Pratt v. Office of Civil Rights et al

Filing 57

ORDER: Plaintiff's motion for reconsideration 42 is denied. IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that Defendant Gateway's motion for attorney's fees 43 in the amount of $1,054.00 is granted; Gateway is awarded $1,054.00 against Plaint iff. IT IS FINALLY ORDERED that by January 13, 2014, Plaintiff shall file a memorandum showing cause why Defendant Colorado Department of Education should not be dismissed for lack of personal jurisdiction (the Office of Civil Rights motion to dismiss remains pending). Signed by Senior Judge James A Teilborg on 12/17/2013. (ALS)

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IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

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FOR THE DISTRICT OF ARIZONA

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Plaintiff,
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vs.
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Office of Civil Rights, Colorado Dept. of)
Education, and Gateway Comm. College,)
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Defendants.
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Eddie Pratt,

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CV 12-1821-PHX-JAT
ORDER

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On June 13, 2013, the Court issued the following order (quoted in part):

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A.

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...

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Gateway has also argued that the Complaint fails to state a claim. The
Complaint (quoted in its entirety) alleges as follows:

Motion to Dismiss

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I the plaintiff Eddie L. Pratt ask for a plea for relief and
justice; resulting from a perceived loss of integrity, humiliated
[sic], stature, dignity, harassment, abridged human rights, and
slavery. That is why we need Titles’ V, VI, VII of the Civil
Rights Act, HR, 7152 to prevent [sic] where Federal Funds are
involved. Title VI, and the Title VII is sound; it is [sic]
constitutional right. Now, what will it accomplish? It will
guarantee that the money collected by colorblind tax collectors
will be distributed by Federal and State administrator [sic] who
are equally colorblind, eliminate [sic] discrimination.
I file [sic] a complaint with both [sic] Office of Civil
Rights - Attorney Thomas Rock and EEOC Rayford Irvin;
“hostile environment” wrongful termination, and discrimination.
They did not follow policy and procedure. [citation omitted].
The agencies didn’t investigate my case; which violated my civil
rights [citation omitted]; unlawful basis; none [sic] white [sic]
get less hours, less pay, while whites get more hours and more

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pay. In fact, they dismiss [sic] my case and never gave me an
appeal, and also denied a waiver. [citation omitted].
Fourteenth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution declares
that no state may not [sic] “deny” to any person within its
jurisdiction the equal protect [sic] of the laws. [citation omitted].
Doc. 1.
Rule 8(a)(2) requires a “short and plain statement of the claim showing
that the pleader is entitled to relief,” so that the defendant has “fair notice of
what the . . . claim is and the grounds upon which it rests.” Bell Atlantic Corp.
v. Twombly, 550 U.S. 544, 555 (2007)(quoting Conley v. Gibson, 355 U.S. 41,
47 (1957)). Here, Defendant Gateway is never mentioned in the Complaint.
Accordingly, the Complaint fails to state a claim against this Defendant under
Twombly and the motion to dismiss will be granted. To the extent Plaintiff
responded to this motion by a motion (Doc. 13), Plaintiff’s motion will be
denied.
B.

Motion for Sanctions

Defendant Gateway has also moved for sanctions under Rule 11(b)
against Plaintiff for her various filings, including her continuous efforts to
seeks default against Defendant Gateway while its motion to dismiss is
pending. Doc. 29. Defendant Gateway argues that these motions are for the
purposes of harassment and to increase the costs of the litigation. The Court
agrees. Therefore, Defendant Gateway may file a motion for attorneys fees for
the time expended in responding to Plaintiff’s five pending motions relating
[to] default (Docs. 21, 22, 23, 25, and 31). To the extent Plaintiff has opposed
the request for sanctions by a motion (Doc. 34), Plaintiff’s motion is denied.
Further, all the pending motions for default will be denied.
Doc. 41 at 1-3.
Now, Plaintiff moves for reconsideration of this Order. The Court finds no basis for
reconsideration; accordingly, Plaintiff’s motion will be denied.

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Next, consistent with the Court’s Order, Defendant Gateway has moved for attorney’s

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fees. Plaintiff has not opposed the motion. Pursuant to Local Rule Civil 7.2(i), the Court

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summarily grants the motion.

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Two defendants remain in this case: (1) the Colorado Department of Education and

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(2) the Office of Civil Rights, U.S. Department of Education. The latter has moved to

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dismiss and that motion remains pending. It would appear that this Court lacks personal

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jurisdiction over the Colorado Department of Civil Rights. Plaintiff will be required to show

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cause why the Colorado Department of Civil Rights should not be dismissed.

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Based on the foregoing,

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IT IS ORDERED that Plaintiff’s motion for reconsideration (Doc. 42) is denied.

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IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that Defendant Gateway’s motion for attorney’s fees

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(Doc. 43) in the amount of $1,054.00 is granted; Gateway is awarded $1,054.00 against

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Plaintiff.

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IT IS FINALLY ORDERED that by January 13, 2014, Plaintiff shall file a

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memorandum showing cause why Defendant Colorado Department of Education should not

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be dismissed for lack of personal jurisdiction (the Office of Civil Rights motion to dismiss

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remains pending).

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DATED this 17th day of December, 2013.

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