Levon Arnez Pyles, Pro Se v. Norman A. Carlson, 698 F.2d 1131 (11th Cir. 1983). · Go Syfert
Levon Arnez Pyles, Pro Se v. Norman A. Carlson, 698 F.2d 1131 (11th Cir. 1983). Cases Citing This Book View Copy Cite
12 citation events (2 in the last 25 years) across 6 distinct courts.
Top citers, strongest first. 7 distinct citers. How cited ↗
cited Cited as authority (rule) Abrams v. Don Hunter
M.D. Fla. · 1995 · confidence medium
Pyles v. Carlson, 698 F.2d 1131, 1133 (11th Cir.1983).
discussed Cited as authority (rule) Henry Caraballo-Sandoval and Cree Carmen Caraballo v. R.E. Honsted
11th Cir. · 1994 · confidence medium
Pyles v. Carlson, 698 F.2d 1131, 1132 (11th Cir.1983) (Generally, federal prisoners must exhaust administrative remedies before filing suit against prison officials); but see McCarthy v. Madigan, — U.S. -, -, 112 S.Ct. 1081, 1088-90 , 117 L.Ed.2d 291 (1992) (A prisoner need not exhaust the prison’s administrative remedies before bringing a Bivens action solely for money damages).
cited Cited as authority (rule) Carter v. Thompson
M.D. Fla. · 1992 · confidence medium
Pyles v. Carlson, 698 F.2d 1131, 1133 (11th Cir.1983).
cited Cited as authority (rule) Irwin v. Quinlan
S.D. Ga. · 1992 · confidence medium
E.g., Pyles v. Carlson, 698 F.2d 1131, 1132 (11th Cir.1983).
cited Cited as authority (rule) Van Poyck v. Dugger
M.D. Fla. · 1991 · confidence medium
Pyles v. Carlson, 698 F.2d 1131, 1133 (11th Cir.1983).
discussed Cited "see" Ferguson v. Palm Beach County Sheriff's Department of Corrections (2×)
S.D. Fla. · 2024 · signal: see · confidence high
See Pyles v. Carlson, 698 F.2d 1131 , 1132–33 (11th Cir. 1983) (holding that the “refusal of a secretary to notarize a legal document” did not state a “cognizable ground for relief”); Nelson v. Orange Cnty.
discussed Cited "see" Housley v. Killinger
D. Or. · 1990 · signal: see · confidence high
See Pyles v. Carlson, 698 F.2d 1131 (11th Cir.1983); Miller v. Stanmore, 636 F.2d 986 (5th Cir.1981); Antonelli v. Ralston, 609 F.2d 340 (8th Cir.1979); Waddell v. Alldredge, 480 F.2d 1078 (3d Cir.1973); Alexander v. Johnson, 742 F.2d 117 (4th Cir.1984).
Retrieving the full opinion text from the archive…
Levon Arnez PYLES, Pro Se, Plaintiff-Appellant,
v.
Norman A. CARLSON, Et Al., Defendants-Appellees
81-7936.
Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit.
Feb 22, 1983.
698 F.2d 1131
Levon Arnez Pyles, pro se., Ann C. Robertson, Asst. U.S. Atty., Frank W. Donaldson, U.S. Atty., Holly L. Wiseman, Asst. U.S. Atty., Birmingham, Ala., for defendants-appellees.
Godbold, Fay, Clark.
Cited by 8 opinions  |  Published
GODBOLD, Chief Judge:

Pyles, a federal prisoner, filed suit in district court against prison officials. The district court dismissed Pyles’ first complaint as overbroad, with leave to amend. Pyles’ amended complaint charged prison officials with illegally interfering with his mail and impeding his access to the courts and sought monetary and injunctive relief. Based on affidavits submitted by the defendants the district court granted defendant’s motion for summary judgment. We affirm in part and reverse in part.

I. Allegations Properly Dismissed on Motion for Summary Judgment

Two of Pyles’ allegations — that defendants illegally opened a newsletter entitled “Sanity Now” and a letter from John Abt, an attorney — were properly dismissed because Pyles failed to exhaust prison grievance procedures. Federal prisoners are generally required to exhaust administrative remedies available to them. See Kyle v. Hanberry, 677 F.2d 1386, 1391-92 (11th Cir.1982); Lane v. Hanberry, 593 F.2d 648, 649 (5th Cir.1979); Jones v. Carlson, 495 F.2d 209, 210 (5th Cir.1974); Thompson v. U.S., 492 F.2d 1082, 1084 (5th Cir.1974).

Other complaints were properly dismissed because they state no cognizable ground for relief: failure to supply Pyles franked envelopes for his legal mail; initial refusal of a secretary to notarize a legal[*1133] document; insufficiency of the prison legal aid program.

II. Allegations Improperly Dismissed

Pyles alleges that defendants are engaged in a systematic effort to deny him adequate access to the courts. Some of the alleged incidents on which Pyles relies involve disputed issues of material fact; others raise legal issues that must be decided on a more developed record:

(1) That prison officials intentionally opened legal mail (a letter sent Pyles by the ACLU). Defendants say it was opened by accident. See Taylor v. Sterrett, 532 F.2d 462 (5th Cir.1976).

(2) That prison officials opened a box containing a trial transcript sent by Pyles’ attorney. Defendants say it was not adequately identified as legal mail.

(3) That defendants intentionally delayed delivery of the trial transcript to Pyles.

(4) That legal materials available to Pyles in solitary confinement were so inadequate as to deny access to the courts. See Bounds v. Smith, 430 U.S. 817, 97 S.Ct. 1491, 52 L.Ed.2d 72 (1977); McCray v. Sullivan, 509 F.2d 1332, 1337 (5th Cir.1975); Cruz v. Hauck, 627 F.2d 710 (5th Cir.1980).

(5) That a non-lawyer who claimed to be a representative of the ACLU was improperly denied permission to see Pyles.

(6) That at a time when Pyles was under an imminent court deadline to file a brief the warden required him to work and thereby denied him use of the prison library with intention to frustrate Pyles’ exercise of legal rights.

(7) That letters from Pyles to the media were destroyed.

AFFIRMED in part, REVERSED in part and REMANDED.