Nance v. Miser et al
Filing
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ORDER dismissing this case and all pending matters with prejudice. The Clerk of Court is directed to terminate the case. Signed by Senior Judge Stephen M McNamee on 1/12/16. (LSP)
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IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
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FOR THE DISTRICT OF ARIZONA
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Keith P. Nance,
No. CV-12-00734-PHX-SMM
Plaintiff,
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v.
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ORDER
Allen Miser, et al.,
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Defendants.
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This Order follows a status hearing, held on January 5, 2016, the Court scheduled
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in order to set a trial date and finalize other preliminary matters. Defense Counsel for the
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state, Neil Singh, was present. Plaintiff Keith P. Nance, who is incarcerated at an Arizona
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State Prison Complex in Florence, was directed to appear by phone.
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At the start of the hearing the Court called the Florence Prison in an attempt to get
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Mr. Nance on a conference call, but was unable to do so. Over the phone, Prison Guard
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Diane Schmidt informed the Court that Mr. Nance was being uncooperative and refused
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to sit down in the designated seat the prison allows inmates to use to make over-the-
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phone court appearances, which is routine and customary for these hearings. Ms. Schmidt
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indicated that Mr. Nance desired to conduct the hearing from the comfort of a private
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room. Ms. Schmidt advised the Court that inmates are required to sit in this particular
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seat for security purposes, as it contains a window and is in full view of the guards. She
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further stated that the room was sound proof and that Mr. Nance would be the only one in
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there. Finding the customary ADOC directive to be reasonable, the Court asked Ms.
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Schmidt to inform Mr. Nance that he was ordered to sit in the designated seat as directed
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by the prison authorities and participate in the scheduled hearing or there would be
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consequences. Ms. Schmidt relayed the message to Mr. Nance, who was present and
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could hear the Court’s discussion over the speaker phone. Mr. Nance then responded to
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the Court directly, indicating that he wanted a more private area to conduct the hearing.
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The Court denied his request and personally ordered Mr. Nance to sit in the designated
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seat so as to proceed with the hearing. Mr. Nance again refused to follow the Court’s
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order and hung up the phone, thus abandoning the hearing.
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This is the second instance of Mr. Nance’s obstreperous conduct in as many
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weeks. On December 22, 2015, Mr. Singh traveled from Phoenix to the Florence Prison,
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located roughly 60 miles away, to discuss potential settlement prospects as well as to
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finalize trial exhibits. (Doc. 177.) Mr. Nance again refused to sit down and talk to Mr.
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Singh. He then straightway walked out of the room because there was a guard in the
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vicinity and the meeting was not “confidential” as he demanded. (Id.) Mr. Singh returned
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to Phoenix empty handed and he was unable to fulfill even a speck of his mission.
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The Court finds Mr. Nance’s actions completely unreasonable and therefore will
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dismiss this case with prejudice. Although dismissal is the most serious sanction allowed
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under Fed. R. Civ. P. 16(f) and 37(b), the Court finds that there are no reasonable
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alternatives in the present situation. See Ferdik v. Bonzelet, 963 F. 2d 1258, 1260 (9th
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Cir. 1992). Other lesser approved sanctions under the Rules are wholly inadequate
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measures in light of Mr. Nance’s repeated misconduct and blatant disregard for the rules
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and decorum of the Court and the dignity and efforts of opposing counsel. Lesser
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sanctions, such as staying further proceedings until Mr. Nance is ready to comply with
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the Court’s orders or striking particular pleadings, see Fed. R. Civ. P. 37(b)(2)(A), would
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do no more than serve as proverbial slaps on the hand and would only have the effects of
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further delaying and complicating this case. Additionally, the Court finds that Mr. Nance,
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who has been incarcerated for the better part of the past two decades, does not have the
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means to pay opposing counsel’s fees or costs. See id. at 37(b)(2)(C). Therefore,
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dismissal is the only proper remedy.
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The Court’s decision to dismiss this case is well supported. Mr. Nance continually
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failed to litigate this case in a cooperative, respectful, and reasonable manner. He refused
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time and again to comply with Court orders and discovery requirements. With constant
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indifference of the rules and this Court’s orders, he demanded that matters be conducted
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as he saw fit. His contemptuous conduct was the cause of wasted judicial and state
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resources. The Court, its clerks and employees, defense and pro se attorneys, expended
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countless hours processing this case, only to be met with Mr. Nance’s law-unto-himself
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attitude. For the foregoing reasons, the Court is well within its bounds to dismiss this
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case. Fed. R. Civ. P. 16(f) (“On motion or on its own, the court may issue any just orders,
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including [dismissal], if a party . . . does not participate in good faith . . . or fails to obey a
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scheduling order or pretrial order.”); see Dreith v. Nu Image, Inc., 648 F. 3d 779 (9th Cir.
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2011) (finding that the district court possessed the power to impose the sanction of
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dismissal and did not abuse its discretion by doing so); see also Ferdik, 963 F. 2d at 1260
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(dismissal in response “to the endless vexatious noncompliance of litigants” was not an
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abuse of discretion).
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Mr. Nance is a high risk prisoner, currently serving a lengthy sentence. The Court
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has extended great liberality to Mr. Nance to pursue his claims, however, even he must
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comply with the reasonable strictures the prison and judicial systems impose upon him,
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which are designed for both his and everyone else’s safety. What he is not entitled to is
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exalted treatment, neither as a prisoner nor as a litigant. Rather, he is held to the same
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reasonable rules as all other litigants. Mr. Nance is encouraged to remember this as he
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appears before the Court in other pending matters.
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Accordingly, for the foregoing reasons,
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IT IS HEREBY ORDERED DISMISSING this case and all pending matters
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with prejudice. The Clerk of Court is directed to terminate the case.
Dated this 12th day of January, 2016.
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Honorable Stephen M. McNamee
Senior United States District Judge
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