Galeas v. Inpold
Galeas v. Inpold
Opinion of the Court
ORDER
THIS MATTER comes before the Court on a Defendant’s Motion for Protective Order, (Doci No. 30), Plaintiffs Motion to Compel Discovery, (Doc. No. 36), and Defendant’s Amended Motion, to Dismiss, (Doc. No. 44).
I. BACKGROUND
Plaintiff, a prisoner incarcerated in the North Carolina Department of Correction (“DOC”) at Lanesboro Correctional Institution, filed this pro se action on September 10, 2010, pursuant to 42 U.S.C. § 1983. Plaintiff alleges a claim for damages for violation of his constitutional right of access to the courts resulting from Defendant’s alleged mishandling of Plaintiffs legal mail.
Plaintiff alleges that on April 4, 2009 and April 8, 2009, his mother sent him two packages by certified mail containing
my last copy of my legal papers concerning my crime and Affidavits from witnesses to prove my innocence. Those packages were received at Lanesboro Correctional Institution by the mailroom officer Betty Inpold and they were never delivered to me.
(Doc. No. 1 at 6). Plaintiff has attached to the Complaint copies of two Certified Mail Receipts dated April 4, 2009, and April 8, 2009, bearing Nos. 7008 2810 0002 3722 6192 (“6192”) and 7008 2810 0002 3723 1172 (“1172”), respectively. (Doc. No. 1-
II. STANDARD OF REVIEW
In its review of a motion to dismiss, the Court must accept the factual allegations of the claim as true and construe them in the light most favorable to the non-moving party. Coleman v. Md. Ct. of Appeals, 626 F.3d 187, 189 (4th Cir. 2010). In order to survive the motion, the “complaint must contain sufficient factual matter, accepted as true, ‘to state a claim to relief that is plausible on its face.’ ” Ashcroft v. Iqbal, 556 U.S. 662, 129 S.Ct. 1937, 1949, 173 L.Ed.2d 868 (2009) (quoting Bell Atl. Corp. v. Twombly, 550 U.S. 544, 570, 127 S.Ct. 1955, 167 L.Ed.2d 929 (2007)). To be “plausible on its face,” a plaintiff must demonstrate more than “a sheer possibility that a defendant has acted unlawfully.” Id. A plaintiff therefore must “articulate facts, when accepted as true, that ‘show1 that the plaintiff has stated a claim entitling [it] to relief, i.e., the ‘plausibility of entitlement to relief.’ ” Francis v. Giacomelli, 588 F.3d 186, 193 (4th Cir. 2009) (quoting Iqbal, 129 S.Ct. at 1949).
III. ANALYSIS
It is well established that inmates have a fundamental right to access the courts and courts protect that right “by prohibiting state prison officials from actively interfering with inmates’ attempts to prepare legal documents.” Lewis v. Casey, 518 U.S. 343, 350, 116 S.Ct. 2174, 135 L.Ed.2d 606 (1996). “[M]eaningful access to the courts is the touchstone.” Id. at 351,116 S.Ct. 2174. Therefore, in order to sustain a claim of denial of access to the courts, a prisoner must show actual injury, i.e., that the prisoner’s efforts to pursue a legal claim were hindered. See id. at 351-52, 116 S.Ct. 2174; accord O’Dell v. Netherland, 112 F.3d 773, 776 (4th Cir. 1997) (holding that an inmate wishing to establish an unconstitutional burden on his right to access to the courts must show actual injury to the capability in bringing contemplated challenges to sentences or conditions of confinement before the courts).
In support of her motion to dismiss, Inpold contends that Plaintiff fails to state a claim against her for violation of his constitutional right to access to the courts because Plaintiff pleads Inpold’s negligence, not active interference.
Here, as to Defendant Inpold, Plaintiff alleges negligence at most. Furthermore, even if Plaintiff had alleged intentional interference by Defendant Inpold, Plaintiff has failed to allege specific facts that could plausibly give rise to Defendant’s active, intentional interference with Plaintiffs right to access to the courts. That is, although Plaintiff has produced Green Card No. 1172 with Defendant Inpold’s signature on it, he makes no allegation with regard to Defendant’s active or intentional interference with the package.
Finally, as Defendant notes, Plaintiff has not pled actual injury. That is, although Plaintiff claims that certain legal papers were lost, he has pled no particulars as to the contents of those papers or of the contemplated or existing legal action to which they were vital. For instance, Plaintiff contends that the legal papers contained affidavits from certain individuals and that the affidavits would have proven his innocence.
IV. CONCLUSION
IT IS, THEREFORE, ORDERED that:
1. Defendant’s Amended Motion to Dismiss, (Doc. No. 44), is GRANT*689 ED, and this action is dismissed with prejudice.
2. Defendant’s Motion for Protective Order, (Doc. No. 30), and Plaintiffs Motion to Compel Discovery, (Doc. No. 36), are DISMISSED as moot.
. Plaintiff asserts a conclusory allegation of "intentional” acts by certain prison officials, but he does not allege such intentional interference by Defendant Inpold. (Doc. No. 1 at 8) ("This actions [sic] by prison officials is a denial for access to the court intentionally and not because is [sic] a mistake by mail-room staff____”).
. Defendant further argues that Plaintiff has not produced Green Card No. 6192 and, in its absence, Plaintiff cannot even credibly claim that the package that his mother sent on April 4, 2009 reached the prison.
. The North Carolina Department of Correction records indicate that Plaintiff was convicted of first-degree rape on June 24, 1999.
. Moreover, even assuming that the statements in the affidavits would somehow prove Plaintiff s innocence, Plaintiff is certainly free to request the individuals who authored the alleged affidavits to prepare new affidavits.
. Defendant also contends that she is entitled to qualified immunity. Because the Court finds that there was no constitutional violation in the first instance, the Court need not address Defendant's qualified immunity argument. ’
Reference
- Full Case Name
- Jorge GALEAS, (aka Jorge Gevara) v. Betty INPOLD
- Cited By
- 1 case
- Status
- Published