Williams v. Hill et al
Filing
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FINDINGS and RECOMMENDATIONS, Recommending That Plaintiff's Motion for Preliminary Injunction Be Denied 35 , signed by Magistrate Judge Erica P. Grosjean on 5/18/2018: 21-Day Deadline. (Hellings, J)
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UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
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EASTERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA
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Case No. 1:16-cv-00540-LJO-EPG (PC)
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BRETT LEE WILLIAMS,
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Plaintiff,
FINDINGS AND RECOMMENDATIONS,
RECOMMENDING THAT PLAINTIFF’S
MOTION FOR PRELIMINARY INJUNCTION
BE DENIED
(ECF NO. 35)
Defendants.
OBJECTIONS, IF ANY, DUE WITHIN
TWENTY-ONE DAYS
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v.
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T. E. HILL, et al.,
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Brett Williams (“Plaintiff”) is a state prisoner proceeding pro se in this civil rights action
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filed pursuant to 42 U.S.C. § 1983. On May 17, 2018, Plaintiff filed a motion for a preliminary
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injunction (“the Motion”). (ECF No. 35).
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I.
THE MOTION
According to the Motion, “Folsom State Prison defendants since 2013 have used fraud
to conceal the July 21, 2010 consult diagnosising [sic] obstructive sleep anpea [sic] (OSA)….”
“Another example of fraud through omission is for the diagnosed diastolic dysfunction of
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plaintiff’s mitral valves regurgitations.”
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information from Plaintiff’s progress notes. Dr. Cacho intentionally omitted Dr. Olowoeye’s
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diagnosis of diastolic dysfunction due to mitral valve regurgitation. Instead of providing the
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correct diagnosis, Dr. Cacho “used easy fatigue which is associated mitral valve regurgitation and
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impairment to deceive plaintiff.”
Defendants Lee and Penmetcha omitted relevant
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Plaintiff alleges that the fraud was committed to deny him necessary medical care.
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Plaintiff alleges that, due to this conduct, Defendants will alter his medical records. Plaintiff also
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alleges that there is a system wide practice of “retaliatory medical records.”
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Plaintiff asks for a preliminary injunction to “protect the already submitted evidence source date
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within the defendants’ possession from imminent threat of destruction or alteration.”
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II.
Accordingly,
LEGAL STANDARDS
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A federal district court may issue emergency injunctive relief only if it has personal
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jurisdiction over the parties and subject matter jurisdiction over the lawsuit. See Murphy Bros.,
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Inc. v. Michetti Pipe Stringing, Inc., 526 U.S. 344, 350 (1999) (noting that one “becomes a party
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officially, and is required to take action in that capacity, only upon service of summons or other
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authority-asserting measure stating the time within which the party served must appear to
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defend.”). The court may not attempt to determine the rights of persons not before it. See, e.g.,
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Hitchman Coal & Coke Co. v. Mitchell, 245 U.S. 229, 234-35 (1916); Zepeda v. INS, 753 F.2d
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719, 727-28 (9th Cir. 1983); see also Califano v. Yamasaki, 442 U.S. 682, 702 (1979) (injunctive
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relief must be “narrowly tailored to give only the relief to which plaintiffs are entitled”). Under
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Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 65(d)(2), an injunction binds only “the parties to the action,”
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their “officers, agents, servants, employees, and attorneys,” and “other persons who are in active
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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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On the merits, “[a] plaintiff seeking a preliminary injunction must establish that he is
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likely to succeed on the merits, that he is likely to suffer irreparable harm in the absence of
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preliminary relief, that the balance of equities tips in his favor, and that an injunction is in the
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public interest.” Glossip v. Gross, 135 S. Ct. 2726, 2736-37 (2015) (quoting Winter v. Natural
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Res. Def. Council, Inc., 555 U.S. 7, 20 (2008)). “Under Winter, plaintiffs must establish that
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irreparable harm is likely, not just possible, in order to obtain a preliminary injunction.” Alliance
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for the Wild Rockies v. Cottrell, 632 F.3d 1127, 1131 (9th Cir. 2011).
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III.
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ANALYSIS
The Court will recommend that the Motion be denied because he has not established that
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irreparable harm is likely.
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Defendants from altering or destroying Plaintiff’s medical records. However, even if Plaintiff’s
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allegations regarding certain Defendants omitting things from his medical record and misleading
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Plaintiff regarding a diagnosis are true, it does not appear that any of the defendants have actually
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destroyed or altered any of Plaintiff’s existing medical records. Plaintiff complains about “fraud
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through omission,” not the destruction or alteration of existing medical records. He has also not
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put forth any evidence that suggests that Defendants will begin destroying or altering medical
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records in the future.
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IV.
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It appears that Plaintiff is asking for an injunction to prevent
CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATION
As Plaintiff has failed to show a likelihood of irreparable harm, the Motion should be
denied.
Accordingly, based on the foregoing, IT IS HEREBY RECOMMENDED that
Plaintiff’s motion for a preliminary injunction be DENIED.
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These findings and recommendations will be submitted to the United States district judge
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assigned to the case, pursuant to the provisions of Title 28 U.S.C. § 636(b)(l). Within twenty-one
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(21) days after being served with these findings and recommendations, Plaintiff may file written
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objections with the Court. The document should be captioned “Objections to Magistrate Judge’s
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Findings and Recommendations.” Plaintiff is advised that failure to file objections within the
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specified time may result in the waiver of rights on appeal. Wilkerson v. Wheeler, 772 F.3d 834,
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838-39 (9th Cir. 2014) (citing Baxter v. Sullivan, 923 F.2d 1391, 1394 (9th Cir. 1991)).
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IT IS SO ORDERED.
Dated:
May 18, 2018
/s/
UNITED STATES MAGISTRATE JUDGE
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