Kye Barker v. Town of Ruston ( 2018 )

NOT FOR PUBLICATION FILED
UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS APR 30 2018
MOLLY C. DWYER, CLERK
U.S. COURT OF APPEALS
FOR THE NINTH CIRCUIT
KYE S. BARKER, a single woman and D- No. 16-35395
SONG LLC, a Washington limited liability
company, D.C. No. 3:14-cv-05589-BHS
Plaintiffs-Appellants,
MEMORANDUM*
v.
TOWN OF RUSTON, a political
subdivision of the State of Washington; et
al.,
Defendants-Appellees.
Appeal from the United States District Court
for the Western District of Washington
Benjamin H. Settle, District Judge, Presiding
Argued and Submitted April 11, 2018
Seattle, Washington
Before: HAWKINS and GRABER, Circuit Judges, and TEILBORG,** District
Judge.
Kye S. Barker and D-Song LLC, owners of the Unicorn Sports Bar (“the
Unicorn”), appeal the grant of summary judgment to the Town of Ruston, the
*
This disposition is not appropriate for publication and is not precedent
except as provided by Ninth Circuit Rule 36-3.
**
The Honorable James A. Teilborg, United States District Judge for the
District of Arizona, sitting by designation.
Ruston Police Department (“RPD”), Bruce Hopkins, Jeremy Kunkel, James
Kaylor, Victor Celis, and John Doe 1-5 (“Appellees”) on Barker’s 42 U.S.C.
§ 1983 claims.1 We have jurisdiction pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1291, and we affirm.
Barker’s Fourth Amendment claim fails because none of Appellees’ alleged
conduct resulted in a search or a seizure. There was no search because RPD
officers did no more than “examine[] the area[s] [in and around the Unicorn] in the
same way as might be expected of any other person.” Zimmerman v. City of
Oakland, 255 F.3d 734, 740 (9th Cir. 2001). There was no seizure because nothing
in the record establishes that RPD officers meaningfully interfered with Barker’s
possessory interest in the Unicorn. See United States v. Jacobsen, 466 U.S. 109,
113 (1984).
Barker’s equal protection claim is likewise unavailing because the record
does not show that the Unicorn was treated differently than similarly situated bars.
See United States v. Armstrong, 517 U.S. 456, 465 (1996) (applying the “similarly
situated” test in the racial discrimination context); N. Pacifica LLC v. City of
1
On appeal, both Barker and D-Song LLC allege violations of § 1983;
however, only Barker asserted such claims below. Barker v. Town of Ruston, No.
C14-5589 BHS, 2016 WL 1572546, at *1 (W.D. Wash. Apr. 19, 2016).
Accordingly, D-Song LLC has waived its § 1983 claims. See Taylor v. Sentry Life
Ins. Co., 729 F.2d 652, 655–56 (9th Cir. 1984) (per curiam) (holding that, except in
“exceptional circumstances,” claims not raised before the district court are waived
on appeal (first citing Rothman v. Hosp. Serv. of S. Cal., 510 F.2d 956, 960 (9th
Cir. 1975); and then citing Gard v. United States, 594 F.2d 1230, 1235 (9th Cir.
1979))).
2
Pacifica, 526 F.3d 478, 486 (9th Cir. 2008) (applying the “similarly situated” test
in the class-of-one context).
Furthermore, Barker’s substantive due process claim is unsuccessful because
there is no evidence in the record showing that Barker was completely prohibited
from pursuing her desired profession. See Conn v. Gabbert, 526 U.S. 286, 292
(1999); Guzman v. Shewry, 552 F.3d 941, 954 (9th Cir. 2009).
Similarly, Barker’s procedural due process claim is fruitless because no
evidence in the record supports the finding of a due process violation. See
Brewster v. Bd. of Educ. of the Lynwood Unified Sch. Dist., 149 F.3d 971, 983 (9th
Cir. 1998).
Finally, there can be no municipal liability under Monell v. Department of
Social Services of New York, 436 U.S. 658 (1978) because the underlying
constitutional claims were appropriately dismissed. City of Los Angeles v. Heller,
475 U.S. 796, 799 (1986) (per curiam).
AFFIRMED.
3