A successful complaint generally alleges “the who, what, when, where, and how. . . .”
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- A successful complaint generally alleges “the who, what, when, where, and how. . . .”
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The opinion
IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
FOR THE SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF ILLINOIS
MICHAEL K. DELICH, #N84043, )
)
Plaintiff, )
)
vs. ) Case No. 3:22-cv-02143-MAB
)
K. HVARRE, )
LIEUTENANT MASON, )
C/O BRUCE, )
and M. MILLER, )
)
Defendants. )
MEMORANDUM AND ORDER
BEATTY, Magistrate Judge:
Plaintiff Michael Delich, an inmate in the Illinois Department of Corrections, filed
this lawsuit pursuant to 42 U.S.C. § 1983 for alleged deprivations of his constitutional
rights at Big Muddy River Correctional Center. This case is now before the Court for
preliminary review of the Complaint under 28 U.S.C. § 1915A.1 Any portion of the
Complaint that is legally frivolous or malicious, fails to state a claim for relief, or requests
money damages from an immune defendant must be dismissed. 28 U.S.C. § 1915A(b).
DISCUSSION
To survive preliminary review under § 1915A, a Complaint must contain “a short
and plain statement of the claim showing that the pleader is entitled to relief,” FED. R.
1 The Court has jurisdiction to screen the Complaint in light of Plaintiff’s consent to the full
jurisdiction of a Magistrate Judge, and the limited consent by the Illinois Department of
Corrections to the exercise of Magistrate Judge jurisdiction as set forth in the Memorandum of
Understanding between this Court and the Illinois Department of Corrections.
CIV. P. 8(a)(2), which includes “enough facts to state a claim to relief that is plausible on
its face.” Bell Atlantic Corp. v. Twombly, 550 U.S. 544, 547 (2007). The Complaint must also
associate specific defendants with specific claims, so that defendants are put on notice of
the claims brought against them and they can properly answer the Complaint. Id. at 555.
Because Plaintiff brings his claims under § 1983, he must allege that each defendant was
personally involved in the deprivation of a constitutional right. Matz v. Klotka, 769 F.3d
517, 528 (7th Cir. 2014). The Complaint must also include a demand for the relief sought.
FED.R.CIV.P. 8(a)(3).
Here, Plaintiff omitted a statement of claim and request for relief from his form
Complaint. He did not attach any additional pages setting forth the required information.
And while Plaintiff’s submission did include one document from the Administrative
Review Board regarding his grievance, this is simply not sufficient to give the Court any
indication as to what Plaintiff is alleging the named Defendants have done or failed to
do. Because Plaintiff fails to allege how any of the named Defendants allegedly violated
his constitutional rights, the Complaint must be dismissed for failure to state a claim for
relief.
DISPOSITION
Following review under 28 U.S.C. § 1915A, the Complaint is DISMISSED without
prejudice for failure to state a claim for relief. Plaintiff is GRANTED leave to file a First
Amended Complaint by March 2, 2023.
Should Plaintiff file a First Amended Complaint, it is strongly recommended that
he use the civil rights complaint form designed for use in this District and complete all
sections of the form. He should label the form “First Amended Complaint” and use the
case number for this action (Case No. 22-cv-2143-MAB). The First Amended Complaint
will be subject to review under 28 U.S.C. § 1915A. Plaintiff should identify each defendant
in the case caption and include sufficient allegations against each defendant to describe
what the defendant did or failed to do to violate his constitutional rights, see DiLeo v. Ernst
& Young, 901 F.2d 624, 627 (7th Cir. 1990) (A successful complaint generally alleges “the
who, what, when, where, and how. . . .”), and as much as possible, include the relevant
facts in chronological order, inserting each defendant’s name where necessary to identify
the actors and each defendant’s actions. To facilitate Plaintiff’s compliance with this
Order, the Clerk of Court is DIRECTED to mail him a civil rights complaint form.
An amended complaint supersedes and replaces the original complaint, rendering
the original complaint void. See Flannery v. Recording Indus. Ass’n of Am., 354 F.3d 632, 638
n. 1 (7th Cir. 2004). Therefore, the Court will not accept piecemeal amendments to a
previously filed Complaint. The First Amended Complaint must stand on its own,
without reference to any previous pleading.
If Plaintiff fails to file his First Amended Complaint within the allotted time or
consistent with the instructions set forth in this Order, the case will be dismissed
without prejudice for failure to comply with a court order and for failure to prosecute
his claims.
Plaintiff is ADVISED that he is under a continuing obligation to keep the Clerk of
Court informed of any change in his address; the Court will not independently
investigate his whereabouts. This shall be done in writing and not later than 7 days after
a transfer or other change in address occurs. Failure to comply with this order will cause
a delay in the transmission of court documents and may result in dismissal of this
action for want of prosecution. See FED. R. CIV. P. 41(b).
IT IS SO ORDERED.
DATED: January 26, 2023
/s/ Mark A. Beatty
MARK A. BEATTY
United States Magistrate Judge