Palismo
Palismo v. California Department of Corrections
Opinion
Lead Opinion
MEMORANDUM **
David E. Palismo, a former California state prisoner, appeals pro se the district court’s judgment dismissing his 42 U.S.C. § 1983 action against defendants for their participation in parole proceedings in which his parole was revoked for failure to attend counseling sessions. We review de novo a district court’s Fed.R.Civ.P. 12(b)(6) dismissal for failure to state a claim, Butterfield v. Bail, 120 F.3d 1023, 1024 (9th Cir.1997), and we affirm.
The district court correctly dismissed Palismo’s claims against the California Department of Corrections (“CDC”) because the CDC is a state agency entitled to sovereign immunity under the Eleventh Amendment. See In re Pegasus Gold Corp., 394 F.3d 1189, 1195 (9th Cir.2005).
Palismo’s claims against parole officers Jeffrey Rodriguez and Jerry Quintiliani are barred by absolute quasi-judicial immunity because they were acting in their judicial capacity in the context of parole proceedings. See Bermudez v. Duenas, 936 F.2d 1064, 1066 (9th Cir.1991) (per curiam). To the extent Palismo challenges Rodriguez’s testimony against him, his claim fails because witnesses have absolute immunity from civil suits for damages relating to…