Jeffrey Williams v. R. Beltran , 446 F. App'x 892 ( 2011 )

FILED
NOT FOR PUBLICATION AUG 11 2011
MOLLY C. DWYER, CLERK
UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS U .S. C O U R T OF APPE ALS
FOR THE NINTH CIRCUIT
JEFFREY ALLEN WILLIAMS, No. 08-56381
Plaintiff - Appellant, D.C. No. 2:03-cv-07394-GHK-
MLG
v.
R. BELTRAN; et al., MEMORANDUM *
Defendants - Appellees.
Appeal from the United States District Court
for the Central District of California
George H. King, District Judge, Presiding
Submitted August 2, 2011 **
Before: RYMER, IKUTA, and N.R. SMITH, Circuit Judges.
Jeffrey Allen Williams, a California state prisoner, appeals pro se from the
district court’s judgment dismissing his action for money damages under the
Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act (“RLUIPA”). We have
jurisdiction under 28 U.S.C. § 1291. We review de novo a judgment on the
*
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).
pleadings and an order of dismissal under Rules 12(c) and 12(b)(6), respectively,
of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure. Berg v. Popham, 412 F.3d 1122, 1125
(9th Cir. 2005). We affirm.
The district court properly dismissed Williams’s action alleging that in 2003
prison officials improperly required that he shave his beard, in contravention of the
tenets of his Muslim faith. Defendants in their official capacities were immune
from suit because California did not waive its Eleventh Amendment immunity to
suit for money damages under RLUIPA. See Sossamon v. Texas, __ U.S. __, 131
S. Ct. 1651, 1663 (2011); Holley v. Cal. Dep’t of Corr., 599 F.3d 1108, 1114 (9th
Cir. 2010). Defendants in their individual capacities were entitled to qualified
immunity from suit because it was not clearly established at the time of the alleged
conduct that it violated RLUIPA. See Warsoldier v. Woodford, 418 F.3d 989, 997
n.7 (9th Cir. 2005) (“There exists little Ninth Circuit authority construing
RLUIPA.”).
AFFIRMED.
2 08-56381