Caputo v. Kern County Sheriff's Office

Filing 28

ORDER DENYING Plaintiff's Motion for a Preliminary Injunction 27 , signed by Magistrate Judge Erica P. Grosjean on 1/17/2017. (Hellings, J)

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UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

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EASTERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA

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BRIAN CAPUTO,

ORDER DENYING PLAINTIFF’S MOTION
FOR A PRELIMINARY INJUNCTION
(ECF NO. 27)

Plaintiff,

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v.

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1:15-cv-01008-EPG (PC)

KERN COUNTY SHERIFF’S OFFICE, et
al.,

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Defendants.

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I.

BACKGROUND

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Brian Caputo (“Plaintiff”) is a prisoner proceeding pro se and in forma pauperis in this

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civil rights action filed pursuant to 42 U.S.C. ' 1983. Plaintiff filed a first amended complaint

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on September 19, 2016.

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complaint on October 28, 2016. (ECF No. 20). Noticing that all three complaints appeared to

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cover different underlying events and claims, on November 18, 2016, the Court ordered

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Plaintiff to file an amended complaint or notify the Court that he wants the Court to screen his

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second amended complaint. (ECF No. 23). The Court is awaiting a response to that order.

(ECF No. 7).

Plaintiff subsequently filed a second amended

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In the meantime Plaintiff has filed a motion that the Court construes as a motion for a

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preliminary injunction. (ECF No. 27). According to Plaintiff, a deputy has been harassing and

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threatening Plaintiff for over two weeks. Plaintiff asks for a restraining order against the

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deputy, or an order requiring the facility to have the deputy stop harassing and threatening

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Plaintiff.

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“A plaintiff seeking a preliminary injunction must establish that he is likely to succeed

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on the merits and to suffer irreparable harm in the absence of preliminary relief, that the
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balance of equities tips in his favor, and that an injunction is in the public interest.” Winter v.

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Natural Resources Defense Council, Inc., 555 U.S. 7, 20 (2008) (citations omitted).

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preliminary injunction is an extraordinary remedy never awarded as a matter of right. In each

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case, courts must balance the competing claims of injury and must consider the effect on each

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party of the granting or withholding of the requested relief. In exercising their sound discretion,

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courts of equity should pay particular regard for the public consequences in employing the

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extraordinary remedy of injunction.”

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injunction may only be awarded upon a clear showing that the plaintiff is entitled to such relief.

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Id. at 22.

Id. at 24 (citations and quotations omitted).

“A

An

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Additionally, a federal district court may issue emergency injunctive relief only if it has

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personal jurisdiction over the parties and subject matter jurisdiction over the lawsuit. See

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Murphy Bros., Inc. v. Michetti Pipe Stringing, Inc., 526 U.S. 344, 350 (1999) (noting that one

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“becomes a party officially, and is required to take action in that capacity, only upon service of

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summons or other authority-asserting measure stating the time within which the party served

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must appear to defend.”). The court may not attempt to determine the rights of persons not

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before it. See, e.g., Hitchman Coal & Coke Co. v. Mitchell, 245 U.S. 229, 234-35 (1916);

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Zepeda v. INS, 753 F.2d 719, 727-28 (9th Cir. 1983); see also Califano v. Yamasaki, 442 U.S.

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682, 702 (1979) (injunctive relief must be “narrowly tailored to give only the relief to which

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plaintiffs are entitled”). Under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 65(d)(2), an injunction binds

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only “the parties to the action,” their “officers, agents, servants, employees, and attorneys,” and

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“other persons who are in active concert or participation.” Fed. R. Civ. P. 65(d)(2)(A)-(C).

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Requests for prospective relief are further limited by 18 U.S.C. § 3626 (a)(1)(A) of the

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Prison Litigation Reform Act, which requires that the Court find that the “relief [sought] is

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narrowly drawn, extends no further than necessary to correct the violation of the Federal Right,

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and is the least intrusive means necessary to correct the violation of the Federal Right.”

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Legally, Plaintiff’s request is premature. Plaintiff’s complaint still awaits screening, in

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part because Plaintiff has submitted three different complaints and has not responded to the

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Court’s request for direction. Until the Court has determined that Plaintiff has a valid claim,
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the Court lacks jurisdiction to order an emergency injunction.

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Furthermore, because Plaintiff has been transferred, it appears that the Court does not

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have jurisdiction over the deputy Plaintiff is complaining about, and will not get jurisdiction

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over that deputy in this case. This case involves incidents that occurred at Kern County Jail.

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However, in this motion Plaintiff is complaining about an incident that occurred at USP

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Lompoc (according to a notice of change of address filed on December 23, 2016, Plaintiff is

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now located at USP Lompoc (ECF No. 25)), and that has no relation to this case. If Plaintiff

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believes that he has a claim against the deputy at USP Lompoc, Plaintiff will need to file a new

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case against that deputy. That case will proceed in due course.

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Plaintiff cannot bypass the normal court procedure by filing letters to the Court

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whenever issues arise in his incarceration. If Plaintiff believes his rights are violated in a way

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that requires intervention by this federal court, he must file a formal complaint, which will be

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screened by the Court and served on defendants in due course for further proceedings. The

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Court reserves its right not to respond to letters to the Court discussing events that are not

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contained within formal complaints and proper motions.

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In accordance with the above, IT IS HEREBY ORDERED that Plaintiff’s motion for a
preliminary injunction (ECF No. 27) is DENIED.

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IT IS SO ORDERED.
Dated:

January 17, 2017

/s/
UNITED STATES MAGISTRATE JUDGE

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