Crawford v. Bell
| Citation | 599 F.2d 890 |
| Decision Date | 27 April 1979 |
| Docket Number | No. 78-1609,78-1609 |
| Parties | Herbert M. CRAWFORD, Petitioner-Appellant, v. Griffin BELL, Attorney General of the United States, et al., Respondents-Appellees. |
| Court | United States Courts of Appeals. United States Court of Appeals (9th Circuit) |
Herbert M. Crawford, in pro. per.
John C. Merkel, U.S. Atty. (argued), Harry J. McCarthy, Asst. U.S. Atty. (argued), Seattle, Wash., for respondents-appellees.
Appeal from the United States District Court for the Western District of Washington.
Before WRIGHT and GOODWIN, Circuit Judges, and SPENCER WILLIAMS *, District Judge.
Herbert M. Crawford appeals from the dismissal of his combined civil rights complaint and petition for a writ of habeas corpus challenging certain conditions at McNeil Island penitentiary. The issues raised by this appeal are: (1) whether dismissal of a habeas corpus petition is proper when the petitioner has not challenged the legality of his custody; and (2) whether dismissal of a litigant's claims is proper on the grounds the individual is a class member in a pending action involving the same parties and allegations and praying for the same relief.
We affirm the district court's dismissal of the petition for a writ of habeas corpus and those portions of appellant's complaint which duplicate the pending class action. We reverse, however, with regard to the dismissal of those portions of the complaint which raise issues not covered by the class action.
Appellant, Herbert M. Crawford, is an inmate incarcerated at the McNeil Island federal penitentiary. On December 29, 1977 he filed a combined civil rights action and petition for a writ of habeas corpus challenging conditions at the prison. Appellant's complaint/petition was copied from a class action complaint/petition filed by the Federal Public Defender Sub nom Herman S. Evans v. Griffin Bell C-77-61-T.
Pursuant to local rule, Crawford's complaint/petition was referred to a magistrate who issued an order to show cause on February 2, 1978. As its return, the respondent filed a brief memo requesting the court to deny the petition for a writ of habeas corpus because the district judge in Evans had certified a class of which petitioner was a member. The magistrate issued his report on February 23, 1978 recommending that the "petition for a writ of habeas corpus and other relief be dismissed" because the petitioner's interests appeared to be fully protected by the Evans action. The magistrate's recommendation was adopted by the district judge and judgment was entered accordingly.
The judgment of the district court dismissing Crawford's petition for a writ of habeas corpus was proper for reasons other than Crawford's membership in the Evans class. According to traditional interpretation, the writ of habeas corpus is limited to attacks upon the legality or duration of confinement. Preiser v. Rodriguez, 411 U.S. 475, 484-86, 93 S.Ct. 1827, 36 L.Ed.2d 439 (1973); X. (Bryant) v. Carlson, 363 F.Supp. 928, 930 (E.D.Ill. 1973). Crawford's petition does not challenge the legality of his imprisonment. Instead, the petition alleges that the terms and conditions of his incarceration constitute cruel and unusual punishment, violate his right to due process, and invade his constitutionally protected privacy. The appropriate remedy for such constitutional violations, if proven, would be a judicially mandated change in conditions and/or an award of damages, but not release from confinement. 1
The trial court's sua sponte dismissal of Crawford's complaint for violation of his constitutional rights was, in part, erroneous. While Crawford's complaint and the Evans complaint are very similar, they are not identical. Both complaints allege jurisdiction under 28 U.S.C. § 1331 and assert various constitutional and statutory violations arising from overcrowding at the McNeil Island facility. However, unlike the Federal Public Defender's complaint, Crawford's complaint also alleges that he, other prisoners, and their visitors have suffered from food poisoning due to unsanitary conditions at the McNeil Island slaughterhouse. His complaint also attacks the availability and adequacy of legal resource materials at the prison and alleges that the overcrowding has created deprivations of visiting privileges. Finally, the relief prayed for in Crawford's complaint exceeds that sought in the class complaint in that Crawford requests the court to: (1) direct the respondents to begin a program of conjugal visits; (2) direct respondents to close down the slaughterhouse until a team of inspectors are designated by the court to look into the petitioner's allegations; (3) direct respondents to comply with federal laws in regard to the legal research center at McNeil Island prison; and (4) award petitioner $100,000 in punitive damages for the abrogation of his constitutional rights.
The sparse record in this case seems to indicate the district court presumed the Evans class action and Crawford's complaint/petition were identical and thus dismissed Crawford's complaint on the theory his rights would be fully protected by his participation as a class member in Evans. The district court's ruling raises the issue of whether dismissal of an individual complaint is proper because the complainant is a member in a class action seeking the same relief.
A similar problem was addressed by the district court in Tate v. Werner, 68 F.R.D. 513 (E.D.Pa.1975). In that case a prisoner class action charged, Inter alia, there was no adequate law library for inmate use. The district court dismissed the action with respect to the law library issue on the ground a previously certified class action was still pending which raised the same issue and included all of the members of the Tate class. The court rested its decision on the failure of plaintiffs to opt out of the prior class action and on the following rationale.
This is a classic situation where any relief in this court would possibly conflict with, and at least would circumscribe the flexibility of any relief determination (in the other case).
A district court has inherent power to choose among its broad arsenal of remedies when confronted with situations where, as...
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