Micheal Williams v. Hon. Daniel McMann Warden of Auburn Prison, Auburn, New York
Opinion of the Court
Micheál Williams, a jailhouse lawyer, appeals from an order of the United States District Court for the Northern District of New York, James T. Foley, Chief Judge, dismissing Williams’s self-styled “motion for a writ of injunction” under the Civil Rights Act, 42 U.S.C. § 1983. In his letter-motion, or, more accurately, in his complaint, which apparently was mailed to the district court in June 1969, Williams alleged that he was «locked in his cell as punishment for possessing another .inmate’s plea and sentencing minutes, and requested that the district court:
issue an order of injunction, restraining the respondents from subjecting the petitioner to any further abuse and lockups for assisting other inmates in Auburn State Prison.
Treating Williams’s complaint as a petition for a writ of habeas corpus, Chief Judge Foley ordered its dismissal in July 1969, for failure to exhaust state remedies.
To be sure, we do not mean to suggest that pro se plaintiffs in civil rights actions must conform their allegations to Chitty’s pleading rules. See Haines v. Kerner, 404 U.S.-, 92 S.Ct. 594, 30 L.Ed.2d 652 (1972) (per cur-iam). But particularly where a prisoner-plaintiff seeks to invoke federal equity powers to undertake a continuing supervision of the administration of disciplinary rules by state prison authorities, some measure of precision is indispensable. -It is simply not present here. Judgment affirmed.
. The judge’s Memorandum-Decision and Order is unpublished. In the district court the caption “United States ex rel. Williams v. McMann” was used, and Williams was denominated “Petitioner.” We have altered these terms for reasons that will be obvious.
. Rodriguez v. McGinnis, et al., United States ex rel. Katzoff v. McGinnis, et al., and Kritsky v. McGinnis, et al., 456 F.2d 79 (2d Cir. 1972) (en banc). Decision in the present appeal had been held in abeyance pending the conclusion of the en banc proceeding in these cases.
. See Sostre v. McGinnis, 442 F.2d 178, 201 (2d Cir. 1971) (en banc).
Concurring Opinion
(concurring) :
I concur and wish to add that, even had the petition set forth sufficient details, I would direct the district court to stay consideration of the petition until it had been heard in the New York state courts, for reasons which are set forth in my dissenting opinion filed this day in Rodriguez v. McGinnis, United States ex rel. Katzoff v. McGinnis, and Kritsky v. McGinnis.
Reference
- Full Case Name
- Micheal WILLIAMS, Plaintiff-Appellant, v. Hon. Daniel McMANN, Warden of Auburn Prison, Auburn, New York, Defendant-Appellee
- Cited By
- 1 case
- Status
- Published