Hebrard V. Nofziger, No. 22-35327 (9th Cir. 2024)
Annotate this CaseIn this case, Alexander Hebrard, an inmate in Oregon, brought a complaint under 42 U.S.C. § 1983 alleging that he was disciplined in prison without due process of law. Hebrard claimed that he was found guilty of prison rule violations without sufficient evidence and was denied the opportunity to present a defense. As a result of his alleged wrongful conviction, Hebrard was fined, had money confiscated from his prison account, was placed in segregated housing, lost visitation rights, and had earned-time credits revoked. In his lawsuit, Hebrard sought damages for all these sanctions, except for the revocation of his earned-time credits. The United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit affirmed the district court's dismissal of Hebrard's complaint as barred by Heck v. Humphrey. Under Heck, a claim for damages that would necessarily imply the invalidity of the length of an inmate's sentence must be dismissed unless the inmate first challenges his sentence in a habeas corpus proceeding and obtains relief. The Ninth Circuit determined that even though Hebrard did not seek relief for the revocation of his earned-time credits, his claim nonetheless implicated the validity of his disciplinary conviction, which in turn affected the length of his sentence. The court concluded that Hebrard needed to obtain habeas relief before filing this § 1983 action. Because he did not do so, his claim was barred by Heck.
Court Description: Prisoner Civil Rights/Heck v. Humphrey The panel affirmed the district court’s sua sponte dismissal of Oregon inmate Alexander Hebrard’s 42 U.S.C. § 1983 complaint as barred by Heck v. Humphrey, 512 U.S. 477 (1994).
Hebrard alleged that he was disciplined in prison without due process of law and sought damages for the disciplinary sanctions imposed, but did not seek relief for the revocation of 27 days of his earned-time credits. Three years after Hebrard’s complaint was filed, the district court sua sponte requested briefing on whether Heck barred his claim. Under Heck, a section 1983 suit for damages that would necessarily imply the invalidity of the length of an inmate’s sentence must be dismissed unless the inmate first challenges his sentence in habeas and obtains relief.
The panel determined that defendant’s failure to plead Heck as an affirmative defense constituted a forfeiture rather than a waiver. The district court did not err when it sua sponte resurrected defendant’s forfeited Heck defense at the summary judgment stage and dismissed the complaint under the Prison Litigation Reform Act, 28 U.S.C. 1915(e)(2)(B)(ii), which provides that dismissals for failure to state a claim are obligatory, even when the legal basis for the dismissal is raised sua sponte. Addressing the merits of the dismissal, the panel held that it was clear from the face of the complaint that Hebrard’s claim necessarily implicated the validity of the revocation of his earned-time credits, which extended his stay in prison. Under Edwards v. Balisok, 520 U.S. 641 (1997), Hebrard’s decision not to request relief for the loss of his earned-time credits did not mean his claim did not challenge the validity of the duration of his confinement. A successful challenge to the validity of the procedures employed during Hebrard’s disciplinary hearing necessarily encompassed a determination that the prison could not validly impose any sanctions—including the revocation of plaintiff’s earned-time credits. To comply with Heck, Hebrard had to obtain habeas relief before filing this § 1983 action. Because he did not do so, his claim was barred by Heck.
Dissenting, Judge Sung stated that on this record, it was uncertain whether the restoration of Hebrard’s earned-time credits would necessarily lead to his immediate or speedier release from custody. Under Oregon law, it is possible that Hebrard is receiving earned-time credits that cannot lead to his immediate or speedier release. She therefore disagreed with the conclusion that the district court properly dismissed Hebrard’s claim as Heck-barred.
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