Campa v. Zamora et al

Filing 13

ORDER DISMISSING COMPLAINT WITH LEAVE TO AMEND (ECF No. 1 ), Amended Complaint Due Within Thirty (30) Days, signed by Magistrate Judge Michael J. Seng on 7/29/2013. (Amended Complaint due by 9/3/2013) (Attachments: # 1 Part 1, # 2 Part 2, # 3 Amended Complaint Form)(Fahrney, E)

1
2
3
4
5
6
7

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

8

EASTERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA

9
10

ANTHONY J. CAMPA,

11

CASE NO.

Plaintiff,

12

1:12-cv-01897-AWI-MJS (PC)

ORDER DISMISSING COMPLAINT WITH
LEAVE TO AMEND

v.
(ECF No. 1)

13
L.D. ZAMORA, et al.,
14

AMENDED COMPLAINT
THIRTY (30) DAYS

Defendants.

15

DUE

WITHIN

/

16
17

SCREENING ORDER

18
19

I.

PROCEDURAL HISTORY

20

On November 19, 2012, Plaintiff Anthony J. Campa, a state prisoner proceeding pro

21

se and in forma pauperis, filed this civil rights action pursuant to 42 U.S.C. § 1983. (ECF

22

No. 1.) His Complaint is now before the Court for screening.

23

II.

SCREENING REQUIREMENT

24
25
26

The Court is required to screen complaints brought by prisoners seeking relief
against a governmental entity or officer or employee of a governmental entity. 28 U.S.C.

27
1

1

§ 1915A(a). The Court must dismiss a complaint or portion thereof if the prisoner has

2

raised claims that are legally “frivolous, malicious,” or that fail to state a claim upon which

3

relief may be granted, or that seek monetary relief from a defendant who is immune from

4
5

such relief. 28 U.S.C. § 1915A(b)(1),(2). “Notwithstanding any filing fee, or any portion

6

thereof, that may have been paid, the court shall dismiss the case at any time if the court

7

determines that . . . the action or appeal . . . fails to state a claim upon which relief may be

8

granted.” 28 U.S.C. § 1915(e)(2)(B)(ii).

9
10

Section 1983 “provides a cause of action for the ‘deprivation of any rights, privileges,
or immunities secured by the Constitution and laws’ of the United States.” Wilder v.

11
12

Virginia Hosp. Ass’n, 496 U.S. 498, 508 (1990) (quoting 42 U.S.C. § 1983). Section 1983

13

is not itself a source of substantive rights, but merely provides a method for vindicating

14

federal rights conferred elsewhere. Graham v. Connor, 490 U.S. 386, 393-94 (1989).

15

III.

16
17

SUMMARY OF COMPLAINT
Plaintiff is incarcerated and is representing himself in this action. Under such

circumstances, the Court is quite tolerant of clerical errors, problems of form and other

18
19

non-substantive errors. However, here Plaintiff’s use of very small print, minimal spacing

20

between words, and failure to double space between sentences renders the Complaint

21

almost illegible.

22
23

Plaintiffs must submit “clearly legible” pleadings. Local Rule 130(b). This one is not.
Plaintiff will be given an opportunity to file an amended complaint that is legible.

24

The following sections of this order notify Plaintiff of the general legal standards

25
applicable to any future pleading.
26
27

///
2

1

A.

2

To state a claim under Section 1983, a plaintiff must allege two essential elements:

3

Section 1983

(1) that a right secured by the Constitution or laws of the United States was violated and

4
5

(2) that the alleged violation was committed by a person acting under the color of state law.

6

See West v. Atkins, 487 U.S. 42, 48 (1988); Ketchum v. Alameda Cnty., 811 F.2d 1243,

7

1245 (9th Cir. 1987).

8

A complaint must contain “a short and plain statement of the claim showing that the

9

pleader is entitled to relief . . . .” Fed. R. Civ. P. 8(a)(2). Detailed factual allegations are

10

not required, but “[t]hreadbare recitals of the elements of a cause of action, supported by

11
12

mere conclusory statements, do not suffice.” Ashcroft v. Iqbal, 129 S.Ct. 1937, 1949

13

(2009) (citing Bell Atlantic Corp. v. Twombly, 550 U.S. 544, 555 (2007)). Plaintiff must set

14

forth “sufficient factual matter, accepted as true, to ‘state a claim that is plausible on its

15

face.’” Id. Facial plausibility demands more than the mere possibility that a defendant

16

committed misconduct and, while factual allegations are accepted as true, legal

17

conclusions are not. Id. at 1949-50.

18
19

B.

Formatting

20

Plaintiff's complaint must contain “a short and plain statement of the claim

21

showing that [Plaintiff] is entitled to relief . . . .” Fed. R. Civ. P. 8(a)(2) (emphasis added).

22

“Each allegation must be simple, concise, and direct.” Fed. R. Civ. P. 8(d)(1) (emphasis

23

added). Local Rule 130(c) provides, in part, that “[d]ocuments shall be double-spaced

24

except for the identification of counsel, title of the action, category headings, footnotes,

25
26

quotations, exhibits and descriptions of real property.” In submitting an amended complaint

27
3

1

in compliance with this order, Plaintiff must print legibly in a font size that is easily read and

2

leave sufficient space between words.

3

Plaintiff is to keep in mind that he need not prove his case at this point or even refer

4
5
6

to or identify evidence supporting it. His statements are taken as true at this stage of the
proceedings.

7

Plaintiff attached approximately one-hundred and fifty-six pages of exhibits to the

8

Compliant. Exhibits, while permissible if incorporated by reference, Fed. R. Civ. P. 10(c),

9

are not necessary in the federal system of notice pleading, Fed. R. Civ. P. 8(a). Exhibits

10

should not be submitted with the pleading where (1) they serve only to confuse the record

11
12

and burden the Court, or (2) they are intended as future evidence. If this action reachesthe

13

point at which the submission of evidence is appropriate and necessary (e.g., summary

14

judgment or trial), Plaintiff will have the opportunity to submit evidence. It is not only

15

unnecessary but counterproductive to submit excessive facts or exhibits at this stage. The

16

excess distracts the Court’s attention from the core elements of the claim which should

17

be capable of being expressed in one to five neatly typed or printed double-spaced

18
19

pages.

20

C.

21

The Court also notes that Plaintiff has attributed numerous violations of his rights

22

to seventeen different Defendants. To raise multiple claims in a single lawsuit, the joinder

23

of the claims must be permitted by the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure. A basic lawsuit

24

Defendants

is a single claim against a single defendant. Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 18(a) allows

25
26

a plaintiff to add multiple claims to the lawsuit when they are against the same defendant.

27
4

1
2

Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 20(a)(2) allows a plaintiff to join multiple defendants
to a lawsuit where the right to relief arises out of the same “transaction, occurrence,

3
or series of transactions” and “any question of law or fact common to all defendants
4
5

will arise in the action.” Unrelated claims against different defendants must be

6

brought in separate lawsuits. See George v. Smith, 507 F.3d 605, 607 (7th Cir. 2007)

7

(emphasis added). This rule is not only intended to avoid confusion that arises out of

8

bloated lawsuits, but also to ensure that prisoners pay the required filing fees for their

9

lawsuits and prevent prisoners from circumventing the three strikes rule under the Prison

10
11
12
13

Litigation Reform Act. 28 U.S.C. § 1915(g). Plaintiff is advised that if he opts to amend
and raises factually unrelated claims against different defendants in a single action, the
impermissibly joined claims will be severed and dismissed from this action.

14

Plaintiff's amended complaint must clearly state for each Defendant 1) who that

15

Defendant is; 2) what that Defendant did; 3) what right that Defendant violated; and 4) how

16

that Defendant's actions violated that right. Defendants may not be sued collectively; each

17
18
19

Defendant is only liable for the injuries caused by his or her own actions. See Leer v.
Murphy, 844 F.2d 628, 633 (9th Cir. 1988) (“The inquiry into causation must be

20

individualized and focus on the duties and responsibilities of each individual defendant

21

whose acts or omissions are alleged to have caused a constitutional deprivation.”)

22

V.

23

CONCLUSION AND ORDER
Plaintiff’s Complaint does not state a claim for relief under section 1983. The Court

24
25
26

will grant Plaintiff an opportunity to file an amended complaint. Noll v. Carlson, 809 F.2d
1446, 1448-49 (9th Cir. 1987). If Plaintiff opts to amend, he must demonstrate that the

27
5

1

alleged acts resulted in a deprivation of his constitutional rights. Iqbal, 129 S.Ct. at 1948-

2

49. Plaintiff must set forth “sufficient factual matter . . . to ‘state a claim that is plausible

3

on its face.’” Id. at 1949 (quoting Twombly, 550 U.S. at 555 (2007)). Plaintiff must also

4
5
6

demonstrate that each named Defendant personally participated in a deprivation of his
rights. Jones v. Williams, 297 F.3d 930, 934 (9th Cir. 2002).

7

Plaintiff should note that although he has been given the opportunity to amend, it

8

is not for the purposes of adding new claims. George v. Smith, 507 F.3d 605, 607 (7th Cir.

9

2007). Plaintiff should carefully read this Screening Order and focus his efforts on curing

10

the deficiencies set forth above.

11
12

Finally, Plaintiff is advised that Local Rule 220 requires that an amended complaint

13

be complete in itself without reference to any prior pleading. As a general rule, an

14

amended complaint supersedes the original complaint. See Loux v. Rhay, 375 F.2d 55,

15

57 (9th Cir. 1967). Once an amended complaint is filed, the original complaint no longer

16

serves any function in the case. Therefore, in an amended complaint, as in an original

17

complaint, each claim and the involvement of each defendant must be sufficiently alleged.

18
The amended complaint should be clearly and boldly titled “First Amended Complaint,”
19
20

refer to the appropriate case number, and be an original signed under penalty of perjury.

21

Plaintiff's amended complaint should be brief. Fed. R. Civ. P. 8(a). Although accepted as

22

true, the “[f]actual allegations must be [sufficient] to raise a right to relief above the

23

speculative level . . . .” Twombly, 550 U.S. at 555 (citations omitted).

24

Accordingly, it is HEREBY ORDERED that:

25
1.

The Clerk’s Office shall send Plaintiff (1) a blank civil rights complaint form

26
27

and (2) a copy of his Complaint, filed November 19, 2012;
6

1

2.

2

may be granted;

3

3.

Plaintiff shall file an amended complaint within thirty (30) days; and

4.

If Plaintiff fails to file an amended complaint in compliance with this order, the

4

Plaintiff’s Complaint is dismissed for failure to state a claim upon which relief

5
6
7

Court will recommend that this action be dismissed, with prejudice, for failure to state a
claim and failure to comply with a court order.

8
9
10

IT IS SO ORDERED.

11
12
13

Dated:
ci4d6

July 29, 2013

/s/

Michael J. Seng

UNITED STATES MAGISTRATE JUDGE

14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
7