Gibson v. Orleans Parish Sheriff, Civil Action No. 12–2632.

• Decision Date: 12 August 2013
• Docket Number: Civil Action No. 12–2632.
• Citation: 971 F.Supp.2d 625
• Parties: Philip GIBSON, Plaintiff v. ORLEANS PARISH SHERIFF, Defendant.
• Court: U.S. District Court — Eastern District of Louisiana

971 F.Supp.2d 625

Philip GIBSON, Plaintiff

v.ORLEANS PARISH SHERIFF, Defendant.

Civil Action No. 12–2632.

United States District Court, E.D. Louisiana.

Aug. 12, 2013.

Philip Gibson, New Orleans, LA, pro se.

Colin Andrew Clark, Louisiana Attorney General's Office, Baton Rouge, LA, for Defendant.

ORDER AND REASONS

JANE TRICHE MILAZZO, District Judge.

Before the Court is Plaintiff, Philip Gibson's, Petition for Habeas Corpus. (R. Doc. 1.) For the following reasons, the Court must abstain from exercising jurisdiction over Plaintiff's Writ of Habeas Corpus. Accordingly, it is ordered that Philip Gibson's claims brought pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 2241 against Defendants are dismissed with prejudice. Because this Court lacks jurisdiction, all outstanding Motions (Docs. 29, 33, 41, 44, 46) are DENIED and the above captioned matter is DISMISSED.

BACKGROUND

Plaintiff, Philip Gibson (“Gibson”) was indicted on June 16, 2011 in Louisiana state court in Orleans Parish for Exploitation of the Infirmed, La.Rev.Stat. Ann. § 14:93.4. (R. Doc. 30 at 1.) Gibson allegedly violated Louisiana's Exploitation of the Infirmed statute, La.Rev.Stat. Ann. § 14:93.4, when he used funds from the bank account of Thelma Seabolt, an elderly lady under his care. (R. Doc. 30 at 5.) In total, Gibson, who has ten prior felony convictions, allegedly misappropriated $252,940.91 of Seabolt's money. ( Id. at 8–10.)

Gibson was also indicted in East Baton Rouge with violations of La.Rev.Stat. Ann. § 14:133 (Filing or Maintaining False Public Records), La.Rev.Stat. Ann. § 14:67 (Theft), La.Rev.Stat. Ann. § 14:123 (Perjury), La.Rev.Stat. Ann. § 14:118 (Public Bribery), and La.Rev.Stat. Ann. § 14:130.1 (Obstruction of Justice), because he represented himself as a medical doctor and the executive director of a non-profit organization, accepted donations under false pretenses, and attempted to bribe a pastor to clear his name. (R. Doc. 30 at 2–5.) Gibson is currently in custody of Orleans Parish awaiting trial. (R. Doc. 46 at 2.)

On December 27, 2011, Gibson filed a Writ of Habeas Corpus with the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals, which was denied on February 14, 2012. (R. Doc. 1–1 at 21.) On March 9, 2012, Gibson filed a Writ of Habeas Corpus with the Louisiana Supreme Court, which was denied on April 20, 2012. ( Id. at 21–22.)

On October 17, 2012, Gibson filed a Writ of Habeas Corpus pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 2241 with the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana. (Rec. Doc No. 1.) Gibson requests “declaratory relief [,] ... petition for mandamus, ... prohibition and certiorari under the provisions of the All Writs Act, 28 U.S.C. 452, ... preliminary injunction, or in the alternative, a temporary restraining order.” (R. Doc. 1–1 at 7–8.)

In his Petition for a Writ of Habeas Corpus, Plaintiff alleges violations of 18 U.S.C.A. § 1962, the Racketeering Influenced and Corrupt Organizations statute (“RICO”), (R. Doc. 1–1 at 7; 10 at 4), and violations of his constitutional rights under the First, Fourth, Fifth, Sixth, and Fourteenth Amendments (R. Doc. 1–1 at 8; 10 at 40.)

ARGUMENTS OF THE PARTIES

Two main arguments can be deciphered from Gibson's statement of the facts. ¹First, Gibson contends that several elected officials ² conspired and abused their power to deprive him of his position in the non-profit of which he was indicted for misrepresenting himself as executive director in his East Baton Rouge case in violation of RICO. (R. Doc. 1–1 at 8–12.) Second, construing Gibson's petition liberally, he argues that his due process rights and his right to a fair trial were violated because his $500,000 bail was unreasonable, ( id. at 13, 24); Attorney General Caldwell engaged in prosecutorial misconduct, ( id. at 24); Orleans Parish Criminal District Court Judge Derbigny has failed to rule on several motions, has denied Petitioner counsel, and was ultimately not recused, ( id. at 22–24); and the Bill of Information in this Orleans Parish case is defective for failure to state a dollar amount in order to determine whether the crime is a misdemeanor or felony, ( id. at 16–17.)

The Attorney General argues that all of Gibson's claims are barred by the Younger abstention, because state court cases against Gibson are ongoing, the state has a strong interest in bringing Gibson to trial, Gibson has an adequate opportunity to litigate his claims in state trial court, and the state did not bring its criminal claim in bad faith. (R. Doc. 30 at 11–12.) Further, the prosecution argues that Gibson's claims either have not been exhausted in state court or are meritless, because Gibson has not demonstrated that he is in custody in violation of the federal law. ( Id. at 20–21.)

LAW AND ANALYSIS

I. Habeas Review

The Writ of Habeas Corpus “protect[s] ... individuals against erosion of their right to be free from wrongful restraints upon their liberty.” Jones v. Cunningham, 371 U.S. 236, 243, 83 S.Ct. 373, 9 L.Ed.2d 285 (1963). Upon a petitioner's successful adjudication of a Writ of Habeas Corpus, the court may grant immediate release or fashion another form of appropriate relief. Peyton v. Rowe, 391 U.S. 54, 65, 88 S.Ct. 1549, 20 L.Ed.2d 426 (1968).

A petitioner that has not been convicted in state court must raise federal claims relating to his pretrial detention under 28 U.S.C. § 2241, not 28 U.S.C. § 2254. Martinez v. Caldwell, 644 F.3d 238, 242 (5th Cir.2011), cert. denied,132 S.Ct. 1541 (2012); Holley v. Texas, 194 F.3d 1309 (5th Cir.1999). In order to obtain habeas review under 28 U.S.C. § 2241, a petitioner must fit one of the following criteria:

(1) He is in custody under or by color of the authority of the United States or is committed for trial before some court thereof; or

(2) He is in custody for an act done or omitted in pursuance of an Act of Congress, or an order, process, judgment or decree of a court or judge of the United States; or

(3) He is in custody in violation of the Constitution or laws or treaties of the United States; or

(4) He, being a citizen of a foreign state and domiciled therein is in custody for an act done or omitted under any alleged right, title, authority, privilege, protection, or exemption claimed under the commission, order or sanction of any foreign state, or under color thereof, the validity and effect of which depend upon the law of nations; or

(5) It is necessary to bring him into court to testify or for trial.

Here, Gibson is currently being prosecuted by Orleans Parish, and alleges that his detainment violates federal law. ( see R. Doc. 1–1 at 8.) Thus, Gibson properly filed his claim under 28 U.S.C. § 2241 and is not procedurally barred from obtaining a Writ of Habeas Corpus.

II. Younger Abstention

A “[p]etitioner must satisfy the Younger abstention hurdles before [a court] may give habeas relief.” Kolski v. Watkins, 544 F.2d 762, 766 (5th Cir.1977). On the other hand, if a petitioner demonstrates “extraordinary circumstances showing a threat of irreparable injury which is both great and immediate,” then a court may exercise jurisdiction. Id. at 764–66;see also Younger v. Harris, 401 U.S. 37, 91 S.Ct. 746, 27 L.Ed.2d 669 (1971). The requirement that a petitioner prove “extraordinary circumstances” to obtain federal relief is grounded in the principals of comity and federalism. Younger, 401 U.S. at 44, 91 S.Ct. 746. The principles of comity and federalism inspired the policy of preventing federal courts from issuing injunctions or declaratory judgment while state court proceedings were ongoing. Kolski, at 766. This restraint has been extended to Writs of Habeas Corpus. Id. The Fifth Circuit explained in Kolski that “federal habeas relief prior to a pending state criminal trial is [no] different from the type of relief sought in Younger.” Id. The court found that

[t]here is no practical difference between granting federal habeas relief from a pending state criminal trial and enjoining the same trial. The principles of federalism and comity which underlie Younger are present in both. Thus, ... [a] Petitioner must satisfy the Younger abstention hurdles before we may give federal habeas relief.

Id. (citing Tatzel v. Hanlon, 530 F.2d 1205 (5th Cir.1976); Glenn v. Askew, 513 F.2d 61 (5th Cir.1975)). Ultimately, Younger and its progeny have established that “absent extraordinary circumstances federal courts should not enjoin pending state criminal prosecutions.”

New Orleans Public Service, Inc. v. Council of City of New Orleans, 491 U.S. 350, 364, 109 S.Ct. 2506, 105 L.Ed.2d 298 (1989) (citing Younger, 401 U.S. at 37, 91 S.Ct. 746).

The Younger doctrine requires that federal courts decline to exercise jurisdiction overstate criminal defendants' claims when three conditions are met: “(1) the federal proceeding would interfere with an ongoing state judicial proceeding; (2) the state has an important interest in regulating the subject matter of the claim; and (3) the plaintiff has an adequate opportunity in the state proceedings to raise constitutional challenges.” Bice v. La. Pub. Defender Bd., 677 F.3d 712, 716 (5th Cir.2012) (citing Middlesex Cnty. Ethics Comm. v. Garden State Bar Ass'n, 457 U.S. 423, 432, 102 S.Ct. 2515, 73 L.Ed.2d 116 (1982)) (internal citations omitted).

First, the federal proceeding must not “interfere with an ‘ongoing state judicial proceeding.’ ” Bice, 677 F.3d at 716 (quoting Middlesex, 457 U.S. at 432, 102 S.Ct. 2515). “Interference is established ‘whenever the requested relief would interfere with the state court's ability to conduct proceedings, regardless of whether the relief targets the conduct of a proceeding directly.’ ” Id. at 717 (quoting Joseph A. ex rel. Wolfe v. Ingram, 275 F.3d 1253, 1272 (10th Cir.2002)). In Younger, the Supreme Court held that a federal court issuing an injunction preventing state prosecution would interfere with an ongoing state proceeding. 401 U.S. at 41, 91 S.Ct. 746. Like the movant in Younger, Gibson is still being prosecuted. As of July 31,...