Bilski v. Walker

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Bilski v. Walker

State: Illinois

Court: 4th District Appellate

Docket No: 4-08-0980 Rel

Case Date: 06/26/2009

Preview:Filed 6/26/09

NO. 4-08-0980 IN THE APPELLATE COURT OF ILLINOIS FOURTH DISTRICT

EUGENE BILSKI, ) Appeal from Plaintiff-Appellant, ) Circuit Court of v. ) Sangamon County ROGER E. WALKER, JR., Director of the ) No. 07MR200 Illinois Department of Corrections; ) SHERRY BENTON, Member of the Illinois ) Administrative Review Board; and ) STEVE HADFIELD, Correctional Officer ) Honorable at the Pontiac Correctional Center, ) Patrick J. Londrigan, Defendants-Appellees. ) Judge Presiding. _________________________________________________________________ JUSTICE STEIGMANN delivered the opinion of the court: In April 2007, Pontiac Correctional Center inmate, plaintiff Eugene Bilski, pro se sued defendants, Roger E. Walker, Jr., the Director of the Illinois Department of Corrections (DOC); Sherry Benton, a member of the Illinois Administrative Review Board; and Steve Hadfield, a correctional officer at the Pontiac Correctional Center. proceed in forma pauperis. Bilski also filed an application to After denying that application, the

trial court sua sponte dismissed Bilski's complaint for (1) failure to state a cause of action and (2) lack of jurisdiction. Bilski appeals, arguing that the trial court erred by (1) denying his application to proceed in forma pauperis and (2) finding that (a) his suit failed to state a cause of action and (b) it did not have jurisdiction over the matter. Although we

agree that the court erred by finding that it lacked jurisdiction, we nonetheless affirm because we conclude that Bilski's complaint failed to state a cause of action.

I. BACKGROUND In April 2007, Bilski pro se sued defendants in Sangamon County circuit court, seeking $8,500 in compensatory and punitive damages. As part of his initial filing, Bilski submit-

ted an application to proceed in forma pauperis. Bilski's complaint contained the following allegations. In March 2006, while Bilski was returning from the prison library, Hadfield confiscated a book from Bilski and later knowingly submitted a false institutional disciplinary report that accused Bilski of theft, insolence, and possession of contraband. Following an institutional disciplinary hearing, the adjustment committee found Bilski guilty of possessing contraband but not guilty of theft and insolence. In May 2006, Bilski filed an

institutional grievance against Hadfield, which the grievance officer found to be untimely filed without affording Bilski an opportunity to show good cause pursuant to DOC rules. In June 2006, Hadfield issued Bilski another disciplinary report for giving false information to an employee, insolence, and unauthorized movement, arising out of an incident in which Bilski switched his movement schedule with the permission of another prison guard. At Bilski's disciplinary hearing on

these charges, the adjustment committee found him not guilty on all counts. Bilski thereafter filed another grievance--which he

sent to Benton and Walker--requesting that Hadfield be disciplined for knowingly issuing a false report. In response, Benton

and Walker (1) refused to discipline Hadfield and (2) informed - 2 -

Bilski that the disciplinary report had been expunged from his record. Based upon these allegations, Bilski's complaint set forth the following claims: (1) Hadfield violated Bilski's dueprocess rights guaranteed by the United States and Illinois Constitutions when Hadfield knowingly submitted the false disciplinary reports and (2) Benton and Walker violated Bilski's dueprocess rights by failing to (a) afford him an opportunity to show good cause for failing to timely file his first grievance against Hadfield in violation of DOC rules and (b) investigate his accusations against Hadfield. We construe these claims to be

sufficient to assert the gist of a claim under section 1983, of the federal Civil Rights Act (42 U.S.C.

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