Filed: Aug. 06, 2014
Latest Update: Mar. 02, 2020
Summary: NOT PRECEDENTIAL UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE THIRD CIRCUIT _ No. 14-1273 _ EUNICE HUSBAND, Appellant v. A. JORDAN, Disciplinary Hearing Officer _ On Appeal from the United States District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania (D.C. Civil Action No. 3-13-cv-02876) District Judge: Honorable Robert D. Mariani _ Submitted Pursuant to Third Circuit LAR 34.1(a) August 1, 2014 Before: JORDAN, COWEN and BARRY, Circuit Judges (Opinion filed: August 6, 2014) _ OPINION _ PER CURIAM Appel
Summary: NOT PRECEDENTIAL UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE THIRD CIRCUIT _ No. 14-1273 _ EUNICE HUSBAND, Appellant v. A. JORDAN, Disciplinary Hearing Officer _ On Appeal from the United States District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania (D.C. Civil Action No. 3-13-cv-02876) District Judge: Honorable Robert D. Mariani _ Submitted Pursuant to Third Circuit LAR 34.1(a) August 1, 2014 Before: JORDAN, COWEN and BARRY, Circuit Judges (Opinion filed: August 6, 2014) _ OPINION _ PER CURIAM Appell..
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NOT PRECEDENTIAL
UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS
FOR THE THIRD CIRCUIT
___________
No. 14-1273
___________
EUNICE HUSBAND,
Appellant
v.
A. JORDAN, Disciplinary Hearing Officer
____________________________________
On Appeal from the United States District Court
for the Middle District of Pennsylvania
(D.C. Civil Action No. 3-13-cv-02876)
District Judge: Honorable Robert D. Mariani
____________________________________
Submitted Pursuant to Third Circuit LAR 34.1(a)
August 1, 2014
Before: JORDAN, COWEN and BARRY, Circuit Judges
(Opinion filed: August 6, 2014)
___________
OPINION
___________
PER CURIAM
Appellant Eunice Husband appeals from the District Court’s denial of his habeas
petition under 28 U.S.C. § 2241. For the following reasons, we will affirm.
Husband is a federal inmate who filed a habeas petition challenging a disciplinary
hearing that resulted in the loss of good conduct credit and other privileges. The hearing
involved a February 2013 incident between Husband and prison staff that resulted in
Husband being charged with attempting to assault a correctional officer. In the incident
report, the officer stated that he was escorting Husband to a cell when Husband
“aggressively” turned toward him and attempted to get away. The officer then pushed
Husband to the floor “with the least amount of force necessary.” Husband continued to
resist and tried to get off the floor by pushing against the officer with his legs. The
officer was examined after the incident, and a medical assessment confirmed that he had
been hit because he had a contusion on his chest. An investigation of the incident
resulted in disciplinary proceedings against Husband, which included a disciplinary
hearing.
Husband was notified of the disciplinary hearing and advised of his rights. He
requested representation by a staff member and that two inmates testify on his behalf,
although he indicated that he did not know what the witnesses’ testimony would be. At
the hearing, Husband was represented by a staff member, who stated that he had no first-
hand knowledge of the incident and that Husband had made no specific requests of him
prior to the hearing. Husband presented no documentary evidence, but testified that the
correctional officer he was charged with attempting to assault actually attacked him,
aided by other officers. The Disciplinary Hearing Officer’s report indicates that the two
witnesses requested by Husband testified, but does not describe their testimony. The
Disciplinary Hearing Officer found that Husband committed the attempted assault. He
gave greater weight to the correctional officer’s statement than to Husband’s testimony
2
because he found the correctional officer’s statement to be “very specific,” whereas there
was no evidence to corroborate Husband’s claim that correctional officers conspired to
assault him because he refused to move into a cell with a cellmate. Instead, the
Disciplinary Hearing Officer concluded that Husband’s admitted refusal to accept a
cellmate supported the inference that he physically resisted staff when they tried to escort
him to a cell occupied by others. The Disciplinary Hearing Officer imposed sanctions of
disciplinary segregation, the loss of twenty-seven days of good conduct credit, as well as
the loss of other privileges. He also explained the rationale behind the sanctions. A copy
of the Disciplinary Hearing Officer’s report was given to Husband.
Husband filed a habeas petition in District Court challenging the proceedings. A
Magistrate Judge recommended that the petition be denied because there had been no
violation of Husband’s procedural due process rights. Specifically, the Magistrate Judge
concluded that Husband: (1) had been repeatedly notified of his rights; (2) had received
advance notice of the disciplinary hearing; (3) had been given the opportunity to present
witnesses and documentary evidence; and (4) had received a written decision from the
Disciplinary Hearing Officer that included the reasons for the decision. As for Husband’s
complaint that the inmate witnesses were not permitted to testify, the Magistrate Judge
noted that the hearing records indicated that the witnesses did testify. He further noted
that any failure to properly document their testimony did not, per se, violate Husband’s
rights. The Magistrate Judge also determined that there was adequate factual support for
the substantive outcome of the disciplinary hearing. Finally, the Magistrate Judge
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concluded that Husband could not use his habeas petition to bring an excessive force
claim against prison staff. The District Court adopted the Magistrate Judge’s Report and
Recommendation over Husband’s objections and denied the habeas petition. This appeal
followed.
We have jurisdiction pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1291. 1 We exercise plenary review
over the District Court’s legal conclusions and review its findings of fact for clear error.
See Vega v. United States,
493 F.3d 310, 314 (3d Cir. 2007). We may affirm on any
basis supported by the record. See Murray v. Bledsoe,
650 F.3d 246, 247 (3d Cir. 2011)
(per curiam).
On appeal, Husband’s sole argument is that his procedural due process rights
were violated when the inmate witnesses he requested were not allowed to testify at his
disciplinary hearing. 2 It is well-established that “[p]rison disciplinary proceedings are
not part of a criminal prosecution, and the full panoply of rights due a defendant in such
proceedings does not apply.” Wolff v. McDonnell,
418 U.S. 539, 556 (1974). However,
among the limited procedural protections that must be observed in prison disciplinary
proceedings when good conduct credit is at stake is the right to call witnesses and present
1
A certificate of appealability is not required to appeal from the denial of a § 2241
petition. See United States v. Cepero,
224 F.3d 256, 264-65 (3d Cir. 2000) (en banc),
abrogated on other grounds by Gonzales v. Thaler,
132 S. Ct. 641 (2012).
2
In fact, Husband contends that the District Court erred by addressing other issues. We
perceive no error in the District Court’s decision to liberally construe the pro se pleadings
because it was required to do so. See, e.g., Dluhos v. Strasberg,
321 F.3d 365, 369 (3d
Cir. 2003).
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documentary evidence.
Id. at 566. Husband’s claim that his witnesses were not allowed
to testify is belied by the fact that the Disciplinary Hearing Officer’s report indicates that
they did, in fact, testify. Husband has never raised anything in his briefs that calls this
report into question. Moreover, even though the substance of the witnesses’ testimony is
not documented, Husband has never described it, nor has he shown that the outcome of
the proceedings should have been different in light of it. Given the unsupported
allegation that the witnesses were not allowed to testify, which is contradicted by the
record, we agree with the District Court that Husband’s due process rights were not
violated.
Accordingly, we will affirm the judgment of the District Court.
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