IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE EASTERN DISTRICT OF TEXAS BEAUMONT DIVISION TONY ORLANDO MYLES §

VS. § CIVIL ACTION NO. 1:20cv486 YOLANDA BARLOW, ET AL. § MEMORANDUM OPINION AND ORDER Plaintiff Tony Orlando Myles, an inmate confined at the Gib Lewis Unit of the Texas Department of Criminal Justice, Correctional Institutions Division, proceeding pro se, filed this civil rights action pursuant to

Discussion The Civil Rights Act,

, et. seq., under which this case is brought, does not contain a specific venue provision. Accordingly, venue in civil rights cases is controlled by

. Jones v. Bales,

(N.D. Ga. 1972), aff'd per curiam,

(5th Cir. 1973). When, as in this case, jurisdiction is not founded solely on diversity of citizenship,

provides that venue is proper only in the judicial district where the defendants reside or in which the claim arose. However, under

(a), for the convenience of parties and witnesses and in the interests of justice, a district court may transfer any civil action to any other district or division where it could have been brought. Such a transfer may be done sua sponte and is reviewable only for an abuse of discretion. Mills v. Beech Aircraft Corp.,

(5th

Cir. 1989). Plaintiff complains about incidents that took place at the Gib Lewis Unit, which is located in the Lufkin Division of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Texas. In addition, the defendants appear to reside in the Lufkin Division. However, this case was filed in the Beaumont Division. The court has considered the circumstances and determined that the interest of justice would be served if the complaint were transferred to the division in which the claims arose. It is accordingly ORDERED that this civil rights action is TRANSFERRED to the Lufkin Division of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Texas.

SIGNED this the 23rd day of December, 2020.

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KEITH F. GIBLIN UNITED STATES MAGISTRATE JUDGE