Homer Ray Brown v. Edmund G. Brown, Governor, State of California

Appellant, an inmate of San Quentin Prison in California filed an in forma pauperis complaint with the United States District Court for the Northern District of California. He named the Governor of California and the Warden of the prison as defendants and alleged, under the Federal Civil Rights Act, 42 U.S.C. § 1983, their agents beat him and caused various other deprivations of his civil rights. The district court dismissed the complaint under Fed.R.Civ.Proc., Rule 12 (b) for failure to state a claim upon which relief may be granted. This appeal followed.

Jurisdiction in the district court was conferred by 28 U.S.C. § 1343 (3) and in this court by 28 U.S.C. § 1291 . Proceedings in forma pauperis are authorized by 28 U.S.C. § 1915 .

The Federal Civil Rights Act creates a cause of action to remedy deprivations of Constitutional rights by persons acting under color of state law, Monroe v. Pape, 365 U.S. 167 , 81 S.Ct. 473 , 5 L.Ed.2d 492 . Persons confined in state prisons are within the protection of this act. Cooper v. Pate, 378 U.S. 546 , 84 S.Ct. 1733 , 12 L.Ed. 1030 ; Weller v. Dickson, 314 F.2d 598 (9th Cir. 1963); Stiltner v. Rhay, 322 F.2d 314 (9th Cir. 1963).

The…