Cartwright v. Davis

Filing 7

MEMORANDUM OPINION AND ORDER. This matter is TRANSFERRED to the McAllen Division of the United States District Court for the Southern District of Texas. Signed by Magistrate Judge Keith F. Giblin on 7/11/17. (ljw, )

IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
FOR THE EASTERN DISTRICT OF TEXAS
LUFKIN DIVISION
MARCUS BRANDON CARTWRIGHT

§

VS.

§

LORI DAVIS

§

CIVIL ACTION NO. 9:17cv46

MEMORANDUM OPINION AND ORDER REGARDING VENUE
Plaintiff Marcus Brandon Cartwright, proceeding pro se, brings
this civil rights action pursuant to 42 U.S.C. § 1983.
Plaintiff filed a petition for writ of habeas corpus concerning a prison disciplinary conviction.
civil action number 9:17cv21.

The petition was assigned

Concluding that the petition also

raised civil rights claims, the court severed the civil rights
claims into a separate action.

Those claims were assigned the

civil action number set forth in the caption above.
Analysis
The Civil Rights Act, 42 U.S.C. § 1981, et. seq., under which
this case is brought, does not contain a specific venue provision.
Accordingly, venue in civil rights cases is controlled by 28 U.S.C.
§ 1391.

Jones v. Bales, 58 F.R.D. 453 (N.D. Ga. 1972), aff'd per

curiam, 480 F.2d 805 (5th Cir. 1973).
When, as in this case, jurisdiction is not founded solely on
diversity of citizenship, 28 U.S.C. § 1391 provides that venue is
proper only in the judicial district where the defendant resides or
in which the claim arose.
Plaintiff complains of events that occurred at the Segovia
Unit, which is located in Hidalgo County, Texas. Pursuant to 28

U.S.C. § 124, Hidalgo County is located in the McAllen Division of
the United States District Court for the Southern District of
Texas.
As Hidalgo County is located in the Southern District of
Texas, venue in the Eastern District of Texas is not proper.
.

When

venue is not proper, the court "shall dismiss, or if it be in the
interest of justice, transfer such case to any district or division
in which it could have been brought."

28 U.S.C. § 1406(a).

ORDER
For the reasons set forth above, it is
ORDERED

that

this

matter is

TRANSFERRED

to

the

McAllen

Division of the United States District Court for the Southern
District of Texas.
SIGNED this the 11th day of July, 2017.

____________________________________
KEITH F. GIBLIN
UNITED STATES MAGISTRATE JUDGE

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