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Alfredo Gonzalez appealed from the district court’s judgment dismissing his second amended civil rights complaint and his action without prejudice pursuant to Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 41(b) for failure to comply with pleading rules. The 10th Circuit Court of Appeals reviewed for an abuse of discretion and found none.
Gonzalez named numerous federal and state defendants involved in his confinement in several facilities. Gonzalez alleged President Joe Biden is behind Operation Kill KINGLUCIFER (an alias for Gonzalez). He claims he is under investigation by the U.S. Army and the Department of Homeland Security based on his ties to the Sinaloa Cartel in Mexico. Gonzalez further alleged he has been tortured — forced to listen to messages from a communication satellite and to take psychotropic drugs against his will so he might provide intelligence information. In addition, he alleged he has been physically assaulted based upon his non-compliance with various orders. On appeal, Gonzalez contended he included a short and plain statement of the facts necessary to his complaint and his second amended civil rights complaint wasn’t afforded liberal construction.
But after reviewing the second amended civil rights complaint, the 10th Circuit found no error. Gonzalez was given two opportunities to amend his complaint given its various deficiencies. Even with liberal construction, a complaint must not only include a reasonable factual basis but also some basis to infer a violation of legal rights, the opinion noted. Merely reciting allegations of harm paired with legal conclusions doesn’t demonstrate a plausible claim for relief, the opinion explained.
The 10th Circuit denied leave to proceed on appeal without prepayment of fees or costs and affirmed the district court’s judgment.