Garcia v. Balagso et al

Filing 55

ORDER DENYING Plaintiff's 52 Motion for Relief from Judgment, filed on June 21, 2017, signed by Chief Judge Lawrence J. O'Neill on 09/6/17. (Martin-Gill, S)

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UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

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EASTERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA

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ALEJANDRO GARCIA,
Plaintiff,

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v.

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PURDY,
Defendant.

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I.

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Case No.: 1:14-cv-00999-LJO-SAB (PC)
ORDER DENYING PLAINTIFF’S MOTION FOR
RELIEF FROM JUDGMENT
[ECF No. 52]

Introduction
Plaintiff Alejandro Garcia is proceeding pro se and in forma pauperis in this civil rights action

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pursuant to 42 U.S.C. § 1983. This matter was referred to a United States Magistrate Judge pursuant to

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28 U.S.C. § 636(1)(B) and Local Rule 302.

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On March 7, 2017, the Court issued an order dismissing this action based on Plaintiff’s failure

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to prosecute and for violating Local Rule 183(b). (ECF No. 50.) Judgment was entered accordingly

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that same day. (ECF No. 51.)

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Currently before the Court is Plaintiff’s motion stating he would like to continue with his case,

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filed June 21, 2017. (ECF No. 52.) On July 11, 2017, the Court construed Plaintiff’s notice as a motion

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for relief from judgment pursuant to Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 60(b), and required Defendant to

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file a response. On August 1, 2017, Defendant filed an opposition to Plaintiff’s motion, with

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declarations in support. (ECF No. 54.) The time to file a reply to Defendant’s opposition has passed,

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and none has been filed. The motion is deemed submitted. Local Rule 230(l).
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II.

Discussion
Plaintiff moves for relief from the judgment in this action dismissing this case, stating that

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while he was litigating this action, he was in Centinela State Prison. Now, Plaintiff is housed at the

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Los Angeles County Jail, and contends that he lost his files and case number, and has not responded to

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his case for the past eight months because of a lack of law library access.

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The litigation coordinator at Centinela State Prison declares that Plaintiff was released from

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state custody on September 23, 2016. (ECF No. 54-1 ¶ 3.) Plaintiff did not provide any change of

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address to the Court upon his release. Los Angeles County Sheriff Department booking records show

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that Plaintiff was arrested by the Los Angeles Police Department on October 23, 2016, and booked

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into custody at the Los Angeles County Jail on October 24, 2016. (ECF No. 54-2 at p. 2 ¶ 4, p. 4.) This

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case was then dismissed over four months later, on March 7, 2017. Plaintiff then filed the instant

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motion over three months after his case was dismissed, on June 21, 2017.

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Defendant opposes the motion, arguing that Plaintiff has not demonstrated any excusable

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neglect which would justify any relief from judgment. Defendant argues that Plaintiff’s neglect of this

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case has caused a delay in the proceedings, as nothing has been done on the case for eight months,

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other than the Court’s resources being used to issue numerous orders attempting to have Plaintiff

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resume prosecution of his claim, and eventually to dismiss the case. Defendant has also been

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prevented from engaging in any discovery while Plaintiff’s whereabouts were unknown to Defendant

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and the Court.

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Defendant further argues that Plaintiff allowed many months to pass before updating the Court

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on his whereabouts, which was not due to circumstances beyond his control, but rather appears to be

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due to willful neglect. Therefore, Plaintiff’s motion should be denied.

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A.

Legal Standards

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Rule 60(b) allows the court to relieve a party from an order for “(1) mistake, inadvertence,

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surprise, or excusable neglect; (2) newly discovered evidence that, with reasonable diligence, could

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not have been discovered in time to move for a new trial under Rule 59(b); (3) fraud (whether

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previously called intrinsic or extrinsic), misrepresentation, or misconduct by an opposing party; (4) the

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judgment is void; or (6) any other reason that justifies relief.” Fed. R. Civ. P. 60(b). Rule 60(b)(6) “is
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to be used sparingly as an equitable remedy to prevent manifest injustice and is to be utilized only

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where extraordinary circumstances. . .” exist. Harvest v. Castro, 531 F.3d 737, 749 (9th Cir. 2008)

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(internal quotations marks and citation omitted). The moving party “must demonstrate both injury and

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circumstances beyond his control . . . .” Id. (internal quotation marks and citation omitted).

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B.

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As Plaintiff asserts that he was unable to litigate his case due to issues involving not having his

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case number, files, and a lack of sufficient law library access, the Court finds that he seeks relief from

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the judgment dismissing his case due to excusable neglect, pursuant to Rule 60(b)(1).

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Analysis

When making an “excusable neglect” determination under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure

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60(b)(1), the court must consider “all relevant circumstances,” Pioneer Inv. Servs. Co. v. Brunswick

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Assoc. Ltd. P’ship, 507 U.S. 380, 395, 113 S. Ct. 1489, 123 L.Ed.2d 74 (1993), including “at least

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four factors: (1) the danger of prejudice to the opposing party; (2) the length of the delay and its

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potential impact on the proceedings; (3) the reason for the delay; and (4) whether the movant acted in

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good faith,” Bateman v. U.S. Postal Serv., 231 F.3d 1220, 1223–24 (9th Cir. 2000) (citing Pioneer,

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507 U.S. at 395, 113 S. Ct. 1489).

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Upon considering the relevant factors in this case, the Court finds that they weigh against

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finding any excusable neglect by Plaintiff here. A discovery and scheduling order was issued by the

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Court on October 4, 2016. It now having been over ten months since that date, and no discovery

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having been conducted due to the Court and Defendant having no knowledge of Plaintiff’s

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whereabouts, Defendants face prejudice from the inactivity in this suit, such as stale or possibly lost

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evidence, and witnesses with faded memories. The delay here was of a substantial length, and

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Plaintiff’s reason for the delay does not show a lack of fault.

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As Defendant asserts, although Plaintiff blames his lack of contact with the Court and the

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parties on the loss of his files and lack of law library access while at the Los Angeles County Jail, he

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was nevertheless able to file the instant motion without the file or case number, and he gives no reason

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for waiting many months before attempting to do so or to otherwise contact the Court. Furthermore,

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Plaintiff was out of custody for about a month, and made no efforts to update his address or contact the

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Court during that time either. Instead, the Court expended its limited resources in issuing orders
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attempting to prompt Plaintiff to resume litigating this matter, to no avail. Thus, the Court does not

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find any excusable neglect here, and instead determines that Plaintiff’s motion should be denied.

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III.

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Conclusion and Order
For the reasons explained, it is HEREBY ORDERED that Plaintiff’s motion for relief from

judgment, filed on June 21, 2017 (ECF No. 52) is denied.

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IT IS SO ORDERED.
Dated:

/s/ Lawrence J. O’Neill _____

September 6, 2017

UNITED STATES CHIEF DISTRICT JUDGE

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