Morrison v. Stuttering Foundation of America - Chairman et al

Filing 23

ORDER granting Defendants' 8 and 11 Motions to Dismiss and denying Plaintiff's Motions 17 and 18 . Signed by Chief Judge James C. Dever III on 2/14/2013. A copy of the order was mailed to the pro se plaintiff and to the pro se defendant. (Sawyer, D.)

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IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE EASTERN DISTRICT OF NORTH CAROLINA SOUTHERN DIVISION No. 7:12-CV-252-D DONALD L. MORRISON, Plaintiff, v. ) ) ) ) ) ORDER ) STUTTERING FOUNDATION OF AMERICA, ) JANE FRAZER, PAUL RUTZ, JR., and ) ) DR. DENNIS DRAYNA, ) Defendants. ) Plaintiff, who is proceeding prose, has sued Stuttering Foundation ofAmerica, Jane Fraser, 1 Paul Rutz, Jr., and Dr. Dennis Drayna. The complaint is incoherent, but appears to seek to hold defendants liable for violating 18 U.S.C. ยง 1346, which is a criminal statute that defines "scheme or artifice to defraud." [D.E. 1]. Plaintiffmay not privately enforce federal criminal law. See,~' Morganroth & Morganroth v. DeLorean, 123 F.3d 374, 386 (6th Cir. 1997) (collecting cases); Cok v. Cosentino, 876 F.2d 1, 2 (1st Cir. 1989) (per curiam); Bass Angler Sportsman Soc'y v. U.S. Steel Corp., 324 F. Supp. 412, 415 (S.D. Ala. 1971) (per curiam), aff'd, 447 F.2d 1304 (5th Cir. 1971). Although plaintiff alleges that he possesses a copyright "for ending stuttering," to the extent he seeks to assert a claim for copyright infringement, he has failed to state a claim upon which relief can be granted. See Ashcroft v. Iqbal, 556 U.S. 662, 678-79 (2009); Bell Atl. Corp. v. Twombly, 550 U.S. 544, 555 (2007). Moreover, if plaintiff seeks to state a fraud claim under North Carolina law, the complaint fails to 1 Plaintiff misspelled Fraser's name. plausibly allege fraud. See Iqbal, 556 U.S. at 678-79; Twombly, 550 U.S. at 555; Cozzarelli v. Inspire Phann. Inc., 549 F.3d 618, 629 (4th Cir. 2008); Bzyant v. Wells Fargo Bank, 861 F. Supp. 2d 646, 667 (E.D.N.C. 2012); Myers & Chapman. Inc. v. Thomas G. Evans. Inc., 323 N.C. 559, 568--69,374 S.E.2d385, 391 (1988). To the extentthatMorrisonhas a contractual dispute with Paul Rutz, Jr., the complaint fails to allege a basis for federal subject-matter jurisdiction. In sum, the motions to dismiss for failure to state a claim upon which relief can be granted by Stuttering Foundation of America and Jane Fraser [D.E. 11] and by Dr. Dennis Drayna [D.E. 8] are GRANTED. The complaint against Rutz also is DISMISSED. Plaintiff's motions [D.E. 17, 18] lack merit and are DENIED. SO ORDERED. This ~day of February 2013. 2

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