Source: s3://data.kl3m.ai/documents/govinfo/USCOURTS/USCOURTS-ca10-07-01068/USCOURTS-ca10-07-01068-0/pdf.json

Nature of Suit Code: 550
Nature of Suit: Prisoner - Civil Rights (U.S. defendant)
Cause of Action: 

---

After examining the briefs and appellate record, this panel has determined *

unanimously that oral argument would not materially assist the determination of

this appeal. See Fed. R. App. P. 34(a)(2); 10th Cir. R. 34.1(G). The case is

therefore ordered submitted without oral argument. This order and judgment is

not binding precedent except under the doctrines of law of the case, res judicata,

and collateral estoppel. It may be cited, however, for its persuasive value

consistent with Fed. R. App. P. 32.1 and 10th Cir. R. 32.1. 

FILED

United States Court of Appeals

Tenth Circuit

October 16, 2007

Elisabeth A. Shumaker

Clerk of Court

UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS

TENTH CIRCUIT

MARK DERR MARIANI,

Plaintiff - Appellant, No. 07-1068

v. (D. Colorado)

JOSEPH STOMMEL, Administrator in

his official capacity, Colorado Sex

Offender Treatment and Monitoring

Program; JOSEPH ORTIZ, Director,

in his official capacity, Colorado

Department of Corrections; GARY K.

WATKINS, Warden, in his official

capacity, Fremont Correctional

Facility; DONICE NEAL, Warden, in

her official capacity, Arrowhead

Correctional Facility; CHARLES

OLIN, personally and in his official

capacity, Full Operating Level

Treatment Provider; DWIGHT

MARTINEZ, Personally and in his

official capacity, SOTMP Clinician,

Defendants - Appellees.

(D.C. No. 05-cv-01406-WDM-MEH)

ORDER AND JUDGMENT

*

Appellate Case: 07-1068 Document: 010151642 Date Filed: 10/16/2007 Page: 1
 The CDOC classifies offenders as follows: 1

1. S5 - Individuals with past or current felony sexual

offense convictions.

2. S4 - Individuals whose history indicates sexual

assaults or deviance for which they may not have

been convicted. These cases often involve plea

bargains where the factual basis of the crime

involved a sex offense. This category also

includes misdemeanor convictions and juvenile

(continued...)

-2-

Before LUCERO, HARTZ, and GORSUCH, Circuit Judges.

Mark Mariani, a state inmate appearing pro se, appeals from the district

court’s dismissal of his civil-rights action against certain employees of the

Colorado Department of Corrections (CDOC). His complaint alleged deprivation

of various constitutional rights in connection with his internal prison

classification as a sex offender. The court dismissed Mr. Mariani’s complaint and

denied his motion to amend. We have jurisdiction under 28 U.S.C. § 1291 and

affirm.

I. BACKGROUND

Mr. Mariani is in the custody of the CDOC. While in prison in 1995 he

was convicted of, among other things, “rape, attempt, and complicity” under the

CDOC disciplinary code. Mariani v. Colo. Dep’t of Corrs., 956 P.2d 625, 627

(Colo. Ct. App. 1997). Based on this disciplinary conviction, the CDOC

classified him as an S-3 sex offender in 2004.1

Appellate Case: 07-1068 Document: 010151642 Date Filed: 10/16/2007 Page: 2
(...continued) 1

convictions for sex offenses.

3. S3 - Individuals who, while incarcerated, have committed sex

offenses against staff or offenders, or who have displayed

behaviors which are suggestive of sexual abuse directed

towards another.

4. S2 - Individuals who were arrested or investigated for sexual

offenses but not charged or individuals who were initially

coded S5, S4, or S3 but are not recommended for treatment

after review by Mental Health. 

5. S1 - Individuals with no history or indication of sex offense

behavior.

R. Doc. 3, Attach. 1, at 32 (CDOC AR 700-19). 

-3-

On July 27, 2005, Mr. Mariani filed in the United States District Court for

the District of Colorado a complaint against six employees of CDOC under

42 U.S.C. § 1983, alleging that (1) the defendants violated his due-process rights

by labeling him a sex offender based on his prison disciplinary conviction; (2)

CDOC Administrative Regulation (AR) 750-02, on its face, violates his right to

procedural due process because it does not permit him to appeal his sex-offender

classification; and (3) CDOC AR 750-02, on its face, violates his right to equal

protection because prisoners covered by the regulation are entitled to a hearing

following reclassification but others, such as S-3 sex offenders, are not.

The district court granted the defendants’ motions to dismiss. The court

concluded that (1) Mr. Mariani’s classification did not violate his right to

procedural due process, because the hearing before his disciplinary conviction

provided sufficient due process for his later S-3 classification; (2) Mr. Mariani

Appellate Case: 07-1068 Document: 010151642 Date Filed: 10/16/2007 Page: 3
-4-

did not have a right to appointment of counsel during his prison disciplinary

proceeding; (3) Mr. Mariani’s complaint failed to allege a claim for denial of the

right to confront his accuser; (4) CDOC AR 750-02 did not violate Mr. Mariani’s

due-process rights, because Mr. Mariani had received all the process that was due

at his prior disciplinary hearing; and (5) CDOC AR 750-02 did not violate

Mr. Mariani’s right to equal protection, because sex offenders are not a suspect

class and there are rational reasons for treating prisoners who have never been

found guilty of a sex offense differently from those who have. In addition, the

court denied Mr. Mariani’s motion to add a due-process claim for bias of the

hearing officer who presided over the disciplinary hearing, determining that such

a claim would be barred by Heck v. Humphrey, 512 U.S. 477 (1994).

II. DISCUSSION

On appeal Mr. Mariani reargues the claims raised before the district court

and challenges the court’s denial of his motion to amend the complaint. We

review de novo the court’s dismissal under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure

12(b)(6). See Ash Creek Mining Co. v. Lujan, 969 F.2d 868, 870 (10th Cir. 1992). 

“Dismissal of a pro se complaint for failure to state a claim is proper only where

it is obvious that the plaintiff cannot prevail on the facts he has alleged and it

would be futile to give him an opportunity to amend.” Curley v. Perry, 246 F.3d

1278, 1281 (10th Cir. 2001) (internal quotation marks omitted). We review for

Appellate Case: 07-1068 Document: 010151642 Date Filed: 10/16/2007 Page: 4
-5-

abuse of discretion the denial of a motion to amend a complaint. See Seymour v.

Thornton, 79 F.3d 980, 984–85 (10th Cir. 1996).

A. Dismissal of Amended Complaint

1. The S-3 Classification

Mr. Mariani claims that he was denied due process when CDOC employees

classified him as an S-3 sex offender based on his prison disciplinary conviction. 

This argument is without merit. In Chambers v. Colorado Department of

Corrections, 205 F.3d 1237, 1243 (10th Cir. 2000), we held that an inmate must

be afforded “some process” before he can be classified as a sex offender. We did

not explain exactly how much process was required. But we agree with the

conclusion of Neal v. Shimoda, 131 F.3d 818 (9th Cir. 1997), a very similar case

concerning a claim by a prisoner classified as a sex offender, which was discussed

approvingly in Chambers. In Shimoda, 131 F.3d at 830–31, the court adopted the

due-process requirements of Wolff v. McDonnell, 418 U.S. 539 (1974), which held

that a prisoner facing discipline must receive advance written notice, an

opportunity to call witnesses and present documentary evidence in his defense,

and a written statement by the fact-finder of the evidence relied on and the

reasons for the action taken. See Superintendent v. Hill, 472 U.S. 445, 454

(1985).

It is not necessary, however, that this process be provided at the

classification proceeding if the underlying offense has been established at a prior

Appellate Case: 07-1068 Document: 010151642 Date Filed: 10/16/2007 Page: 5
-6-

hearing at which the prisoner was afforded due process. Shimoda said: “An

inmate who has been convicted of a sex crime in a prior adversarial setting,

whether as the result of a bench trial, jury trial, or plea agreement, has received

the minimum protections required by due process. Prison officials need do no

more than notify such an inmate that he has been classified as a sex offender

because of his prior conviction for a sex crime.” Shimoda, 131 F.3d at 831. 

Although Shimoda referred only to prior court proceedings, we see no need to so

limit the general principle. So long as a prior prison disciplinary proceeding

provided as much process as the prisoner would be entitled to at a classification

hearing, the prisoner has been treated fairly. As conceded in Mr. Mariani’s

response to the defendants’ motion to dismiss, he received at his disciplinary

hearing the process required by Wolff. The S-3 classification was an automatic

consequence of Mr. Mariani’s disciplinary conviction. Therefore, there would be

no need for further fact-finding or a plea to official discretion in a classification

proceeding. The only process due Mr. Mariani was notification that he had been

classified as a sex-offender based on his prior disciplinary conviction. This was

done.

As to Mr. Mariani’s claim that he was denied the right to counsel during his

prison disciplinary proceedings, prisoners do not “have a right to either retained

or appointed counsel in disciplinary hearings.” See Wolff, 418 U.S. at 570. We

therefore affirm the district court’s ruling.

Appellate Case: 07-1068 Document: 010151642 Date Filed: 10/16/2007 Page: 6
-7-

We also affirm the denial of Mr. Mariani’s claim that he was denied the

right to confront his accuser. We agree with the district court that Mr. Mariani

failed to raise this issue in his complaint and did not allege sufficient facts to

support such a claim. See Baxter v. Palmigiano, 425 U.S. 308, 321, 322 & n.5

(1976) (no general right to confront and cross-examine adverse witnesses in a

prison disciplinary proceeding).

2. Constitutional Challenges to CDOC AR 750-02

CDOC AR 750-02 provides “unadjudicated offenders” with a right to a

hearing before they can be classified as sex offenders. R. Doc. 2, Attach. 1, at 17. 

An “unadjudicated offender” is a prisoner “who has not been adjudicated of a sex

offense by a court or administrative board.” Id. at 16. 

Mr. Mariani claims that CDOC AR 750-02 is facially unconstitutional for

two reasons. First, he argues that the regulation violates his right to procedural

due process because it does not permit him, as an adjudicated S-3 sex offender, to

appeal his sex-offender classification. Second, he contends that the regulation

violates his right to equal protection because some prisoners are entitled to a

hearing following reclassification but others are not. At the outset we note that

Mr. Mariani can attack the regulation only insofar as it impairs his own

constitutional rights; that the regulation may offend the rights of others is not an

issue before us. See Broadrick v. Oklahoma, 413 U.S. 601, 610 (1973)

(“Embedded in the traditional rules governing constitutional adjudication is the

Appellate Case: 07-1068 Document: 010151642 Date Filed: 10/16/2007 Page: 7
-8-

principle that a person to whom a statute may constitutionally be applied will not

be heard to challenge that statute on the ground that it may conceivably be

applied unconstitutionally to others, in other situations not before the Court.”)

Mr Mariani’s due-process claim is without merit. Just as there is no dueprocess right to appeal a final judgment in a criminal case, see Halbert v.

Michigan, 545 U.S. 605, 610 (2005) (“The Federal Constitution imposes on the

States no obligation to provide appellate review of criminal convictions.”), an

inmate in state prison does not have a constitutional right to appeal his sexoffender classification in a prison administrative proceeding. Accordingly,

Mr. Mariani’s due-process claim must fail.

We also affirm the district court’s ruling regarding Mr. Mariani’s equalprotection claim. “Unless it provokes strict judicial scrutiny, a state practice that

distinguishes among classes of people will typically survive an equal protection

attack so long as the challenged classification is rationally related to a legitimate

governmental purpose.” Vasquez v. Cooper, 862 F.2d 250, 251–52 (10th Cir.

1988). Strict scrutiny is appropriate only when the classification either involves a

suspect class or interferes with a fundamental right. See id. at 252. Mr. Mariani

does not contend, nor can he, that the classifications at issue involve a suspect

class. Cf. Riddle v. Mondragon, 83 F.3d 1197, 1207 (10th Cir. 1996) (sex

offenders do not constitute a suspect class). And he has not asserted the violation

of a fundamental right. The classification Mr. Mariani challenges is therefore

Appellate Case: 07-1068 Document: 010151642 Date Filed: 10/16/2007 Page: 8
-9-

subject only to rational-basis review. The burden is on him to establish that the

regulation is “irrational or arbitrary and that it cannot conceivably further a

legitimate governmental interest.” United States v. Phelps, 17 F.3d 1334, 1345

(10th Cir. 1994). He has failed to carry that burden. It is sensible, much less

rational, to provide procedural protections (including an appeal) only when factfinding is necessary to determine the prisoner’s classification. Adjudicated

offenders, such as Mr. Mariani, have already been granted an evidentiary hearing

with suitable procedural protections to determine the dispositive facts.

B. Motion to Amend

Mr. Mariani appeals the district court’s denial of his motion for leave to

file an amended complaint adding a claim of bias of the hearing officer. The

court determined that the amendment would be futile because such a claim would

be barred by Heck, 512 U.S. 477. Heck held that a state prisoner’s claim for

damages under § 1983 is not cognizable if “a judgment in favor of the plaintiff

would necessarily imply the invalidity of his conviction or sentence” unless the

prisoner can demonstrate that the conviction or sentence has been previously

invalidated. Id. at 487. In Edwards v. Balisok, 520 U.S. 641, 648 (1997), the

Court followed Heck in a case indistinguishable from the one before us. The

defendant in Edwards was the hearing officer who had presided at a disciplinary

hearing that resulted in the loss of good-time credits by the prisoner plaintiff. 

The prisoner, suing for damages and declaratory relief, alleged that the hearing

Appellate Case: 07-1068 Document: 010151642 Date Filed: 10/16/2007 Page: 9
-10-

officer had denied him due process by his bias and deceit. See id. at 647. The

Court held that the suit was barred because the allegations necessarily implied the

invalidity of the punishment imposed. See id. at 645–48. Because Mr. Mariani’s

allegations of bias of the hearing officer necessarily imply the invalidity of his

prison disciplinary conviction, the district court did not abuse its discretion in

denying him leave to amend.

III. CONCLUSION

We AFFIRM the district court’s dismissal of Mr. Mariani’s complaint and

denial of his motion to amend the complaint.

ENTERED FOR THE COURT

Harris L Hartz

Circuit Judge

Appellate Case: 07-1068 Document: 010151642 Date Filed: 10/16/2007 Page: 10