Opinion ID: 874444
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: procedural history & statement of the facts

Text: On or about March 14, 1997, Darrell McCabe (McCabe) committed the felony of possession of a controlled substance (Case No. CR97-720). He pled guilty and on May 12, 1997 was ordered to be committed to the Idaho State Board of Correction for a period not to exceed six (6) years [and a] minimum of three (3) years.... The precise period of time on the indeterminate portion of said sentence to be determined by other authorities according to law. The court also held that McCabe was entitled to 209 days jail credit for time served prior to sentencing. McCabe admits that on January 6, 2003, he noticed that he was not given credit for time already served. On January 23, 2003, McCabe composed a letter to Rhonda Smoot, Idaho Department of Correction sentencing specialist, complaining that he had not received the benefit of the 209 days jail credit previously ordered by the district court. After authorities investigated his complaint, McCabe was released from custody on March 7, 2003. Believing he had been unlawfully incarcerated, McCabe on January 4, 2005 mailed a complaint to the district court alleging a § 1983 violation and a claim of false imprisonment. Though McCabe had been released on March 7, 2003 after the Department of Correction reviewed his letter, he was back in prison on another charge at the time he attempted to file his complaint. McCabe finally filed the complaint by mail on March 7, 2005. [1] The district court sua sponte dismissed McCabe's complaint on June 20, 2005, holding that the action fails to state a claim upon which relief can be granted and is frivolous. In its order, the district court held that McCabe's asserted § 1983 claim actually was a simple tort claim against a state agent, a claim governed by the Tort Claims Act. According to the district court, the claim was untimely regardless of whether the statute of limitations applicable to the § 1983 claim applied, or whether the Tort Claims Act statute of limitations applied (I.C. § 5-219 and I.C. § 6-911, respectively). McCabe timely filed his petition for review to this Court, and this Court granted review. Our review will be limited to the § 1983 claim, however, since the only evidence in the record suggests that McCabe did not file a State cause of action, and since the evidence demonstrates that he did file a § 1983 claim.