Luevano v. Westlaw Group

Background

Jamie Luevano, whom the opinion identifies as an inmate housed at the Texas Department of Criminal Justice’s Alfred D. Hughes Unit in Gatesville, Texas, filed the action against President Joe Biden, White House staff, the governor of Texas, the State of Texas, Matthew Bender Company, Nexis Lexis Group, and Westlaw Group. Luevano stated that he did not want to bring a claim under 42 U.S.C. § 1983 and referred instead to several other authorities and phrases, including 28 U.S.C. § 2254. The court stated that his handwriting and allegations were difficult to follow. It understood the allegations to concern denial of process, a pardon, and good-time credits; failure to provide certain services; an attack; and the alleged use of military equipment and other devices.

Venue analysis

Federal law generally permits a case to be filed where a defendant resides under specified circumstances, where a substantial part of the relevant events occurred, or, if no other district qualifies, where a defendant is subject to personal jurisdiction. The court found that none of the events or omissions giving rise to Luevano’s claims occurred in the Northern District of California and that none of the defendants resided there. Because the allegations appeared to concern events occurring while Luevano was housed at the Alfred D. Hughes Unit, the court determined that venue was proper in the Western District of Texas.

Ruling

The court ordered, in the interest of justice and under 28 U.S.C. § 1406(a), that the action be transferred to the United States District Court for the Western District of Texas. It directed the clerk to close the Northern District of California case. Judge Haywood S. Gilliam, Jr. did not rule on the substance of Luevano’s allegations or claims.

Effect

This was a transfer order, not a decision on whether Luevano’s claims were legally valid. The opinion does not state what action the Western District of Texas later took.