Henry Kearson v. Southern Bell Telephone & Telegraph Company, a Georgia Corp., and American Telephone and Telegraph Company, a Georgia Corporation

Henry Kearson brought this suit pursuant to 42 U.S.C. §§ 1983,1985 alleging that defendants Southern Bell Telephone & Telegraph Co. (Southern Bell) and American Telephone and Telegraph Co. (AT & T) refused him residential telephone service after disconnection for nonpayment unless he paid an “excessive deposit.” The district court dismissed his complaint for failure to state a claim upon which relief could be granted. We affirm.

To state an actionable constitutional claim under section 1983, Kearson' must establish (1) that Southern Bell’s termination of his telephone service constituted…