Edwards v. Mesa Municipal Court et al

Filing 15

ORDER - 1. This action is dismissed without prejudice. 2. The Clerk is directed enter judgment accordingly and terminate this action. (See document for further details). Signed by Judge David G Campbell on 1/28/15. (LAD)

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IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

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FOR THE DISTRICT OF ARIZONA

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Corey Darnell Edwards,
Plaintiff,

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ORDER

v.

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No. CV-14-01676-PHX-DGC

Mesa Municipal Court, et al.,

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Defendants.

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Plaintiff filed a pro se complaint against Defendants in Maricopa County Superior

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Court, and Defendants removed the case to this Court. Doc. 1 On July 31, 2014,

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Defendants Mesa Municipal Court and the Mesa Police Department (“Mesa Defendants”)

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filed a motion for a more definite statement. Doc. 4. On August 1, 2014, Defendant

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Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office (“MCSO”) filed a motion to dismiss. Doc. 5.

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Plaintiff failed to respond to the motions within the time limit set by the rules of

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procedure. See LRCiv 7.2(c); Fed. R. Civ. P. 6(d). The Court issued an order giving

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Plaintiff until September 29, 2014 to file responses. Doc. 6. The Court warned Plaintiff

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that failure to comply with the order would result in the Court summarily granting the

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motions. Plaintiff filed a response to the Mesa Defendants’ motion for more definite

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statement (Doc. 7), but he did not respond to MCSO’s motion to dismiss. Plaintiff did

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file two “motions for judgment.” Docs. 9, 10.

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The Court entered an order on November 18, 2014, granting the Mesa Defendants’

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motion for a more definite statement, granting MCSO’s motion to dismiss, denying

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Plaintiff’s motions for judgment, and ordering Plaintiff to file an amended complaint by

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December 22, 2014. Doc. 12. Plaintiff was warned “that if he fails to file an amended

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complaint by December 22, 2014, the case will be dismissed.” Id. at 6. Plaintiff was also

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given guidance regarding the content of his amended complaint. Id. at 4-6.

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Plaintiff has failed to comply with the Court’s order. More than six weeks have

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passed since the Court’s deadline, and no amended complaint has been filed. Plaintiff

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has filed another motion, apparently directed to MCSO, “for more Details.” Doc. 14.

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Before dismissing a case for failure to prosecute or failure to comply with an

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order, the Court must weigh five factors: (1) the public’s interest in expeditious resolution

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of litigation, (2) the Court’s need to manage its docket, (3) the risk of prejudice to the

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defendants, (4) the public policy favoring disposition of cases on their merits, and (5) the

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availability of less drastic sanctions. See Ghazali v. Moran, 46 F.3d 52, 53 (9th Cir.

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1995).

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The first three factors favor dismissal. Plaintiff filed this suit more than six

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months ago. Doc. 1. He failed to respond to motions filed by Defendants, was ordered to

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respond by the Court, and yet still failed to respond to one of the motions. Plaintiff was

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ordered to file an amended complaint on or before December 22, 2014, and was warned

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that his case would be dismissed if he failed to do so. Doc. 12. Plaintiff has not

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complied. The Court cannot be in the business of repeatedly having to prompt a litigant

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to follow court orders or the local rules. Because the Court and the public have a strong

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interest in judicial efficiency and the prompt resolution of cases, Plaintiff’s failure to

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prosecute weighs in favor of dismissal. His failure also risks prejudice to Defendants.

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They have been forced to incur expenses and defend themselves in this case, and are

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prejudiced by Plaintiff’s failure to prosecute the case in a timely and efficient manner.

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The fourth factor, as always, weighs against dismissal. As for the fifth factor, the

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Court concludes that a dismissal with prejudice would be unduly harsh for this pro se

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litigant. Dismissal without prejudice is an appropriate alternative sanction. Because

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Plaintiff has twice failed to comply with Court orders and has failed to file an amended

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complaint after being directly warned that his case would be dismissed, the Court will

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dismiss this action without prejudice.

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IT IS ORDERED:

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1.

This action is dismissed without prejudice.

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2.

The Clerk is directed enter judgment accordingly and terminate this action.

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Dated this 28th day of January, 2015.

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