Robert Kenneth Hill v. Duffield Regional Jail

Summary

The court dismissed Robert Kenneth Hill’s 42 U.S.C. § 1983 action at the screening stage under 28 U.S.C. § 1915A. It held that Duffield Regional Jail was not a suable entity and that seeking credit toward a sentence through a § 1983 action was improper because such relief must be pursued through habeas corpus.

Holdings

1. Duffield Regional Jail is not a suable entity under § 1983, so the complaint fails to state a claim against it.
2. A § 1983 action is not the proper vehicle for a claim seeking to shorten the length of a sentence; such a challenge must be brought through habeas corpus.

Questions Presented

1. Whether Duffield Regional Jail is a suable entity under 42 U.S.C. § 1983.
2. Whether a § 1983 action is an appropriate vehicle for a claim seeking credit that would shorten the plaintiff's sentence.

Disposition

dismissed