Case Name: Damon Lee WOOD, Plaintiff-Appellant v. Unidentified HIRSCH, Assistant Warden; Kenneth W. Stackhouse; R. McKee, Law Librarian; Dennis Coker, Correctional Officer; Timothy Lester, Assistant Warden; Timothy Simmons, Senior Warden, Defendants-Appellees
Court: United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit
Jurisdiction: United States
Decision Date: 2011-07-20
Citations: 461 F. App'x 365
Docket Number: No. 10-40902
Parties: Damon Lee WOOD, Plaintiff-Appellant v. Unidentified HIRSCH, Assistant Warden; Kenneth W. Stackhouse; R. McKee, Law Librarian; Dennis Coker, Correctional Officer; Timothy Lester, Assistant Warden; Timothy Simmons, Senior Warden, Defendants-Appellees.
Judges: Before JOLLY, SMITH, and GRAVES, Circuit Judges.
Reporter: West's Federal Appendix
Volume: 461
Pages: 365–366

Head Matter:
Damon Lee WOOD, Plaintiff-Appellant v. Unidentified HIRSCH, Assistant Warden; Kenneth W. Stackhouse; R. McKee, Law Librarian; Dennis Coker, Correctional Officer; Timothy Lester, Assistant Warden; Timothy Simmons, Senior Warden, Defendants-Appellees.
No. 10-40902
Summary Calendar.
United States Court of Appeals, Fifth Circuit.
July 20, 2011.
Damon Lee Wood, Livingston, TX, pro se.
Before JOLLY, SMITH, and GRAVES, Circuit Judges.

Opinion:
PER CURIAM:
Damon Lee Wood, Texas prisoner # 590030, appeals the dismissal of his 42 U.S.C. § 1983 lawsuit without prejudice for failure to exhaust administrative remedies, pursuant to 42 U.S.C. § 1997e. This court takes "a strict approach" to the exhaustion requirement, see Days v. Johnson, 322 F.3d 863, 866 (5th Cir.2003) (overruled by implication on other grounds by Jones v. Bock, 549 U.S. 199, 216, 127 S.Ct. 910, 166 L.Ed.2d 798 (2007)), and reviews the district court's dismissal de novo. Carbe v. Lappin, 492 F.3d 325, 328 (5th Cir.2007).
Wood contends that it was error for the court to raise exhaustion sua sponte, urging that § 1997e does not require a plaintiff to prove exhaustion and that exhaustion is an affirmative defense properly raised only by a defendant's motion to dismiss. He concedes that he did not completely exhaust his administrative remedies prior to filing his lawsuit but asserts that he did so after filing, urging that he should have then been permitted to amend his complaint to show exhaustion.
Although Wood is correct that failure to exhaust is an affirmative defense and that he was not required to prove the same, see Jones, 549 U.S. at 216, 127 S.Ct. 910, because it was clear from the face of his complaint that he had not fully exhausted his administrative remedies prior to filing the instant lawsuit, the district court properly dismissed it. See Carbe, 492 F.3d at 328; 42 U.S.C. § 1997e. Wood's argument that the district court erred in refusing to stay proceedings to enable him to exhaust rather than dismiss his complaint is without merit. See Porter v. Nussle, 534 U.S. 516, 523-32, esp. at 523-24, 122 S.Ct. 983, 152 L.Ed.2d 12 (2002); § 1997e. That he exhausted his administrative remedies subsequent to filing the instant suit is insufficient. See Underwood v. Wilson, 151 F.3d 292, 296 (5th Cir.1998) (overruled by implication on other grounds by Jones, 549 U.S. at 215, 127 S.Ct. 910).
Moreover, Wood presents no valid defense to the exhaustion requirement. His argument that emergency circumstances should have excused him from exhaustion is merely a restatement of his claim that he is being retaliated against and does not comprise one of the "rare instances" in which exhaustion may be excused. See Woodford v. Ngo, 548 U.S. 81, 102, 126 S.Ct. 2378, 165 L.Ed.2d 368 (2006).
Wood has failed to demonstrate any error in the district court's dismissal. Accordingly, the district court's judgment is
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.