Housley

Plaintiff Housley, an incarcerated pro se, claims that defendants violated his statutory and constitutional rights by performing illegal searches and unauthorized electronic surveillance. In his complaint, Housley alleged multiple counts sounding in state law, federal constitutional law, 1 and federal statutory law. 2 He named as defendants the United States, and the following persons in their individual and official capacities: John Lawn (Director of the Drug Enforcement Agency), William Webster (Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation), David Pauli (DEA agent), and Anthony White (Assistant United States Attorney). The district court dismissed Housley’s complaint for failure to state a claim because it did not satisfy a heightened pleading standard.

The traditional standard for a Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 12(b)(6) motion is that a complaint should not be dismissed “unless it appears beyond doubt that the plaintiff can prove no set of facts in support of his claim which would entitle him to relief.” Conley v. Gibson, 355 U.S. 41, 45-16 , 78 S.Ct. 99, 102 , 2 L.Ed.2d 80 (1957). See also Buckley v. County of Los Angeles, 968 F.2d 791 , 794 (9th Cir.), cert. denied sub…