Pettiway v. Water Works and Sanitary Sewer Board of the City of Montgomery (JOINT ASSIGN)

Filing 7

TEMPORARY RESTRAINING ORDER GRANTING plf's 3 MOTION for Temporary Restraining Order as follows: (1) ORDERING that def is RESTRAINED and ENJOINED from turning off the water to plf's home located at 117 Miller Lane, Montgomery, AL 36117 prior to 5:00 p.m. on June 28, 2016; (2) further ORDERING that, on the representation of the plf, no bond shall be required; (3) ORDERING that this temporary restraining order shall expire at 5:00 p.m. on 6/28/2016; (4) ORDERING that the 3 MOTION for Preliminary Injunction is set for a hearing on 6/22/2016 02:00 PM before Chief Judge William Keith Watkins, in Courtroom 2B, FMJ US Courthouse, Montgomery, AL; counsel shall appear in person, and telephonic appearances will not be permitted; di recting the Clerk to provide a court reporter for the hearing; directing plaintiff to promptly serve the defendant with a copy of this order. Signed by Chief Judge William Keith Watkins on 6/14/16. (Attachments: # 1 civil appeals checklist). Furnished to calendar group & AR.(djy, )

IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
FOR THE MIDDLE DISTRICT OF ALABAMA
NORTHERN DIVISION
HATTIE S. PETTAWAY
Plaintiff,
v.
WATER WORKS AND
SANITARY SEWER BOARD OF
THE CITY OF MONTGOMERY,
Defendant.

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CASE NO. 2:16-CV-435-WKW
(WO)

TEMPORARY RESTRAINING ORDER
Before the court is Plaintiffs’ motion for temporary restraining order. (Doc.
# 3.) This is a civil rights action brought pursuant to 42 U.S.C. § 1983. Plaintiff
alleges that, in violation of her due process rights, Defendant intends to terminate
her water services without giving her a meaningful opportunity to contest a bill that
she contends she does not owe and never incurred. Memphis Light, Gas & Water
Div. v. Craft, 436 U.S. 1, 18 (1978) (“[S]ome administrative procedure for
entertaining customer complaints prior to termination is required to afford
reasonable assurance against erroneous or arbitrary withholding of essential
services. The customer's interest is self-evident. Utility service is a necessity of
modern life; indeed, the discontinuance of water or heating for even short periods
of time may threaten health and safety. And the risk of an erroneous deprivation,

given the necessary reliance on computers, is not insubstantial.”

(footnotes

omitted)).
Having considered the motion, the court concludes that the motion for
temporary restraining order is due to be granted. Plaintiff has met the procedural
requirements for filing a motion for temporary restraining order. Further, she has
demonstrated (1) a substantial likelihood of success on the merits; (2) that, if the
relief is not granted, she will suffer irreparable injury in the form of deprivation of
water services that she needs in order to maintain her health and take her
medications; (3) that the threatened injury outweighs the harm the relief would
inflict on Defendant; and (4) that entry of the relief would serve the public interest.
Schiavo ex rel. Schindler v. Schiavo, 403 F.3d 1223, 1225 (11th Cir. 2005). The
court notes that the temporary restraining order will impose no burden on
Defendant, and no financial risk.
For the foregoing reasons, it is ORDERED that Plaintiffs’ Motion for
Temporary Restraining Order (Doc. # 3) is GRANTED as follows:
1.

It is ORDERED that Defendant is RESTRAINED and ENJOINED from

turning off the water to Plaintiff’s home located at 117 Miller Lane, Montgomery,
Alabama 36117 prior to 5:00 p.m. on June 28, 2016.
2.

It is further ORDERED that, on the representation of the Plaintiff, no bond

shall be required.
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3.

It is ORDERED that this temporary restraining order shall expire at 5:00

p.m. on June 28, 2016.
4.

It is ORDERED that the motion for preliminary injunction is set for a

hearing on 2:00 p.m. on June 22, 2016, in Courtroom in courtroom 2-B of the
Frank M. Johnson, Jr. U.S. Courthouse, in Montgomery, Alabama. Counsel shall
appear in person, and telephonic appearances will not be permitted. The Clerk of
the Court is DIRECTED to provide a court reporter for the hearing.
Plaintiff is DIRECTED to promptly serve Defendant with a copy of this
Order.
DONE this 14th day of June, 2016.
/s/ W. Keith Watkins
CHIEF UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE

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