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UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT DISTRICT OF MAINE THOMAS H. MITCHELL, ) ) Plaintiff, ) ) v. ) Civil No. 8-341-B-W ) RANDALL LIBERTY, ) et al., ) ) Defendants ) ) RECOMMENDED DECISION ON DEFENDANT BRIGGS'S MOTION TO DISMISS (Doc. No. 12) Thomas Mitchell filed a civil complaint in the state court against Randall Liberty, Lt. Marsha Alexander, Sergeant Roberts, and Laura Briggs regarding facility conditions challenging the adequacy of the law library, the sufficiency of the provision of inmate legal assistance, the medical department's policy for medical and dental care of longterm, pre-trial detainees, inmate access to the grievance policy, and price gouging by the canteen services at the Kennebec County Correctional Facility. The action was removed to this court. Pending are two motions to dismiss. This recommended decision addresses a motion to dismiss by Defendant Briggs (Doc. No. 12), an employee of the private contractor who operates the jail's commissary.1 I recommend that the Court grant Briggs's motion for the following reasons.

1

Mitchell had filed his own motion to dismiss his action without prejudice (Doc. No. 10), representing that his attention to his underlying criminal case was making it hard for him to address this civil rights litigation. I entered an order on November 18, 2008, reserving ruling on that motion. (Doc. No. 15). At that juncture I noted that these two motions to dismiss were pending, motions that addressed the merits of this entire action. On December 5, 2008, Mitchell withdrew his motion to dismiss indicating: "In light of some recent events that have taken place at the Kennebec County Jail, the plaintiff will p[u]rsue this case from this point on with due diligence, regardless of his upcoming criminal trial." (Doc. No. 16.)

Discussion The First Circuit recently summarized the standard for a Rule 12(b)(6) motion to dismiss in a 42 U.S.C.

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Maine Law