Source: s3://data.kl3m.ai/documents/govinfo/USCOURTS/USCOURTS-ared-4_20-cv-00416/USCOURTS-ared-4_20-cv-00416-0/pdf.json

Nature of Suit Code: 555
Nature of Suit: Prisoner - Prison Condition
Cause of Action: 42:1983 Prisoner Civil Rights

---

IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT 

EASTERN DISTRICT OF ARKANSAS 

CENTRAL DIVISION 

MICHAEL EDWARD ALLEN, 

#19998 PLAINTIFF

V. CASE NO. 4:20-CV-416-KGB-BD 

LUCAS EMBERTON, et al. DEFENDANTS 

RECOMMENDED DISPOSITION

I. Procedure for Filing Objections: 

This Recommendation has been sent to Judge Kristine G. Baker. Mr. Allen may 

file objections if he disagrees with the findings or conclusions set out in the 

Recommendation. Objections should be specific and should include the factual or legal 

basis for the objection. 

To be considered, objections must be received in the office of the Court Clerk 

within 14 days. If no objections are filed, Judge Baker can adopt this Recommendation 

without independently reviewing the record. If he does not file objections, Mr. Allen may 

waive any right to appeal questions of fact. 

II. Discussion: 

A. Background 

 Mr. Allen, a pre-trial detainee at the Van Buren County Jail (Jail), filed this civil 

rights lawsuit without the help of a lawyer. (Doc. No. 1) In his complaint, Mr. Allen 

claims that Defendants Lucas Emberton and Brick Lewis, the Sheriff and Jail 

Case 4:20-cv-00416-KGB Document 5 Filed 04/27/20 Page 1 of 3
2 

Administrator in Van Buren County, violated his rights by failing to timely respond to his 

grievances.1

B. Analysis 

Federal courts must review prisoner complaints that name government entities, 

officers, or employees as defendants. 28 U.S.C. § 1915A(a). After assessing those 

complaints, the Court is obligated to dismiss those claims that fall short of stating a claim 

for relief before ordering service of process. 28 U.S.C. § 1915A(b). As explained below, 

Mr. Allen’s allegations in this complaint, even if true, do not state federal claims for 

relief. 

In his complaint, Mr. Allen states that, “[f]ailure to reply to grievances for two 

[months] is the basis of this suit.” (Doc. No. 1) He refers to grievances he has filed about 

various issues at the Jail, but his complaint in this case concerns the Defendants’ failure 

to respond to grievances.2

 

1 Mr. Allen also names Assistant Jail Administrator Mahayn as a Defendant, but does not 

refer to him in the body of the complaint. “Liability under section 1983 requires a causal 

link to, and direct responsibility for, the deprivation of rights. To establish personal 

liability of the supervisory defendants, [the plaintiff] must allege specific facts of 

personal involvement in, or direct responsibility for, a deprivation of his constitutional 

rights.” Clemmons v. Armontrout, 477 F.3d 962, 967 (8th Cir. 2007) (internal quotation 

marks and citation omitted). 

 

2 Mr. Allen states that he has filed grievances complaining about the lack of medical care 

at the Jail, the lack of adequate nutrition at the Jail, and the practice of allowing Jail 

employees to open detainees’ legal mail, but has received no response to those 

grievances. Recently, Mr. Allen voluntarily dismissed a deliberate-indifference claim 

against Sheriff [Emberton] in a separate lawsuit filed in this district. Allen v. Embanton, 

E.D. Ark. Case No. 4:20cv210.

Case 4:20-cv-00416-KGB Document 5 Filed 04/27/20 Page 2 of 3
3 

Under settled law, inmates have no constitutional right to an inmate grievance 

procedure at all. Therefore, a jail official’s failure to process or respond to a grievance, 

standing alone, cannot support a claim in a lawsuit such as this. Lomholt v. Holder, 287 

F.3d 683, 684 (8th Cir. 2002); and Buckley v. Barlow, 997 F.2d 494, 495 (8th Cir. 1993). 

III. Conclusion: 

 The Court recommends that Mr. Allen’s claims be DISMISSED, without 

prejudice. The Court also recommends that this dismissal constitute a “strike” for 

purposes of 28 U.S.C. § 1915(g) and certify that an in forma pauperis appeal would be 

frivolous and not taken in good faith. 

 DATED, this 27th day of April, 2020. 

 ____________________________________ 

 UNITED STATES MAGISTRATE JUDGE 

Case 4:20-cv-00416-KGB Document 5 Filed 04/27/20 Page 3 of 3