Ted K. Davis, Jr. v. Judge Charles Chamberlain

Summary

The United States District Court for the Southern District of Ohio overruled Ted K. Davis Jr.’s objections to a magistrate judge’s report and recommendation and adopted the recommendation in full. The court granted Judge Charles Chamberlain’s motion to dismiss and dismissed the action with prejudice, concluding that the claims were barred by the domestic-relations and Rooker-Feldman doctrines and that judicial immunity also applied.

Holdings

1. Vague, general, frivolous, or conclusory objections do not satisfy the objection requirement and do not require de novo review; the court reviewed only the objections that were sufficiently specific.
2. The domestic-relations abstention doctrine independently defeated federal district court jurisdiction because Davis's constitutional claims were merely a pretext for seeking relief from state domestic-relations judgments.
3. Even if the claims fell outside the domestic-relations exception, Rooker-Feldman barred them because Davis was a state-court loser alleging injuries caused by state-court judgments and seeking federal review or nullification of those judgments.
4. The court stated that Judge Chamberlain was entitled to judicial immunity from suits arising from performance of judicial functions.

Questions Presented

1. Whether Davis's objections to the magistrate judge's report and recommendation required de novo review.
2. Whether the federal district court could exercise jurisdiction over claims that effectively challenged or sought nullification of state-court domestic-relations judgments.
3. Whether the domestic-relations abstention doctrine and the Rooker-Feldman doctrine required dismissal.
4. Whether Judge Chamberlain was entitled to judicial immunity.

Disposition

dismissed