Ware v. Hall et al

Filing 26

ORDER directing the Clerk to REFRAIN FROM DOCKETING any future written discovery from Plaintiff. Plaintiff's 24 Motion for Discovery, which has been construed as a Motion for a Subpoena Duces Tecum, is GRANTED. The Clerk is directed to pre pare a subpoena duces tecum to the Warden of the East AR Regional Unit for the production, to the Court, of: (a) any Incident Reports prepared about the 9/24/11 use of force against Plaintiff at the Craighead County Detention Center; & (b) any photographs taken. The U.S. Marshal is directed to serve the subpoena duces tecum on the Warden of the East AR Regional Unit. Plaintiff's 23 Motion for Bench Trial is DENIED. Signed by Magistrate Judge J. Thomas Ray on 6/26/2012. (jct)

IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
EASTERN DISTRICT OF ARKANSAS
JONESBORO DIVISION

JONATHAN A. WARE,
ADC #653450
V.

PLAINTIFF
3:12CV00084 JLH/JTR

MATTHEW HALL, Lieutenant,
Craighead County Detention Center, et al.

DEFENDANTS

ORDER
Plaintiff, Jonathan Ware, is a prisoner in East Arkansas Regional Unit of the
Arkansas Department of Correction (“ADC”). He alleges that, on September 24,
2011, Defendants used excessive force against him while he was temporarily in the
Craighead County Detention Center (“CCDC”).1 See docket entry #2.
I. Plaintiff’s Filing of Discovery
Plaintiff has filed a Request for Production of Documents, Interrogatories, and
his Answer to Defendants’ Interrogatories. See docket entries #8, #22, and #25.
Plaintiff must mail his discovery requests directly to Defendants’ attorney, and not file
them in the record. See Fed. R. Civ. P. 5(d). Thus, his discovery responses and
requests will no longer be accepted for filing.
1

It appears that, sometime in September of 2011, Plaintiff was transported
from the ADC to the CCDC to attend a court appearance on outstanding criminal
charges. Id.

II. Plaintiff’s Motion for Discovery
Plaintiff has filed a Motion for Discovery, which is more properly characterized
as a Motion for a Subpoena Duces Tecum. See docket entry #24. In that Motion,
Plaintiff explains that when he returned the ADC, unspecified prison officials took
pictures of the injuries he sustained during the September 24, 2011 altercation at the
CCDC. Id. He also believes that his ADC prison file contains Incident Reports that
were prepared by unspecified individuals about the September 24, 2011 incident. Id.
Accordingly, he asks the Court to order the ADC to provide him with copies of those
photographs and Incident Reports.2 Id.
The Court finds Plaintiff’s request to be reasonable and in compliance with Fed.
R. Civ. P. 34(c) and 45(a). Accordingly, the Court will direct the Clerk to prepare a
subpoena duces tecum to the Warden of the East Arkansas Regional Unit and instruct
the U.S. Marshals to serve it. See 28 U.S.C. § 1915(d) (providing that the “officers
of the courts shall issue and serve all process, and perform all duties” in cases, such
as this one, where the plaintiff has been granted permission to proceed in forma
pauperis).

III. Plaintiff’s Motion for a Bench Trial

2

There are no ADC Defendants in this lawsuit.
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Plaintiff has filed a Motion asking the Court to immediately schedule a trial on
the merits of his claims. See docket entry #23. As explained in the Initial Scheduling
Order, the parties have until September 12, 2012, to complete discovery and October
12, 2012, to file dispositive motions. See docket entry #15. If the case survives the
filing of any such dispositive motions, the Court will enter a Final Scheduling Order
setting a trial date. Accordingly, the Motion is denied.
IV. Conclusion
IT IS THEREFORE ORDERED THAT:
1.

The Clerk is directed to REFRAIN FROM DOCKETING any future

written discovery from Plaintiff.
2.

Plaintiff’s Motion for Discovery (docket entry #24), which has been

construed as a Motion for a Subpoena Duces Tecum, is GRANTED.
3.

The Clerk is directed to prepare a subpoena duces tecum to the Warden

of the East Arkansas Regional Unit for the production, to the Court, of: (a) any
Incident Reports prepared about the September 24, 2011 use of force against Plaintiff
at the Craighead County Detention Center; and (b) any photographs that were taken
of the injuries Plaintiff allegedly sustained during the September 24, 2011 use of
force. The Warden will be given 14 days to comply with the subpoena.
4.

The U.S. Marshal is directed to serve the subpoena duces tecum on the

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Warden of the East Arkansas Regional Unit without prepayment of fees and costs or
security therefor.
5.

Plaintiff’s Motion for a Bench Trial (docket entry #23) is DENIED.

Dated this 26th day of June, 2012.

UNITED STATES MAGISTRATE JUDGE

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