Givens v. Longview Plce Dept

United States Court of Appeals
for the Fifth Circuit

No. 19-40549
Summary Calendar

Henry Lee Givens,

Plaintiff—Appellant,

versus

Longview Police Department,

Defendant—Appellee.

Appeal from the United States District Court
for the Eastern District of Texas
USDC No. 6:18-CV-656

Before Clement, Higginson, and Engelhardt, Circuit Judges.
Per Curiam:*
Henry Lee Givens, Texas prisoner # 56032, filed this 42 U.S.C. § 1983
suit against the Longview Police Department to seek redress for alleged acts
of slander and defamation of character that occurred when a newspaper
article recounted his prior acquittal on a murder charge. After the magistrate

*
Pursuant to 5th Circuit Rule 47.5, the court has determined that this
opinion should not be published and is not precedent except under the limited
circumstances set forth in 5th Circuit Rule 47.5.4.
United States Court of Appeals
Fifth Circuit
FILED
September 4, 2020

Lyle W. Cayce
Clerk
Case: 19-40549 Document: 00515553947 Page: 1 Date Filed: 09/04/2020

No. 19-40549
2
judge gave Givens multiple opportunities to amend his complaint, the district
court dismissed his suit without prejudice because it concluded that Givens
had not named a defendant amenable to suit. Givens’s brief to this court
ignores this threshold issue and argues only the merits of his claims. His
failure to identify error in the district court’s analysis has the same effect as
if he had not brought an appeal at all. Brinkmann v. Dallas Cty. Deputy Sheriff
Abner, 813 F.2d 744, 748 (5th Cir. 1987). Because he has shown no error in
the judgment, it is AFFIRMED.
The district court’s dismissal of Givens’s complaint counts as a strike
under 28 U.S.C. § 1915(g). See Lomax v. Ortiz-Marquez, 140 S. Ct. 1721, 1727
(2020). He is WARNED that, if he accumulates three strikes, he may not
proceed in forma pauperis in any civil action or appeal while he is
incarcerated or detained in any facility unless he is in imminent danger of
serious physical injury. See § 1915(g).

Case: 19-40549 Document: 00515553947 Page: 2 Date Filed: 09/04/2020