Jeremiah F. Herbert v. Layci DeRouchie, et al.

Summary

The United States District Court for the Northern District of New York adopted a magistrate judge's report and recommendation and granted defendants' motion for summary judgment in Jeremiah Herbert's 42 U.S.C. § 1983 action. The court held that Herbert failed to exhaust available administrative remedies under the Prison Litigation Reform Act for his Eighth Amendment conditions-of-confinement and excessive-force claims. The court denied Herbert's motion for summary judgment and several other pending motions as moot and directed the Clerk to enter judgment for defendants and close the case.

Holdings

1. Because Plaintiff's objections were general and conclusory and merely repeated his prior arguments, the district court reviewed the Report-Recommendation for clear error rather than conducting de novo review.
2. Plaintiff's conditions-of-confinement claim was barred by the PLRA because he did not appeal the relevant grievance determinations through the required administrative process.
3. Plaintiff's excessive-force claim was barred by the PLRA because the record contained no grievance concerning excessive force by any Defendant.
4. Plaintiff failed to establish that the administrative remedies were unavailable, actually or functionally, and therefore did not overcome Defendants' exhaustion defense.

Questions Presented

1. Whether Plaintiff's general and conclusory objections required de novo rather than clear-error review of the magistrate judge's Report-Recommendation.
2. Whether Defendants were entitled to summary judgment because Plaintiff failed to exhaust available administrative remedies under the Prison Litigation Reform Act.
3. Whether Plaintiff's motion for summary judgment and other pending motions should be denied or deemed moot after judgment for Defendants.

Disposition

other