Rayco DelShaune Traylor v. Minnesota Dept. of Corrections et al.

Summary

The United States District Court for the District of Minnesota overruled Rayco DelShaune Traylor’s objection to a magistrate judge’s Report and Recommendation. The court accepted the recommendation, granted defendants’ motions for summary judgment on Traylor’s 42 U.S.C. § 1983 claims, and dismissed those claims. Traylor’s state-law claims were dismissed without prejudice.

Holdings

1. Generalized and repetitive assertions that the record supports the complaint are insufficient to constitute specific objections; absent specific objections, the Report and Recommendation is reviewed for clear error.
2. Summary judgment was properly granted to defendants on Traylor's individual-capacity § 1983 claims because the record did not present genuine disputes of material fact concerning the alleged constitutional violations.
3. Eleventh Amendment sovereign immunity barred Traylor's § 1983 claims against the Minnesota Department of Corrections and Oak Park Heights Correctional Facility, and against Halvorson, Doeden, McNamara, Pawelk, and Tran in their official capacities.
4. Traylor's state-law claims against all defendants were dismissed without prejudice.

Questions Presented

1. Whether Traylor's generalized assertions constituted specific objections requiring de novo review of the magistrate judge's Report and Recommendation.
2. Whether the record contained a genuine dispute of material fact sufficient to preclude summary judgment on Traylor's individual-capacity claims under 42 U.S.C. § 1983.
3. Whether Eleventh Amendment sovereign immunity barred Traylor's official-capacity § 1983 claims against the Minnesota Department of Corrections, Oak Park Heights Correctional Facility, and certain officials.
4. Whether Traylor's state-law claims should be dismissed.

Disposition

other