Court Opinion

ID: 9478404
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-05 06:48:18.087145+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T17:46:24.882122
License: Public Domain

WALLACE, Circuit Judge,
concurring:
I concur in Judge Schroeder’s opinion insofar as it reverses the district court’s dismissal of Hernandez’s claims based upon alleged deprivation of footwear, rape, and other physical abuse. Under the controlling precedent of this circuit, Noll v. Carlson, 809 F.2d 1446 (9th Cir.1987), unless it is “absolutely clear” that a pro se civil rights plaintiff’s complaint could not be amended to allege constitutional violations, the district court errs by dismissing the action without notifying the plaintiff of the complaint’s deficiencies and allowing him leave to amend. Id. at 1449. Here, as in Noll, Hernandez amended his complaint, but did so without the benefit of a statement by the court notifying him of the deficiencies in his pleadings. Id. The magistrate’s recommendations to the district court, which erroneously concluded that Hernandez’s allegations were “wholly fanciful” because unlikely, did not serve as adequate notice of the complaint’s deficiencies under Noll. Thus, while I agree with Judge Aldisert that Hernandez’s various complaints failed to state claims upon which relief could be granted, see Aldisert, J., dissenting, reversal is required under Noll to allow Hernandez a chance to remedy the deficiencies in his complaint.
As Judge Aldisert points out in his persuasive dissent, it is not enough for a complaint to allege conclusions that are merely “possible”; a plaintiff must allege facts from which the liability of each defendant can rationally be inferred. I agree with Judge Schroeder that Hernandez should be allowed to amend his complaints, if he can, to add allegations that will establish the connection of each defendant to the deprivations claimed by Hernandez and that will establish that Hernandez has been the victim of unconstitutional conduct, rather than mere negligence. However, I write separately to emphasize that, should Hernandez fail to remedy the problems in his complaints after being informed of their deficiencies, his claims properly may be dismissed as frivolous for the reasons stated in Judge Aldisert’s dissent.