Yates v. Northwestern Regional Jail, No. 7:2023cv00572 - Document 11 (W.D. Va. 2024)

Court Description: ORDER DISMISSING CASE on the grounds that the defendant is not a person subject to suit under §1983 and the claim is frivolous and fails to state a claim for which relief may be granted. Further, the matter is STRICKEN from the active docket of this court. Signed by District Judge Robert S. Ballou on 4/2/2024. (Opinion and Order mailed to Pro Se Party/Parties via US Mail)(tvt)

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Yates v. Northwestern Regional Jail Doc. 11 $-&3,h4 0''*$& 6 4 %*45 $0635 "5 30"/0,& 7" '*-&% IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE WESTERN DISTRICT OF VIRGINIA ROANOKE DIVISION KELVIN DEON YATES, Plaintiff, v. NORTHWESTERN REGIONAL JAIL, Defendant. ) ) ) ) ) ) ) April 02, 2024 -"63" " "645*/ $-&3, #: s/5. 5BZMPS %&165: $-&3, Civil Action No. 7:23cv00572 OPINION and ORDER By: Robert S. Ballou United States District Judge Plaintiff Kelvin Deon Yates, a Virginia inmate proceeding pro se, has filed a civil rights action pursuant to 42 U.S.C. § 1983, naming only one defendant, the Northwestern Regional Jail. He alleges that the shoes he was issued (crocs) are not suitable for recreation. Because the claim is frivolous and the defendant is immune from suit, I will dismiss the complaint. Section 1983 imposes liability on a “person” who subjects another to deprivation of rights secured by the Constitution. The Northwestern Regional Jail is not a person within the meaning of the statute. The jail itself is a building, not an entity. McCoy v. Chesapeake Corr. Ctr., 788 F. Supp. 890, 893–94 (E.D. Va. 1992) (holding that a local jail is not a person subject to suit under § 1983); see also Jackson v. Middle River Regional Jail, No. 7:22cv00264, 2022 WL 1658414, *1 (W.D. Va. May 25, 2022) (applying McCoy in the context of a regional jail). The legal entity that operates a jail may be a proper defendant under specific circumstances, but Yates has not alleged any of those circumstances here. See Jackson, 2022 WL 1658414 at *1. Additionally, neither the Constitution nor any law entitles Yates to free athletic shoes provided by the jail, so his complaint is frivolous and fails to state a claim for which relief may be granted. Dockets.Justia.com The complaint is DISMISSED on the grounds that the defendant is not a person subject to suit under § 1983 and the claim is frivolous and fails to state a claim for which relief may be granted. Further, the matter is STRICKEN from the docket of this court. Enter: April 2, 2024 /s/ Robert S. Ballou Robert S. Ballou United States District Judge

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