William Carrol Smith v. Gerald McKinsey

17 F.3d 396 NOTICE: Ninth Circuit Rule 36-3 provides that dispositions other than opinions or orders designated for publication are not precedential and should not be cited except when relevant under the doctrines of law of the case, res judicata, or collateral estoppel. William Carrol SMITH, Plaintiff-Appellant, v. Gerald McKINSEY, et al., Defendants-Appellees. No. 91-15265. United States Court of Appeals, Ninth Circuit. Submitted Feb. 7, 1994. * Decided Feb. 11, 1994. Before: SCHROEDER, CANBY, and WIGGINS, Circuit Judges. 1 MEMORANDUM ** 2 William Carrol Smith, a California state prisoner, appeals pro se the district court's dismissal of his 42 U.S.C. Sec. 1983 action as frivolous pursuant to 28 U.S.C. Sec. 1915 (d). We have jurisdiction pursuant to 28 U.S.C. Sec. 1291 . We review for abuse of discretion. Denton v. Hernandez, 112 S.Ct. 1728, 1734 (1992). We affirm. 3 Frivolous in forma pauperis complaints may be dismissed sua sponte before service of process under 28 U.S.C. Sec. 1915 (d). Neitzke v. Williams, 490 U.S. 321, 324 (1989). A complaint is frivolous "where it lacks an arguable basis either in law or fact." Id. at 325 . In civil rights actions where the plaintiff…