Opinion
CASE NO. 2:19-CV-00809
11-07-2019
ARTHUR FLEMMING MOLER v. CLARA BATY, ET AL.
JUDGE JAMES D. CAIN, JR.
MAGISTRATE JUDGE KAY
MEMORANDUM ORDER
Before the court is a Motion to Vacate [doc. 16] filed by plaintiff Arthur Moler, following the dismissal of his pro se civil rights complaint brought under Bivens v. Six Unknown Named Agents, 403 U.S. 388 (1971). Moler seeks leave to reinstate his action and amend his complaint, based on allegations that he suffered unconstitutional retaliation from various federal defendants for exercise of his First Amendment rights. These allegations do not cure the defect already noted - namely, that this court and several others have held that retaliation claims are not cognizable under Bivens. See Okeayainneh v. U.S. Dep't of Justice, 2019 WL 1612612 (W.D. La. Mar. 28, 2019); Butler v. Porter, 2018 WL 6920355 (W.D. La. Sep. 10, 2018) (collecting cases). While Moler might seek relief for his loss of good conduct time through a § 2241 petition, he does not show a right to proceed here through a civil rights complaint. Accordingly, the Motion to Vacate is DENIED.
THUS DONE AND SIGNED in Chambers on this 7th day of November, 2019.
/s/ _________
JAMES D. CAIN, JR.
UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT