Diaz v. McGuire, 10th Cir. (2005)

F I L E D
UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS

FOR THE TENTH CIRCUIT
United States Court of Appeals

Tenth Circuit
November 14, 2005

Clerk of Court
SALVADOR DIAZ,
Petitioner - Appellant,
v.
COLLEEN L. MCGUIRE, USDB
Commandant,
No. 05-3149
(D.C. No. 02-CV-3271-RDR)
(D. Kan.)
Respondent - Appellee.
ORDER AND JUDGMENT
Before LUCERO , ANDERSON , and BRORBY , Circuit Judges.
After examining the briefs and appellate record, this panel has determined
unanimously that oral argument would not materially assist the determination of
this appeal.
See Fed. R. App. P. 34(a)(2); 10th Cir. R. 34.1(G). The case is
therefore ordered submitted without oral argument.
This order and judgment is not binding precedent, except under the
doctrines of law of the case, res judicata, and collateral estoppel. The court
generally disfavors the citation of orders and judgments; nevertheless, an order
and judgment may be cited under the terms and conditions of 10th Cir. R. 36.3.
Salvador Diaz, a prisoner proceeding pro se, appeals the district courts
denial of his petition for a writ of habeas corpus under 28 U.S.C. 2241. We
have jurisdiction under 28 U.S.C. 2253(a), and we affirm.
I
Mr. Diaz is incarcerated at the United States Disciplinary Barracks in Fort
Leavenworth, Kansas. Relevant to this case, he was a party to three disciplinary
hearings. At the first hearing, he was found guilty of disobedience; at the second,
he was found guilty of disobedience and out of place; and at the third, he was
found guilty of disobedience (later modified to attempted disobedience). The
punishments imposed included revocation of a total of 117 days of good conduct
time and 31 days of earned or extra good time.
Mr. Diaz filed suit in the district court under 28 U.S.C. 2241, alleging
that he was deprived of his good conduct and earned/extra good time in violation
of his constitutional rights. After reviewing Mr. Diazs filings and the answer
and return to order to show cause filed on behalf of the warden, the district court
denied Mr. Diazs petition. Mr. Diaz appeals.
II
On appeal, Mr. Diaz argues that he was deprived of his liberty without due
process because there were no impartial pre-hearing investigations, one of the
disciplinary boards included a decisionmaker who was not impartial, he was
-2-
denied the ability to cross-examine witnesses, and there were insufficient records
of the hearings.
We assume for purposes of the appeal that Mr. Diaz has a liberty interest in
his accrued good conduct time and earned/extra credit time.
See Wolff v.
McDonnell , 418 U.S. 539, 557 (1974). Consequently, he cannot be deprived of

those credits without due process.
Id. But [p]rison disciplinary proceedings are
not part of a criminal prosecution, and the full panoply of rights due a defendant
in such proceedings does not apply.
Id. at 556. Under Wolff , an inmate facing a
disciplinary proceeding must receive: (1) advance written notice of the

disciplinary charges; (2) an opportunity, when consistent with institutional safety
and correctional goals, to call witnesses and present documentary evidence in his
defense; and (3) a written statement by the factfinder of the evidence relied on
and the reasons for the disciplinary action.
Superintendent, Mass. Correctional
Inst., Walpole v. Hill , 472 U.S. 445, 454 (1985). In addition, there must be some
evidence in the record to support the charge.
Id. Ascertaining whether this
standard is satisfied does not require examination of the entire record,

independent assessment of the credibility of witnesses, or weighing of the
evidence. Instead, the relevant question is whether there is any evidence in the
record that could support the conclusion reached by the disciplinary board.
-3-
Id. at
455-56. The decision can be upheld even if the evidence supporting the decision
is meager. Id. at 457.
A. Impartial Decisionmaker
A disciplinary decisionmaker must be impartial.
354 F.3d 1211, 1220 (10th Cir.) (citing
See Gwinn v. Awmiller ,
Wolff , 418 U.S. at 592 (Marshall, J.,
concurring)), cert. denied , 125 S. Ct. 181 (2004);
see also Mitchell v. Maynard
80 F.3d 1433, 1446 (10th Cir. 1996) (indicating that a challenge to a factfinders
neutrality implicates the fundamental right to be heard). Mr. Diaz alleges that one
of his hearings was before a decisionmaker who could not be impartial. He states
that he had several disputes with the board member while he worked for him on a
prior work detail, and that as a result of Mr. Diaz filed a complaint against the
board member with the Office of the Inspector General, alleging that the board
member had subjected him to personal harassment.
Allegations of bias should be evaluated on a case-by-case basis.
Gwinn ,
354 F.3d at 1220. Careful scrutiny of disqualification claims is grounded in

legitimate considerations of prison administration.
Id. at 1221. From a
practical standpoint, requiring each staff member who is the subject of a separate
lawsuit to disqualify himself from sitting in judgment of that inmate would
heavily tax the working capacity of the prison staff.
F.2d 1105, 1113 (7th Cir. 1983) (quoted in
Redding v. Fairman , 717
Gwinn , 354 F.3d at 1221).

-4-
Mr. Diazs allegations against the board member do not indicate that the
board member had any personal involvement with the matter at issue in the
hearing. [D]ue process is satisfied as long as no member of the disciplinary
board has been involved in the investigation or prosecution of the particular case,
or has had any other form of personal involvement in the case.
Wolff , 418 U.S. at
592 (Marshall, J., concurring). In addition, while Mr. Diaz alleges that the board
president should have been aware of his conflicts with the board member and
thus should have ensured impartiality, R. Doc. 13 at 7, there is no indication that
Mr. Diaz challenged the board members impartiality at the time of the hearing.
We do not believe that the district court erred in denying relief on this claim.
B. Opportunity to Call Witnesses
Mr. Diaz argues that he was denied the opportunity to cross-examine
adverse witnesses, and that the disciplinary boards denied him the opportunity to
call witnesses in his own defense.
The Constitution does not require the opportunity for confrontation and
cross-examination in disciplinary proceedings.
Wolff , 418 U.S. at 568. Rather,
whether cross-examination will be allowed is a matter of discretion for prison

officials. Id. at 569. Consequently, it was not unconstitutional for USDB not to
permit Mr. Diaz to cross-examine staff members at his disciplinary hearings.
-5-
Wolff does hold that the inmate facing disciplinary proceedings should be
allowed to call witnesses and present documentary evidence in his defense when
permitting him to do so will not be unduly hazardous to institutional safety or
correctional goals. 418 U.S. at 566. Thus, while an inmate generally has the
right to call witnesses and present evidence, such right is not absolute; the prison
can restrict witness testimony and documentary evidence due to special
requirements of the prison setting.
1102, 1104 (10th Cir. 1991);
See id. at 566-67; Ramer v. Kerby , 936 F.2d
Smith v. Maschner , 899 F.2d 940, 946 (10th Cir.
1990). Here, the disciplinary boards documented their reasons, on a case-by-case

basis, for not hearing all of Mr. Diazs requested witnesses, and the reasons given
(redundancy, relevancy, and duplication) were within the permissible discretion of
prison officials.
See Ramer , 936 F.2d at 1104. The denial did not actually or
effectively deprive Mr. Diaz of any defense.
Cf. Smith , 899 F.2d at 947.
Mr. Diaz was not deprived of due process by not being allowed to call his
requested witnesses.
For these reasons, the district court did not err in denying the writ with
regard to this claim.
-6-
C. Impartial Investigation
Mr. Diaz alleges that certain army regulations give him the right to an
impartial pre-hearing investigation, and that he was deprived of this right in
connection with the three disciplinary hearings at issue.
Prison regulations are primarily designed to guide correctional officials in
the administration of a prison. [They are] not designed to confer rights on
inmates. Sandin v. Conner , 515 U.S. 472, 481-82 (1995). Where a liberty or
property interest has been infringed, the process which is due under the United
States Constitution is that measured by the due process clause, not prison
regulations.
See Cleveland Bd. of Educ. v. Loudermill
, 470 U.S. 532, 539-41
(1985) ([O]nce it is determined that the Due Process Clause applies, the question
remains what process is due. The answer to that question is not to be found in the
[state] statute.) (quotation and citation omitted);
Hulen v. Yates , 322 F.3d 1229,
1247 (10th Cir. 2003) ([O]nce the property right is established, it is purely a
matter of federal constitutional law whether the procedure afforded was
adequate.); see also Shakur v. Selsky , 391 F.3d 106, 119 (2d Cir. 2004)
([R]egardless of state procedural guarantees, the
only process due an inmate is
that minimal process guaranteed by the Constitution.). An adequate prehearing

investigation is not among the minimum due process protections identified by
Wolff and Hill . See Whitford v. Boglino , 63 F.3d 527, 532 (7th Cir. 1995) (per
-7-
curiam) ([Plaintiff] has no federal due process right to a prehearing

investigation.); Brown v. Frey , 889 F.2d 159, 170-71 (8th Cir. 1989) (holding
that prisoner had not shown any clearly established constitutional right to an
adequate investigation). The district court did not err in denying the writ with
regard to this claim.
D. Record of Proceedings
Mr. Diaz also argues that army regulations give him the right to have the
entire disciplinary proceeding tape-recorded. He contends that the
Hill standard
of some evidence in the record cannot be satisfied without an accurate,

complete record of the entire proceeding in each case.
Prisoners have a constitutional right to a written statement by the
factfinders as to the evidence relied on and the reasons for the disciplinary
action. Wolff , 418 U.S. at 564 (quotation omitted). The purposes of the written
finding are to insure adequate review of the proceedings, to protect the inmate
against collateral consequences, and to guarantee that officials, faced with outside
scrutiny, will act fairly.
Smith , 899 F.2d at 946. These purposes are satisfied by
the written summaries of the three disciplinary hearings that are contained in the
record; it is not constitutionally required that the entire proceedings be recorded
verbatim. See Ruiz v. Estelle , 679 F.2d 1115, 1155 (5th Cir.) (
-8-
Wolff . . . does not
require tape recordings.),
modified in part and vacated in part on other grounds
688 F.2d 266 (5th Cir. 1982).

In this case, the written summaries of the hearings set forth the substance
of the testimony heard by the board. The summaries also note what evidence the
board members found persuasive in reaching their decision. Despite Mr. Diazs
claims to the contrary, these are written records of the disciplinary proceedings.
Our review indicates that the some evidence standard is satisfied with regard to
each of Mr. Diazs hearings.
The district court did not err in denying relief on this claim.
III
Mr. Diaz fails to persuade us that the circumstances of the USDB in the
present day are so materially different than the circumstances of the Supreme
Courts decisions in Wolff and Hill so as to alter the Supreme Courts guidelines
regarding the level of process constitutionally required for inmates facing prison
disciplinary hearings. Mr. Diaz received the process to which he was
constitutionally entitled, and the judgment of the district court is AFFIRMED.
Entered for the Court
Stephen H. Anderson
Circuit Judge
-9-

Diaz v. McGuire, 10th Cir. (2005)

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

Diaz v. McGuire, 10th Cir. (2005)

Uploaded by

Document Information

Original Description:

Copyright

Available Formats

Share this document

Share or Embed Document

Sharing Options

Did you find this document useful?

Is this content inappropriate?

Copyright:

Available Formats

Diaz v. McGuire, 10th Cir. (2005)

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

F I L E D

UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS

United States Court of Appeals

November 14, 2005

Before LUCERO , ANDERSON , and BRORBY , Circuit Judges.

See Fed. R. App. P. 34(a)(2); 10th Cir. R. 34.1(G). The case is

therefore ordered submitted without oral argument.

McDonnell , 418 U.S. 539, 557 (1974). Consequently, he cannot be deprived of

Id. But [p]rison disciplinary proceedings are

Id. at 556. Under Wolff , an inmate facing a

disciplinary proceeding must receive: (1) advance written notice of the

Superintendent, Mass. Correctional

Id. Ascertaining whether this

standard is satisfied does not require examination of the entire record,

See Gwinn v. Awmiller ,

Wolff , 418 U.S. at 592 (Marshall, J.,

concurring)), cert. denied , 125 S. Ct. 181 (2004);

see also Mitchell v. Maynard

354 F.3d at 1220. Careful scrutiny of disqualification claims is grounded in

Id. at 1221. From a

Redding v. Fairman , 717

Gwinn , 354 F.3d at 1221).

Wolff , 418 U.S. at

Wolff , 418 U.S. at 568. Rather,

whether cross-examination will be allowed is a matter of discretion for prison

See id. at 566-67; Ramer v. Kerby , 936 F.2d

Smith v. Maschner , 899 F.2d 940, 946 (10th Cir.

1990). Here, the disciplinary boards documented their reasons, on a case-by-case

effectively deprive Mr. Diaz of any defense.

Cf. Smith , 899 F.2d at 947.

See Cleveland Bd. of Educ. v. Loudermill

, 470 U.S. 532, 539-41

Hulen v. Yates , 322 F.3d 1229,

only process due an inmate is

that minimal process guaranteed by the Constitution.). An adequate prehearing

curiam) ([Plaintiff] has no federal due process right to a prehearing

of some evidence in the record cannot be satisfied without an accurate,

Smith , 899 F.2d at 946. These purposes are satisfied by

Wolff . . . does not

require tape recordings.),

modified in part and vacated in part on other grounds

688 F.2d 266 (5th Cir. 1982).

Entered for the Court

You might also like