Crouch v. Brown

Dist. Ct. did not err in granting defendants-prison officials' motion for summary judgment in plaintiff-prisoner’s section 1983 action, alleging that defendants denied plaintiff his Due Process rights, where defendants placed him in solitary confinement for period of four years without receiving any meaningful review of his solitary confinement status. Dismissal of plaintiff’s lawsuit was proper, where plaintiff had failed to exhaust his administrative remedies prior to filing instant lawsuit. Record showed that throughout relevant four-year period when plaintiff was held in solitary confinement, plaintiff failed to appeal any of 35 Reports of Classification Hearing or 21 “30-day reviews” that dealt with plaintiff’s continued need for being housed in solitary confinement. Ct. rejected plaintiff’s argument that administrative exhaustion requirement did not apply to him because prison official has misled him regarding his ability to appeal any of 30-day reviews he had received from prison officials.