Stevenson v. Capps

IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT EASTERN DISTRICT OF ARKANSAS JONESBORO DIVISION MARY CAGE TARVER STEVENSON, also known as Mary K. Stevenson, as Trustee of the James E. Stevenson Family Trust; JAMES E. STEVENSON III; and SHARYN STEVENSON PLAINTIFFS No. 3:19-cv-208-DPM RONALD CAPPS JR.; and all persons claiming an interest in real property described herein, located in the Chickasawba District of Mississippi County, Arkansas DEFENDANTS ORDER 1. Capps’s motion to dismiss for lack of personal jurisdiction, No 3, is denied without prejudice. Arkansas’s long-arm statute reaches as far as the Due Process Clause allows. ARK. CODE ANN. § 16-4-101(B).

Viewing the entire record in the light most favorable to the Stevensons, they’ve made a prima facie showing that this Court has jurisdiction over Capps, a Tennessean, in this dispute. Dakota Industries, Inc. v. Dakota Sportswear, Inc., 946 F.2d 1384, 1387 (8th Cir. 1991). The Stevensons’ affidavits and maps indicate that the Musgrave Bar—the disputed island in the Mississippi River—is in Arkansas. Capps has guided hunts for ducks and other waterfowl near the island, which he says is in Tennessee, for decades. He recently cleared some willow trees and brush for a blind on the island. Both the Stevensons and Capps claim ownership of the Musgrave Bar. All this creates a strong link between Arkansas and the controversy. Bristol-Myers Squibb Co. v. Superior Court of California, San Francisco County, 137 S. Ct. 1773, 1781 (2017); Dever v. Hentzen Coatings, Inc., 380 F.3d 1070, 1073-74 (8th Cir. 2004). At this point, the weight of the jurisdiction-related evidence favors the Stevensons. Because the personal jurisdiction issue is so intertwined with the merits, though, the Court will revisit the former when it decides the latter.

2. The Court will hold a hearing on the motion for preliminary injunction as supplemented, Ne 9 & 10, on 19 September 2019 at 9:00 a.m. at the Gathings Federal Building, 615 South Main Street, Jonesboro, Arkansas in courtroom 324. Each side will have two hours to present evidence and argument. Exchange hearing exhibits, and deliver copies (paper and electronic) to chambers in Jonesboro, on September 2019.

3. The Stevensons’ unopposed motion for leave to file an amended petition, Ne 11, is granted. Ne 11-1 is deemed filed today.

Capps’s response is due by 27 September 2019.

So Ordered.

SPvgastoll p-.

D.P. Marshall Jr. United States District Judge IA Sephephe. 2019 25.