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All Claims Must Be Exhausted Before Suit is Filed
Four plaintiffs filed prematurely before their grievances were decided. Some claims were exhausted by the time the district court dismissed for nonexhaustion, some were still in process.
At 885:
When multiple prison condition claims have been joined, as in this case, the plain language of § 1997e(a) requires that all available prison grievance remedies must be exhausted as to all of the claims Here, it is apparent that at least some of the plaintiffs' many claims were not fully exhausted at the time the district court dismissed the action without prejudice
Defendants filed a motion requesting an initial hearing en banc to consider whether our decision in Williams v. Norris, 176 F3d 1089, 1090 (8th Cir1999) that it is improper to dismiss without prejudice when available prison administrative remedies are exhausted "at the time the [district] court ruled" is contrary to the plain language of § 1997e(a) ("no action shall be brought"), as construed by a number of our sister circuits ... We need not address that issue because it is clear from the record that at least some of plaintiffs' claims were unexhausted when the district court ruled. See: Graves v. Norris, 218 F.3d 884 (8th Cir. 2000).
At 885:
When multiple prison condition claims have been joined, as in this case, the plain language of § 1997e(a) requires that all available prison grievance remedies must be exhausted as to all of the claims Here, it is apparent that at least some of the plaintiffs' many claims were not fully exhausted at the time the district court dismissed the action without prejudice
Defendants filed a motion requesting an initial hearing en banc to consider whether our decision in Williams v. Norris, 176 F3d 1089, 1090 (8th Cir1999) that it is improper to dismiss without prejudice when available prison administrative remedies are exhausted "at the time the [district] court ruled" is contrary to the plain language of § 1997e(a) ("no action shall be brought"), as construed by a number of our sister circuits ... We need not address that issue because it is clear from the record that at least some of plaintiffs' claims were unexhausted when the district court ruled. See: Graves v. Norris, 218 F.3d 884 (8th Cir. 2000).
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Related legal case
Graves v. Norris
| Year | 2000 |
|---|---|
| Cite | 218 F.3d 884 (8th Cir. 2000) |
| Level | Court of Appeals |
| Injunction Status | N/A |