Arthur Gallegos v. Ronald Reinstein ( 2014 )

FILED
NOT FOR PUBLICATION MAR 4 2014
MOLLY C. DWYER, CLERK
UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS U.S. COURT OF APPEALS
FOR THE NINTH CIRCUIT
ARTHUR CHARLES GALLEGOS, No. 12-16736
Plaintiff - Appellant, D.C. No. 2:12-cv-00444-FJM
v.
MEMORANDUM*
RONALD REINSTEIN; et al.,
Defendants - Appellees.
Appeal from the United States District Court
for the District of Arizona
Frederick J. Martone, District Judge, Presiding
Submitted February 18, 2014**
Before: ALARCÓN, O’SCANNLAIN, and FERNANDEZ, Circuit Judges.
Arthur Charles Gallegos appeals pro se from the district court’s judgment
dismissing his 42 U.S.C. § 1983 action alleging claims related to unfavorable
judgments by Arizona state and district courts in prior actions regarding his right to
bear arms as a convicted felon. We have jurisdiction under 28 U.S.C. § 1291. We
*
This disposition is not appropriate for publication and is not precedent
except as provided by 9th Cir. R. 36-3.
**
The panel unanimously concludes this case is suitable for decision
without oral argument. See Fed. R. App. P. 34(a)(2).
review de novo the dismissal of an action under both the Rooker-Feldman doctrine,
Noel v. Hall, 341 F.3d 1148, 1154 (9th Cir. 2003), and the doctrine of collateral
estoppel, McQuillion v. Schwarzenegger, 369 F.3d 1091, 1096 (9th Cir. 2004). We
may affirm on any ground supported by the record. Johnson v. Riverside
Healthcare Sys., LP, 534 F.3d 1116, 1121 (9th Cir. 2008). We affirm.
The district court properly dismissed Gallegos’s claims arising from
unfavorable judgments in his actions in Arizona state courts as barred by the
Rooker-Feldman doctrine because they amounted to a forbidden “de facto appeal”
of state court judgments. Noel, 341 F.3d at 1163-65; see also Exxon Mobil Corp.
v. Saudi Basic Indus. Corp., 544 U.S. 280, 284 (2005) (Rooker-Feldman bars
“state-court losers complaining of injuries caused by state-court judgments” from
seeking federal review of those judgments).
Dismissal of Gallegos’s claims related to a prior § 1983 action that the
Arizona district court dismissed without prejudice was proper under the doctrine of
collateral estoppel because the issues raised in these claims had been previously
litigated, and were necessary to the prior judgment of dismissal. See McQuillion,
369 F.3d at 1096 (a prior decision has preclusive effect if the issues at stake are
identical, were actually litigated by the party against whom preclusion is asserted,
and were a critical and necessary part of the prior judgment); Deutsch v. Flannery,
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823 F.2d 1361, 1364 (9th Cir. 1987) (collateral estoppel can apply to a dismissal
without prejudice if the determination being accorded preclusive effect was
essential to the judgment of dismissal).
The district court did not abuse its discretion by denying Gallegos leave to
file an amended complaint because amendment would have been futile. See
Hartmann v. Cal. Dep’t of Corr. & Rehab., 707 F.3d 1114, 1129-30 (9th Cir.
2013) (setting forth standard of review and explaining that leave to amend may be
denied if the complaint cannot be saved by any amendment).
Gallegos’s contentions regarding various abstention doctrines; the allegedly
improper denial of his motion to vacate; the alleged violation of his right to obtain
de novo review by an Article III judge; and the violation of his constitutional rights
related to his no contest plea and resulting felony conviction, are unpersuasive.
Defendant Connell’s request to declare Gallegos a vexatious litigant, set
forth in his answering brief, is denied.
The remaining defendants’ request for judicial notice regarding the dismissal
of Gallegos’s prior action by the Arizona district court, set forth in their answering
brief, is granted.
AFFIRMED.
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