VanDerHorst v. Shaver et al
Filing
12
ORDER AND OPINION adopting the 9 Report and Recommendation and dismissing the Complaint without prejudice and without issuance and service of process. Signed by Honorable Richard M. Gergel on 10/23/2017. (bgoo)
UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
DISTRICT OF SOUTH CAROLINA
CHARLESTON DIVISION
Timothy L. VanDerHorst,
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Case No.: 2:17-cv-2406-RMG
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Plaintiff,
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v.
ORDER AND OPINION
Officer Shaver, Police Officer; Mt. Pleasant )
Police Dept., 5 unknown Mt. Pleasant Police )
CJfficers,
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Defendants.
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This matter is before the Court on the Report and Recommendation ("R. & R. ") of the
Magistrate Judge (Dkt. No. 9) recommending that this Court summarily dismiss Plaintiffs
Complaint. For the reasons set forth below, this Court adopts the R. & R. as the order of the
Court. Plaintiffs Complaint is dismissed without prejudice and without issuance of service of
process.
I.
Legal Standards
a. Pro Se Pleadings
This Court liberally construes complaints filed by pro se litigants to allow the
development of a potentially meritorious case. See Cruz v. Beto, 405 U.S. 319 (1972); Haines v.
Kerner, 404 U.S. 519 (1972). The requirement of liberal construction does not mean that the
Court can ignore a clear failure in the pleadings to allege facts which set forth a viable federal
claim, nor can the Court assume the existence of a genuine issue of material fact where none
exists. See Weller v. Dep 't ofSocial Services, 901 F.2d 387 (4th Cir. 1990).
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b. Magistrate's Report and Recommendation
The Magistrate Judge makes only a recommendation to this Court. The recommendation
has no presumptive weight, and the responsibility for making a final determination remains with
this Court. See Mathews v. Weber, 423 U.S. 261, 270-71 (1976). This Court is charged with
making a de nova determination of those portions of the Report and Recommendation to which
specific objection is made. Additionally, the Court may "accept, reject, or modify, in whole or in
part, the findings or recommendations made by the magistrate judge." 28 U.S.C. § 636(b)(l).
Absent any specific objections, "a district court need not conduct a de nova review, but instead
must only satisfy itself that there is no clear error on the face of the record in order to accept the
recommendation." See Diamond v. Colonial Life & Accident Ins. Co., 416 F.3d 310, 315 (4th
Cir. 2005) (internal quotation omitted).
II.
Discussion
In his Complaint, Plaintiff claims that "several counties" have been monitoring him by
GPS "for months," and emergency vehicles are following him. (Dkt. No. 1 at 5.) He also claims
a "civilian" told him he was going to jail, and a "racist organization is paying to have this done"
to him. (Id.) Plaintiff attempts to assert federal question jurisdiction over this matter by citing to
several clauses of the United States Constitution. Plaintiff requests a restraining order against
several South Carolina municipal police departments because he claims his life is in jeopardy.
He also seeks an award of damages for medical bills, defamation, mental duress, and coercion by
the police.
In the R. & R., the Magistrate Judge recommends that Plaintiffs Complaint be
summarily dismissed pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1915(e)(2)(B)(ii) because it fails to state a claim
upon which relief can be granted. (Dkt. No. 9 at 3.) The Magistrate Judge explained that
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Plaintiffs allegations fail to describe a cause of action that could be construed by this Court. See
Weller, 901 F.2d at 391. To the extent he claims the defendants are monitoring him by GPS in
violation of the Fourth Amendment' s prohibition on unreasonable searches, Plaintiff fails to
allege facts that would plausibly show either defendant is personally involved. See Wright v.
Collins, 766 F.2d 841, 850 (4th Cir. 1985) (stating § 1983 requires personal involvement of the
defendants). Such a claim would also fail because Plaintiff fails to allege that any purported
search was done illegally- without probable cause or a warrant. See generally Schneckloth v.
Bustamante, 412 U.S. 218, 219 (1973).
Plaintiff has filed Objections to the R. & R. (Dkt. No. 11.) In his Objections, Plaintiff
restates the allegation that he is being followed by local law enforcement for a racist organization
along with several other allegations, including that he has been woken up by law enforcement
while in the park and that he was banned from a homeless shelter. Plaintiff s Objections, like the
allegations in his Complaint, fail to allege facts sufficient to sustain any claim for relief in
connection with any of the apparently unconnected events he describes. Plaintiffs pleadings
suggest that he has had negative interactions with law enforcement, but they do not cohere to
form a legal claim for relief even when liberally construed in accordance with this Court's policy
on prose pleadings. For these reasons, the Court finds that the Magistrate has correctly applied
the controlling law to the facts of this case.
III.
Conclusion
For the reasons set forth above, this Court adopts the R. & R. (Dkt. No. 9) as the order of the
Court. Plaintiffs Complaint is dismissed without prejudice and without issuance of service of
process.
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AND IT IS SO ORDERED.
Richard Mark Gergel
United States District Court Judge
, 2017
October · ~ ~
Charleston, South Carolina
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