Case Name: Diane Michelle ZAMORA, Petitioner-Appellant v. Rick THALER, Director, Texas Department of Criminal Justice, Correctional Institutions Division, Respondent-Appellee
Court: United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit
Jurisdiction: United States
Decision Date: 2011-01-05
Citations: 407 F. App'x 802
Docket Number: No. 10-50202
Parties: Diane Michelle ZAMORA, Petitioner-Appellant v. Rick THALER, Director, Texas Department of Criminal Justice, Correctional Institutions Division, RespondentAppellee.
Judges: Before JOLLY, GARZA, and STEWART, Circuit Judges.
Reporter: West's Federal Appendix
Volume: 407
Pages: 802–803

Head Matter:
Diane Michelle ZAMORA, Petitioner-Appellant v. Rick THALER, Director, Texas Department of Criminal Justice, Correctional Institutions Division, RespondentAppellee.
No. 10-50202
Summary Calendar.
United States Court of Appeals, Fifth Circuit.
Jan. 5, 2011.
Diane Michelle Zamora, Gatesville, TX, pro se.
Before JOLLY, GARZA, and STEWART, Circuit Judges.

Opinion:
PER CURIAM:
Diane Michelle Zamora, Texas prisoner #814993, appeals the district court's dismissal of her 42 U.S.C. § 1983 action. Zamora's complaint alleged that, with no disciplinary hearing, prison officials removed her mother from the prison visitation list. She argues that this punishment violated her due process rights and her Eighth Amendment right to be free from cruel and unusual punishment.
Punishments such as restrictions on visitation do not implicate due-process concerns. See Sandin v. Conner, 515 U.S. 472, 483-84, 115 S.Ct. 2293, 132 L.Ed.2d 418 (1995); McCray v. Sullivan, 509 F.2d 1332, 1334 (5th Cir.1975). Nor has Zamora made the requisite showing for an Eighth Amendment claim of cruel and unusual punishment. See Palmer v. Johnson, 193 F.3d 346, 352 (5th Cir.1999).
In order to state a claim under § 1983, a plaintiff must allege the violation of a right protected by the Constitution and laws of the United States. West v. Atkins, 487 U.S. 42, 48, 108 S.Ct. 2250, 101 L.Ed.2d 40 (1988). There is no constitutional basis for Zamora's complaint that her mother was removed from the prison visitation list without a formal hearing. See Sandin, 515 U.S. at 483-84, 115 S.Ct. 2293; Palmer, 193 F.3d at 352.
AFFIRMED.
Pursuant to 5th Cir. R. 47.5, the court has determined that this opinion should not be published and is not precedent except under the limited circumstances set forth in 5th Cir. R. 47.5.4.