Brad H. Sidles v. John Dougherty ( 1999 )

United States Court of Appeals
FOR THE EIGHTH CIRCUIT
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No. 99-1800
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Brad H. Sidles, *
*
Appellant, *
*
v. *
*
John Dougherty, Douglas County *
Registrar; Unknown Vondrasek, *
Douglas County Judge; Linda L. *
Willard, Assistant Nebraska Attorney * Appeal from the United States
General; James Jansen, Douglas County * District Court for the
Attorney; Charles J. Circo, Chief of * District of Nebraska.
Police, Omaha, Nebraska; Charlie M. *
Parker, Deputy Chief of Police, Omaha, * [UNPUBLISHED]
Nebraska; Deleen Maxwell; John W. *
Steele, Nebraska State Bar, *
*
Appellees. *
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Submitted: August 3, 1999
Filed: August 5, 1999
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Before BEAM, LOKEN, and MORRIS SHEPPARD ARNOLD, Circuit Judges.
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PER CURIAM.
Brad H. Sidles appeals following the district court&s1 adverse judgment in this
42 U.S.C. § 1983 action. Having carefully reviewed the record, we conclude the
district court was correct in finding it lacked subject matter jurisdiction over Sidles’s
complaint, which we agree amounted to a will contest. See Krueger v. Farmers and
Merchants Bank of Hannibal, Mo., 721 F.2d 640, 641 (8th Cir. 1983) (per curiam); see
also Hagerty v. Succession of Clement, 749 F.2d 217, 219-20 (5th Cir. 1984) (“a
plaintiff may not seek a reversal of a state court judgment simply by casting his
complaint in the form of a civil rights action”; rejecting claim that state trial court
denied plaintiff due process in will-contest action, and upholding dismissal for lack of
subject matter jurisdiction and for failure to state claim), cert. denied, 474 U.S. 968
(1985). Accordingly, the judgment of the district court is affirmed. See 8th Cir. R.
47B.
A true copy.
Attest:
CLERK, U.S. COURT OF APPEALS, EIGHTH CIRCUIT.
1
The HONORABLE THOMAS M. SHANAHAN, United States District Judge
for the District of Nebraska.
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