Source: s3://data.kl3m.ai/documents/govinfo/USCOURTS/USCOURTS-ca8-06-02026/USCOURTS-ca8-06-02026-0/pdf.json

Nature of Suit Code: 440
Nature of Suit: Other Civil Rights
Cause of Action: 

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1

The Honorable Charles A. Shaw, United States District Judge for the Eastern

District of Missouri.

United States Court of Appeals

FOR THE EIGHTH CIRCUIT

___________

No. 06-2026

___________

Kevin L. Chambers, *

*

Appellant, *

* Appeal from the United States

v. * District Court for the 

* Eastern District of Missouri.

Joan M. Gilmer, Clerk, St. Louis *

County Circuit Court; Robert * [UNPUBLISHED]

McCulloch, St. Louis County *

Prosecutor, *

*

Appellees. *

___________

Submitted: April 5, 2007

Filed: April 9, 2007

___________

Before SMITH, GRUENDER, and SHEPHERD, Circuit Judges.

___________

PER CURIAM.

Kevin Chambers appeals the district court’s1

 preservice dismissal of his 42

U.S.C. § 1983 complaint against a county prosecutor and a circuit court clerk. He

alleged that, as permitted under state law, he submitted to the circuit court a document

detailing criminal conduct by St. Louis County police officers, see Mo. Rev. Stat.

Appellate Case: 06-2026 Page: 1 Date Filed: 04/09/2007 Entry ID: 3296631
-2-

§ 545.250 (private citizen with knowledge of commission of crime may file sworn

affidavit “with the clerk of the court having jurisdiction of the offense, for the use of

the prosecuting attorney, or deposit it with the prosecuting attorney”); that the clerk

(acting in concert with the prosecutor) refused to “process” the document; and that this

refusal violated his right of access to the courts. We conclude Chambers did not state

a section 1983 claim, because the alleged actions did not violate his constitutional

rights. See West v. Atkins, 487 U.S. 42, 48 (1988) (to state § 1983 claim, plaintiff

must allege violation of right secured by Constitution or federal law). Specifically

with regard to his access-to-courts claim, defendants’ alleged actions did not prevent

Chambers from asserting his rights in a lawsuit against the police officers who

allegedly mistreated him, and Chambers did not allege the requisite actual injury from

defendants’ actions to state such a claim in any event. See Lewis v. Casey, 518 U.S.

343, 351-354 (1996) (plaintiff must allege actual injury in access-to-courts claim).

Accordingly, we affirm. See 8th Cir. R. 47A(a).

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Appellate Case: 06-2026 Page: 2 Date Filed: 04/09/2007 Entry ID: 3296631