United States Third Circuit

In an action alleging that defendants, state entities and officials, violated plaintiff's constitutional rights by eliminating his position as poet laureate of New Jersey due to a poem regarding the September 11 attacks, grant of defendants' motion to dismiss for failure to state a claim is affirmed where: 1) regardless of their subjective intent, the governor's and an official's actions were properly characterized as legislative and were entitled to immunity; 2) a request for reinstatement was barred by legislative immunity; 3) payment of an honorarium to plaintiff was not constitutionally mandated, and thus the absence of an appropriation was fatal to plaintiff's claim; 4) defendants did not deprive him of a constitutionally protected property or liberty interest, or infringe upon his First Amendment rights; 5) claims against unknown defendants were barred; and 6) there was no error in a refusal to exercise pendent jurisdiction over state law claims.

Appellate Information

• Argued 04/24/2006
• Decided 03/21/2007
• Published 03/21/2007

Judges

• Before SCIRICA, Chief Judge, NYGAARD, Circuit Judge, and YOHN, District Judge.

Court

• United States Third Circuit

Counsel

• For Appellant:
  
• William D. Manns, Jr., Esquire, (Argued), Lee & Sanchez, Newark, NJ, Robert T. Pickett, Esquire, South Orange, NJ, for Appellant.


• For Appellees:
  
• Lewis A. Scheindlin, Esquire, (Argued), Office of Attorney General of New Jersey, Department of Law & Public Safety, Trenton, NJ, for Appellees.