USCA1 Opinion

February 7, 1996
[NOT FOR PUBLICATION]
UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS
FOR THE FIRST CIRCUIT

____________________

No. 95-1512

RICHARD A. MCEACHERN,

Plaintiff, Appellant,

v.

CORRECTIONS, ME COMMN, ET AL.,

Defendants, Appellees.

____________________

APPEAL FROM THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

FOR THE DISTRICT OF MAINE

[Hon. D. Brock Hornby, U.S. District Judge]

___________________

____________________

Before

Torruella, Chief Judge,

___________
Boudin and Stahl, Circuit Judges.
______________

____________________

Richard A. McEachern on brief pro se.

____________________
Andrew Ketterer,
_______________

Attorney General, and

Christopher C. Leight
______________________

Assistant Attorney General, on brief for appellees.

____________________

____________________

-2-

Per Curiam.
___________

McEachern, a

On

Maine state

September

2,

prisoner, filed a

1992,

Richard

pro se
___ __

federal

civil rights action against Donald Allen, Commissioner of the

Maine Department of Corrections, and Martin Magnusson, Warden

of the Maine

an

State Prison.1
1

out-of-court settlement

agreed

to

dismiss the

transfer to a prison

The

parties eventually reached

agreement under

pending

lawsuit in

in New Jersey.2
2

which McEachern

exchange

for a

At the time, McEachern

was

housed at

Maine's

highest security

Correctional Institution

25, 1994, the

prison, the

in Warren (MCI-Warren).

parties filed a stipulation of

On

Maine

March

dismissal with

prejudice pursuant to Fed. R. Civ. P. 41(a)(1)(ii).

Following

transferred to a

the

dismissal,

New Jersey

prison.

however, McEachern

Fed.

reinstate

into

On

filed a motion and

R. Civ. P. 60(b)

to void the

McEachern

was

February 3,

duly

1995,

affidavit pursuant to

settlement agreement and

his lawsuit on the ground that he had been coerced

settling

his

case

by

the

"inhumane

and

punitive"

____________________

1As amended, the complaint also names Deputy Warden Arthur

1
Kiskila as a defendant.

2The agreement
2

also provided that McEachern could request

the Maine Department

of Corrections

to provide

Pine Tree Legal Assistance attorney should he need

Maine legal

materials in connection with

in Maine courts.

-2-2-

him with

access to

any future actions

environment at MCI-Warren.3
3

The motion

was denied, and this

appeal followed.

McEachern argues that his Rule 60(b) motion

have

set

been allowed because it

forth

extraordinary

circumstances

pursuant to Fed. R. Civ. P.

seeking relief under any

within

also
____

a "reasonable

was filed within

60(b)(6).

time."4
4

depends

(explaining that

one year and

warranting

We disagree.

relief

A party

provision of Rule 60(b) must

Planet Corp. v. Sullivan,

____________
________

1983)

should

what

Fed. R.

Civ. P.

702 F.2d 123,

constitutes a

do so

60(b); see
___

126 (7th Cir.

reasonable time

on the facts of each case, taking into consideration

the interest in finality, the reason for delay, the practical

ability to

learn earlier

of

the grounds

relied upon,

and

prejudice to other parties).

McEachern failed to adequately

explain why, after being transferred to New Jersey, he waited

____________________

3McEachern
3
reopening

also alleged,

the

dismissed

suit,

comply with their agreement

Legal

as

Assistance attorney.

an

additional

that

ground

defendants failed

to provide him with a

McEachern

does not

for
to

Pine Tree
renew this

argument on appeal, and we deem the issue waived.

4Since McEachern filed his

4
not

need

applicable.
is grounded

to

decide

which

motion within one year, we

do

provision

is

of

Rule

60(b)

We note, however, that to the extent the motion

on alleged misconduct

of an

adverse party,

it

properly should have been brought pursuant to Fed. R. Civ. P.

60(b)(3).

-3-3-

over

ten months

before seeking

relief based

on coercion.5
5

We think this delay was unreasonable.

We add that

McEachern did not claim

that the ill-

treatment he allegedly received at MCI-Warren was directed at

forcing him to settle his

lawsuit.

Moreover, the conditions

of confinement

the

he described in

number of hours spent

meaningful detail--including

in his cell,

the restrictions on

activities, the requirement that he wear prison clothing, the

prohibition on

fall within

452 U.S.

contact visits, and

the lack of

a canteen--

constitutional limits.

Cf. Rhodes
___ ______

v. Chapman,
_______

337, 347 (1981) (observing

conditions are

pay

for

part of

their

circumstances,

the penalty that

offense

we cannot

required to hold a

against

say

(1st

Cir. 1995)

broad discretion

criminal offenders

society).

that the

Under

the

district court

was

hearing or that it abused

in denying the requested relief.

1, 3

that restrictive, harsh

its discretion

See Hoult v. Hoult, 57 F.3d

___ _____
_____

(stating that

district courts

enjoy

in deciding motions under Rule 60(b) and we

review such ruling only for abuse of that discretion).

Affirmed.
_________

____________________

5Although McEachern
5
"lingering
treatment at
been

vaguely alludes, in his affidavit, to

psychological damage"
MCI-Warren, his

allegedly

caused

affidavit reveals that

by

his

he had

actively litigating other matters since his transfer to

New Jersey.

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