Winburn v. Howe

OPINION

POLSTER, District Judge.

Plaintiff-Appellant Robert Winburn, a Michigan state prisoner, brought a civil rights action against prison officials alleging that they violated his constitutional rights when they destroyed, ten days before the alleged filing deadline, a federal habeas petition that he had prepared. The district court granted summary judgment in defendants’ favor, dismissing the entire *732case. Winburn appeals only that part of the district court’s decision dismissing his First Amendment access-to-courts claim.

I. Background

On January 9, 1992, a jury convicted Robert Winburn of…