Peterson v. Bakersfield Police Department et al
Filing
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ORDER Directing The Clerk Of Court To Assign A United States District Judge To The Action, FINDINGS And RECOMMENDATIONS Dimissing The Action Without Prejudice, signed by Magistrate Judge Jennifer L. Thurston on 9/30/2015. This case has been assigned to U.S. District Judge Lawrence J. O'Neill; the new case number is 1:14-cv-01114-LJO-JLT. F&R's referred to Judge Lawrence J. O'Neill;Objections to F&R due by 10/19/2015. (Fahrney, E)
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UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
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EASTERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA
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ERIN LYNN PETERSON,
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Plaintiff,
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v.
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BAKERSFIELD POLICE DEPT., et al.,
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Defendants.
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Case No.: 1:14-cv-01114-----JLT
ORDER DIRECTING THE CLERK OF COURT TO
ASSIGN A UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE
TO THE ACTION
FINDINGS AND RECOMMENDATIONS
DISMISSING THE ACTION WITHOUT
PREJUDICE
Plaintiff Erin Lynn Peterson initiated this action by filing a complaint on July 14, 2014, alleging
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violations of his civil rights by officers of the Bakersfield Police Department. Because Plaintiff has
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failed to comply with the Local Rules and failed to prosecute this action, the Court recommends the
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matter be DISMISSED without prejudice.
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I.
Background
The Court issued its “New Case Documents” on July 1, 2015, which were returned to the Court
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as undeliverable with the notation “Unable to I.D. - Prison Number Required.” The Clerk’s Office
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updated Plaintiff’s address to include his identification number on July 15, 2015, and re-served the
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New Case Documents. The documents were again returned as undeliverable on July 27, 2015, because
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Plaintiff had been paroled. To date, Plaintiff’s forwarding address remains unknown, and he has not
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filed a “Notice of Change of Address” with the Court.
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///
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II.
Requirements of the Local Rules
Pursuant to Local Rule 183(b), a party appearing in propria persona is required to keep the
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Court apprised of his current address: “If mail directed to a plaintiff in propria persona by the Clerk is
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returned by the U.S. Postal Service, and if such plaintiff fails to notify the Court and opposing parties
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within sixty-three (63) days thereafter of a current address, the Court may dismiss the action without
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prejudice for failure to prosecute.” LR 183(b). Because more than 63 days have passed since the
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document was returned as undeliverable and he has not notified the Court of her current address, he
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has failed to comply with the Local Rules.
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III.
Discussion and Analysis
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“District courts have inherent power to control their dockets,” and in exercising that power, a
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court may impose sanctions including dismissal of an action. Thompson v. Housing Authority of Los
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Angeles, 782 F.2d 829, 831 (9th Cir. 1986). A court may dismiss an action with prejudice, based on a
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party’s failure to prosecute an action or failure to obey a court order, or failure to comply with local
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rules. See, e.g., Ghazali v. Moran, 46 F.3d 52, 53-54 (9th Cir. 2995) (dismissal for failure to comply
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with local rules); Ferdik v. Bonzelet, 963 F.2d 1258, 1260-61 (9th Cir. 1992) (dismissal for failure to
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comply with an order requiring amendment of complaint); Henderson v. Duncan, 779 F.2d 1421, 1424
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(9th Cir. 1986) (dismissal for failure to prosecute and to comply with local rules).
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In determining whether to dismiss an action for failure to prosecute, failure to comply with the
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Local Rules, or failure to obey a court order, the Court must consider several factors, including: “(1)
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the public’s interest in expeditious resolution of litigation; (2) the court’s need to manage its docket;
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(3) the risk of prejudice to the defendants; (4) the public policy favoring disposition of cases on their
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merits; and (5) the availability of less drastic sanctions.” Henderson, 779 F.2d at 1423-24; see also
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Ferdik, 963 F.2d at 1260-61; Thompson, 782 F.2d at 831.
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In the case at hand, the public’s interest in expeditiously resolving this litigation and the
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Court’s interest in managing the docket weigh in favor of dismissal. See Yourish v. Cal. Amplifier,
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191 F.3d 983, 990 (9th Cir. 1999) (“The public’s interest in expeditious resolution of litigation always
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favors dismissal”); Ferdik, 963 F.2d at 1261 (recognizing that district courts have inherent interest in
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managing their dockets without being subject to noncompliant litigants). Judges in the Eastern
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District of California carry the heaviest caseload in the nation, and this Court cannot, and will not
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hold, this action in abeyance based upon Plaintiff’s failure to prosecute or notify the Court of a change
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in address. Further, the policy favoring disposition of cases on their merits is outweighed by the
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factors in favor of dismissal. No lesser sanction is feasible given the Court’s inability to communicate
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with Plaintiff.
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IV.
Order
Good cause appearing IT IS HEREBY ORDERED that the Clerk of Court is DIRECTED to
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assign a United States District Judge to this action.
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V.
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Findings and Recommendations
Plaintiff has failed to follow the requirements of the Local Rules or to prosecute this action.
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As set forth above, the factors set forth by the Ninth Circuit weigh in favor of dismissal of the matter.
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Accordingly, the Court RECOMMENDS:
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This action be DISMISSED WITHOUT PREJUDICE; and
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The Clerk of Court be directed to close this action.
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These Findings and Recommendations are submitted to the United States District Judge
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assigned to the case, pursuant to the provisions of 28 U.S.C. § 636(b)(1)(B) and Rule 304 of the Local
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Rules of Practice for the United States District Court, Eastern District of California. Within fourteen
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days after being served with these Findings and Recommendations, Plaintiff may file written objections
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with the court. Such a document should be captioned “Objections to Magistrate Judge’s Findings and
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Recommendations.” Plaintiff is advised that failure to file objections within the specified time may
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waive the right to appeal the District Court’s order. Martinez v. Ylst, 951 F.2d 1153 (9th Cir. 1991);
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Wilkerson v. Wheeler, 772 F.3d 834, 834 (9th Cir. 2014).
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IT IS SO ORDERED.
Dated:
September 30, 2015
/s/ Jennifer L. Thurston
UNITED STATES MAGISTRATE JUDGE
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