Kabede v. Pleasant Valley State Prison Warden, et al.

Filing 21

ORDER DISMISSING CASE for Failure to Obey a Court Order; Failure to State a Claim and Failure to Prosecute as to 20 , signed by Magistrate Judge Barbara A. McAuliffe on 09/16/15. CASE CLOSED (Martin-Gill, S)

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UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

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EASTERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA

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WONDIYRAD KABEDE,

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Plaintiff,
v.
PLEASANT VALLEY STATE PRISON
WARDEN, et al.,
Defendants.

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1:15-cv-00635-BAM (PC)
ORDER DISMISSING ACTION FOR
FAILURE TO OBEY A COURT ORDER,
FAILURE TO STATE A CLAIM, AND
FAILURE TO PROSECUTE
(ECF No. 20)

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Plaintiff Wondiyrad Kabede (“Plaintiff”), a state prisoner proceeding pro se in this civil

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rights action pursuant to 42 U.S.C. § 1983, initiated this action on August 13, 2013. (ECF No. 1.)

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On April 21, 2015, Plaintiff filed a complaint, (ECF No. 14), and on April 24, 2015, this action

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was subsequently transferred to this district, (ECF No. 13). On July 6, 2015, Plaintiff consented

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to the jurisdiction of a Magistrate Judge. (ECF No. 19.)

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On August 3, 2015, the Court dismissed Plaintiff’s complaint with leave to amend within

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thirty days. (ECF No. 20.) The deadline for Plaintiff to file his amended complaint has passed,

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and he has not complied with the Court’s order.

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Local Rule 110 provides that “[f]ailure . . . of a party to comply with these Rules or with

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any order of the Court may be grounds for imposition by the Court of any and all sanctions . . .

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within the inherent power of the Court.” District courts have the inherent power to control their

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dockets and “[i]n the exercise of that power they may impose sanctions including, where

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appropriate, . . . dismissal.” Thompson v. Housing Auth., 782 F.2d 829, 831 (9th Cir. 1986). A
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court may dismiss an action, with prejudice, based on a party’s failure to prosecute an action,

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failure to obey a court order, or failure to comply with local rules. See, e.g., Ghazali v. Moran,

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46 F.3d 52, 53-54 (9th Cir. 1995) (dismissal for noncompliance with local rule); Ferdik v.

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Bonzelet, 963 F.2d 1258, 1260-61 (9th Cir. 1992) (dismissal for failure to comply with an order

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requiring amendment of complaint); Malone v. U.S. Postal Service, 833 F.2d 128, 130-33 (9th

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Cir. 1987) (dismissal for failure to comply with court order).

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In determining whether to dismiss an action, the Court must consider several factors: (1)

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the public’s interest in expeditious resolution of litigation; (2) the Court’s need to manage its

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docket; (3) the risk of prejudice to the defendants; (4) the public policy favoring disposition of

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cases on their merits; and (5) the availability of less drastic sanctions. Henderson v. Duncan, 779

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F.2d 1421, 1423 (9th Cir. 1986); Carey v. King, 856 F.2d 1439 (9th Cir. 1988).

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The Court finds that 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. This action has been

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pending since August 2013. Plaintiff has made no attempt to contact the Court or otherwise

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comply with the Court’s August 3, 2015 order. The Court cannot hold this case in abeyance

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awaiting such compliance by Plaintiff. The third factor, risk of prejudice to defendant, also

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weighs in favor of dismissal, since a presumption of injury arises from the occurrence of

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unreasonable delay in prosecuting an action. Anderson v. Air West, 542 F.2d 522, 524 (9th Cir.

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1976). The fourth factor—public policy favoring disposition of cases on their merits—is greatly

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outweighed by the factors in favor of dismissal discussed herein. Finally, the court’s warning to a

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party that failure to obey the court’s order will result in dismissal satisfies the “considerations of

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the alternatives” requirement. Ferdik, 963 F.2d at 1262; Malone, 833 at 132-133; Henderson, 779

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F.2d at 1424. The Court’s August 3, 2015 order granting Plaintiff leave to amend his complaint

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expressly stated, “If Plaintiff fails to comply with this order, the Court will dismiss this action for

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failure to obey a court order and for failure to state a claim.” (ECF No. 20, p. 6.) Thus, Plaintiff

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had adequate warning that dismissal could result from his noncompliance with the Court’s order.

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Accordingly, pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1915A and 28 U.S.C. § 1915(e)(2)(B)(ii), this

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action is HEREBY DISMISSED based on Plaintiff’s failure to state any claims upon which relief
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may be granted, failure to obey a court order, and failure to prosecute. All pending motions, if

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any, are terminated.

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IT IS SO ORDERED.

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Dated:

/s/ Barbara

September 16, 2015

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A. McAuliffe

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UNITED STATES MAGISTRATE JUDGE

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