Source: s3://data.kl3m.ai/documents/govinfo/USCOURTS/USCOURTS-cand-4_05-cv-03589/USCOURTS-cand-4_05-cv-03589-0/pdf.json

Nature of Suit Code: 550
Nature of Suit: Prisoner - Civil Rights (U.S. defendant)
Cause of Action: 28:2254 Petition for Writ of Habeas Corpus (State)

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NOT FOR CITATION

IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

FOR THE NORTHERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA

JOSE LUIS MORALES, 

Plaintiff,

 vs.

RICHARD KIRKLAND,

Defendants.

 

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No. C 05-3589 PJH (PR)

ORDER OF DISMISSAL

(Doc 3)

Plaintiff, an inmate at Pelican Bay State Prison, has filed a pro se civil rights

complaint under 42 U.S.C. § 1983. 

DISCUSSION

A. Standard of Review

Federal courts must engage in a preliminary screening of cases in which

prisoners seek redress from a governmental entity or officer or employee of a

governmental entity. 28 U.S.C. § 1915A(a). In its review the court must identify any

cognizable claims, and dismiss any claims which are frivolous, malicious, fail to state a

claim upon which relief may be granted, or seek monetary relief from a defendant who is

immune from such relief. Id. at 1915A(b)(1),(2).

To state a claim under 42 U.S.C. § 1983, a plaintiff must allege two essential

elements: (1) that a right secured by the Constitution or laws of the United States was

violated, and (2) that the alleged deprivation was committed by a person acting under

the color of state law. West v. Atkins, 487 U.S. 42, 48 (1988).

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B. Legal Claims

Allegations that a prisoner was deprived of property, whether negligently or

deliberately, are not sufficient to state a claim under section under § 1983 if the

deprivation was random and unauthorized, as opposed to pursuant to a policy. Parratt

v. Taylor, 451 U.S. 527, 535-44 (1981) (state employee negligently lost prisoner's

hobby kit), overruled in part on other grounds, Daniels v. Williams, 474 U.S. 327, 330-

31 (1986); Hudson v. Palmer, 468 U.S. 517, 533 (1984) (intentional destruction of

inmate's property). The availability of an adequate state post-deprivation remedy, e.g.

a state tort action, precludes relief because it provides adequate procedural due

process. King v. Massarweh, 782 F.2d 825, 826 (9th Cir. 1986). California law

provides an adequate post-deprivation remedy for any property deprivations. Barnett v.

Centoni, 31 F.3d 813, 816-17 (9th Cir. 1994). Nor is a prisoner protected by the Fourth

Amendment against the seizure, destruction or conversion of his property. Taylor v.

Knapp, 871 F.2d 803, 806 (9th Cir. 1989). 

Plaintiff contends that his television was made inoperable when prison

employees attempted to remove the internal speaker, which prison regulations evidently

do not allow. The prison offered to replace the television with another, but plaintiff

declined the offer, apparently because the prison was unwilling to guarantee how long it

would work. Plaintiff has since purchased a new television. 

Plaintiff’s assertion that the prison deprived him of his television set is an

allegation of a random and unauthorized deprivation of property of the sort not

cognizable under § 1983. Because it is obvious that the institution does not have a

policy of rendering prisoners’ televison sets inoperable, which would be the only

circumstance under which plaintiff could avoid the Parratt rule, it would be futile to allow

plaintiff to amend. The case therefore will be dismissed with prejudice. 

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CONCLUSION

For the reasons set out above, this case is DISMISSED with prejudice. 

Plaintiff’s implied motion to proceed in forma pauperis (doc 3) is DENIED. No fee is

due. The clerk shall close the file.

IT IS SO ORDERED.

DATED: September 21, 2005.

 

 PHYLLIS J. HAMILTON

United States District Judge

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