation of any rights, privileges, or
immunities secured by the Constitution and
laws, shall be liable to the party injured
in an action at law, suit in equity, or
other proper proceeding for redress.
Thus, to state a claim for relief under § 1983, a plaintiff
must allege, first, the violation of a right secured by the
Constitution or laws of the United States and, second, that the
alleged deprivation was committed or caused by a person acting
under color of state law.

West v. Atkins, 487 U.S. 42, 48

(1988); Piecknick v. Pennsylvania, 36 F.3d 1250, 1255–56 (3d
Cir. 1994).
Prisoners have a right of access to the courts under the
First and Fourteenth Amendments.
821 (1977).

Bounds v. Smith, 430 U.S. 817,

However, there is no “freestanding right to a law

library or legal assistance.”
(1996).

An

adequate

Lewis v. Casey, 518 U.S. 343, 351

law

library

is

only

of

many

acceptable ways to satisfy the right of access to courts.

Diaz

v. Holder, 532 F. App’x 61, 63 (3d Cir. 2013.)

one

For example, the

right can be satisfied by appointing an attorney or providing
the assistance of paralegals.
To

state

shortcomings

a
in

claim,
the

Id.

an

inmate

library

or

must
legal

show

the

alleged

assistance

program

“hindered his efforts to pursue a legal claim.”
at 351.

Thus, there is an actual injury requirement for a right

4 

Casey, 518 U.S.

of access to courts claim.

Id.

Examples of actual injuries

include dismissal of a complaint or the inability to bring a
complaint due to inadequacies of the law library.

Id.

Where prisoners assert that defendants'
actions have inhibited their opportunity to
present a past legal claim, they must show
(1) that they suffered an ‘actual injury'that they lost a chance to pursue a
‘nonfrivolous'
or
‘arguable’
underlying
claim; and (2) that they have no other
‘remedy’ that may be awarded as recompense'
for the lost claim other than in the present
denial of access suit.

Monroe

v.

Beard,

536

F.3d

198,

205

(3d

Cir.

2008)

(quoting

Christopher v. Harbury, 536 U.S. 403, 415 (2002)).
Plaintiff’s
freestanding
library.

claim

right

to

There is not.

fails

because

independent

it

access

assumes
to

a

there

is

physical

a

law

Furthermore, Plaintiff has not pled an

actual injury caused by the inadequacy of legal assistance at
ACJF.

This claim, against all defendants, will be dismissed

without prejudice.
III. CONCLUSION
For

the

reasons

discussed

above,

the

Court

grants

Plaintiff’s IFP application and dismisses the Complaint without
prejudice.

An appropriate order follows.

5 

Dated: June 8, 2017
s/Renée Marie Bumb
RENÉE MARIE BUMB
United States District Judge

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