Pickett v. Schuman, No. 0:2011cv00140 - Document 3 (E.D. Ky. 2012)
Court Description: MEMORANDUM OPINION & ORDER: (1) Petitioner Curtis Allen Pickett's 28 USC 2241 DE# 1 is DENIED; (2) This proceeding is DISMISSED WITHOUT PREJUDICE to Pickett's filing a civil rights action under 28 USC 1331; (3) Judgment shall be entered contemporaneously with this Memorandum Opinion and Order in favor of the Respondent. Signed by Judge Henry R. Wilhoit, Jr on 1/18/12.(KSS)cc: COR
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UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT EASTERN DISTRICT OF KENTUCKY NORTHERN DIVISION AT ASHLAND CURTIS ALLEN PICKETT, ) ) Petitioner, ) No. ll-CV-140-HRW ) vs. ) ) "X." SCHUMAN, Acting Warden,) MEMORANDUM OPINION AND ORDER ) Respondent. ) **** **** **** **** Curtis Allen Pickett, confined in the Federal Correctional Institution in Ashland, Kentucky, ("FCI-Ashland"), has filed a pro se petition for a writ of habeas corpus pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 2241, [D. E. No.1], and has paid the $5.00 habeas filing fee. [Jd.]. For the reasons set forth below, Pickett's § 2241 petition will be dismissed without prejudice to his filing a proper civil rights action. Pickett alleges that he has developed an allergic skin condition, an outbreak of bumps and knots on his face and neck, from exposure to certain clothes-cleaning chemicals used in the prison laundry. He seeks permission to use special detergent for his sensitive skin and to wash his clothes separately from other FCI-Ashland inmates. See Informal Resolution Request, [D. E. No.1-I, p. 1]. He also asks to be examined by an outside skin specialist. [ld.]. Thus, he asserts claims under the Eighth Amendment of the United States Constitution, which prohibits cruel and unusual punishment. When a federal prisoner challenges the execution ofhis sentence, i.e., the Bureau of Prisons' ("BOP") calculation of sentence credits or other issues affecting the length ofhis sentence, he may file a § 2241 petition filed in the district where he is incarcerated. See United States v. Peterman, 249 F.3d 458,461 (6th Cir. 2001)); see also, Charles v. Chandler, 180 F.3d 753,755-56 (6th Cir. 1999). But Pickett is not challenging the execution of his sentence; he instead challenges specific conditions of his confinement at FCl-Ashland ( harmful exposure to laundry chemicals and the denial ofproper medical treatment for his skin condition) and seeks injunctive relief (accommodations for his laundry practices and an examination by an outside skin specialist). When a prisoner files a habeas petition asserting claims which should be raised in a civil rights action, the district court must deny the petition without prejudice to allow the prisoner to assert the claims under the proper method. Martin v. Overton, 391 F.3d 710, 714 (6th Cir. 2004); Sullivan v. United States, 90 F. App'x 862,863 (6th Cir. 2004). Thus, Pickett cannot seek relief from the conditions of his BOP confinement in this § 2241 petition. Martin, 391 F.3d at 714. He must instead file a civil rights action filed under 28 U.S.C. § 1331, pursuant to Bivens v. Six Unknown Named Agents o/Federal Bureau o/Narcotics, 403 U.S. 388 (1971), and either pay the $350.00 filing fee or seek pauper status. Prior to filing a Bivens action asserting his Eighth Amendment medical claims, Pickett must have fully completed the BOP's administrative remedy process. 2 CONCLUSION Accordingly, IT IS ORDERED as follows: (l) Petitioner Curtis Allen Pickett's 28 U.S.C. § 2241 petition, [D. E. No. 1], is DENIED; (2) This proceeding is DISMISSED WITHOUT PREJUDICE to Pickett's filing a civil rights action under 28 U.S.C. § 1331; and (3) Judgment shall be entered contemporaneously with this Memorandum Opinion and Order in favor of the Respondent, "X." Schuman, Acting Warden ofFCIAshland. This 18th day of January, 2012. SIQnedBy t1.enry R. VWlhoit. Jr, United States DIstnct Judge 3
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