Preiser v. Rodriguez

411 U.S. 475 (1973)

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Nature of the Case

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Facts

Ps are state prisoners who were deprived of good-conduct-time credits by the New York State Department of Correctional Services as a result of disciplinary proceedings. Ps brought actions in a federal district court under §1983 alleging that D had acted unconstitutionally in depriving them of the credits. Ps sought injunctive relief to compel restoration of the credits, which in each case would result in their immediate release from confinement in prison. The District Court held that the disciplinary action was unconstitutional and that the prisoners were not required to exhaust their state remedies before suing under §1983. The District Court's order entitled him to immediate release from prison on parole. The Court of Appeals reversed this decision by a divided vote. The appellate court not only disagreed with the District Court on the merits, but also held that Ps' action was really a petition for habeas corpus and, as such, should not have been entertained by the District Court because Ps had not exhausted his state remedies in accordance with §2254 (b). The judgment of the Court of Appeals was subsequently set aside, and the case was reheard en banc. After rehearing en banc of the three now-consolidated cases, the Court of Appeals affirmed the judgments of the District Court in all of the cases 'upon consideration of the merits and upon the authority of Wilwording v. Swenson.” D appealed.