Thomas Townsend, Plaintiff-appellant, v. State of Nevada; Nevada State Industrial Insurance; Nevadaboard of Exam, Defendants-appellees, 76 F.3d 388 (9th Cir. 1996)
Annotate this CaseBefore: ALARCON, HALL, and BRUNETTI, Circuit Judges.
MEMORANDUM**
Thomas Townsend appeals pro se the district court's dismissal of his second amended complaint for failure to state a claim. Townsend alleges that defendants violated his civil rights by denying him financial assistance under the State of Nevada's Victims of Crime Program, ("Program") Nev.Rev.Stat. § 217. We review de novo the district court's dismissal of a complaint pursuant to Fed. R. Civ. P. 12(b) (6) for failure to state a claim. See Roth v. Garcia Marquez, 942 F.2d 617, 625 (9th Cir. 1991). We have jurisdiction pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1291, and we affirm.
First, to the extent that Townsend is challenging the factual findings of the State Board of Examiners and the individual hearing officers, those findings are precluded, by statute, from judicial review. See Nev.Rev.Stat. 217.117(4).
Second, to the extent that Townsend is alleging violations of his due process rights in the administration of the Program, Townsend has fail to establish a protected liberty or property interest under the statute. The statute in question neither establishes "substantive predicates" to govern official decisionmaking, nor contains "explicitly mandatory language" governing a "particular outcome." See Nev.Rev.Stat. 217.160(1) (stating that "the compensation officer may order the payment of compensation") (emphasis added); Kentucky Dept. of Corrections v. Thompson, 490 U.S. 454, 462-63 (1989); Gotcher v. Wood, 66 F.3d 1097, 1098 (9th Cir. 1995).
Finally, the district court properly dismissed Townsend's claims against the State of Nevada as barred by the Eleventh Amendment. See Franceschi v. Schwartz, 57 F.3d 828, 831 (9th Cir. 1993).
AFFIRMED.
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