United States Fourth Circuit

In a 42 U.S.C. section 1983 claiming that plaintiff was entitled to monetary damages for unconstitutional imprisonment because Virginia improperly extended the length of his prison sentence, dismissal of the action is reversed and remanded as a plaintiff is allowed to seek relief under section 1983 when it is no longer possible to meet Heck's favorable termination requirement via a habeas action.

Appellate Information

• Decided 07/25/2008
• Published 07/25/2008

Judges

• Before MICHAEL and GREGORY, Circuit Judges, and David R. HANSEN, Senior Circuit Judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit, sitting by designation.

Court

• United States Fourth Circuit

Counsel

• For Appellees:
  
• ARGUED:  Katherine Crawford, Duke University School of Law, Durham, North Carolina, for Appellant.  Stephen R. McCullough, Office of the Attorney General of Virginia, Richmond, Virginia, for Appellees.   ON BRIEF:  Erwin Chemerinsky, James E. Coleman, Jr.;  Students Sachin Bansal, Virginia Duke, Catherine Tucker, Kish Vinayagamoorthy, Duke University School of Law, Durham, North Carolina, for Appellant.  Robert F. McDonnell, Attorney General of Virginia, William E. Thro, State Solicitor General, Office of the Attorney General of Virginia, Richmond, Virginia, for Appellees.