Koch v. Young
Filing
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ORDER DISMISSING COMPLAINT WITH LEAVE TO AMEND signed by Magistrate Judge Michael J. Seng on 4/23/2017. First Amended Complaint due within thirty (30) days. (Attachments: # 1 Amended Complaint Form). (Jessen, A)
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UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
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EASTERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA
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ROLAND THOMAS KOCH,
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Plaintiff,
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CASE NO. 1:17-cv-00346-LJO-MJS (PC)
ORDER DISMISSING COMPLAINT WITH
LEAVE TO AMEND
v.
(ECF No. 1)
IAN YOUNG,
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Defendant.
AMENDED COMPLAINT DUE WITHIN
THIRTY (30) DAYS
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Plaintiff is a civil detainee proceeding pro se and in forma pauperis in this civil
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rights action brought pursuant to 42 U.S.C. § 1983. His complaint is before the Court for
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screening. (ECF No. 1.) He has declined Magistrate Judge jurisdiction. (ECF No. 6.) No
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other parties have appeared.
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I.
Screening Requirement
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The in forma pauperis statute provides, “Notwithstanding any filing fee, or any
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portion thereof, that may have been paid, the court shall dismiss the case at any time if
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the court determines that . . . the action or appeal . . . fails to state a claim on which relief
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may be granted.” 28 U.S.C. § 1915(e)(2)(B)(ii).
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II.
Pleading Standard
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Section 1983 “provides a cause of action for the deprivation of any rights,
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privileges, or immunities secured by the Constitution and laws of the United States.”
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Wilder v. Virginia Hosp. Ass’n, 496 U.S. 498, 508 (1990) (quoting 42 U.S.C. § 1983).
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Section 1983 is not itself a source of substantive rights, but merely provides a method for
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vindicating federal rights conferred elsewhere. Graham v. Connor, 490 U.S. 386, 393-94
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(1989).
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To state a claim under § 1983, a plaintiff must allege two essential elements:
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(1) that a right secured by the Constitution or laws of the United States was violated and
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(2) that the alleged violation was committed by a person acting under color of state
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law. See West v. Atkins, 487 U.S. 42, 48 (1988); Ketchum v. Alameda Cty., 811 F.2d
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1243, 1245 (9th Cir. 1987).
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A complaint must contain “a short and plain statement of the claim showing that
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the pleader is entitled to relief . . . .” Fed. R. Civ. P. 8(a)(2). Detailed factual allegations
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are not required, but “[t]hreadbare recitals of the elements of a cause of action,
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supported by mere conclusory statements, do not suffice.” Ashcroft v. Iqbal, 556 U.S.
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662, 678 (2009) (citing Bell Atlantic Corp. v. Twombly, 550 U.S. 544, 555 (2007)).
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Plaintiff must set forth “sufficient factual matter, accepted as true, to state a claim to relief
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that is plausible on its face.” Id. Facial plausibility demands more than the mere
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possibility that a defendant committed misconduct and, while factual allegations are
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accepted as true, legal conclusions are not. Iqbal, at 677-78.
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III.
Plaintiff’s Allegations
Plaintiff is detained at Coalinga State Hospital (“CSH”). He names Unit Supervisor
Ian Young, presumably a CSH employee, as the sole defendant.
Plaintiff’s allegations may be summarized essentially as follows:
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On February 28, 2017, Defendant Young used “illegal physical force” when he
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“twisted” Plaintiff’s arms behind Plaintiff’s back. Plaintiff claims that Defendant Young
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transported Plaintiff to a room Plaintiff “did not want to be in,” and that Defendant is “a
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threat” to Plaintiff. Plaintiff states that he told Defendant to call officers if he believed
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Plaintiff was breaking any rule by sitting on the floor and reading a book. Plaintiff claims
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he spoke to Defendant in a “calm, cool, collected conversational voice/tone.” Plaintiff
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makes no explicit mention of any physical injury in his complaint. Plaintiff also notes that
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a similar incident occurred between him and Defendant on July 26, 2014, but he
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provides no further details about that event.
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Plaintiff seeks injunctive relief, asking the Court to “remove” Defendant Young
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from having “access” to Plaintiff. Plaintiff also asks the Court to arrest Defendant Young,
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claiming that “the officers and administration here cannot or will not restrain him.”
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IV.
Discussion
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Plaintiff brings an excessive force claim and a request for injunctive relief before
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this Court. The Court dismisses the excessive force claim with leave to amend and
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denies without prejudice Plaintiff’s request for injunctive relief.
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A. Excessive Force
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Plaintiff does not specifically state his intent to bring an excessive force claim. He
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does, however, state that Defendant Young used “illegal physical force” against him.
The
Fourteenth
Amendment
provides
the
standard
for
evaluating
the
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constitutionally protected interests of individuals who have been involuntarily committed
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to a state facility. See Rivera v. Rogers, 224 Fed. Appx. 148, 150-51 (3d Cir. 2007);
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Youngberg v. Romeo, 457 U.S. 307, 312 (1982). Such individuals are “entitled to more
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considerate treatment and conditions of confinement than criminals whose conditions of
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confinement are designed to punish.” Youngberg, 457 U.S. at 321-22. In determining
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whether the constitutional rights of an involuntarily committed individual have been
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violated, the Court must balance the individual’s liberty interests against the relevant
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state
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professionals. Id. at 320-22.
interests, with deference
given to
the
judgment exercised by qualified
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The Fourteenth Amendment’s Due Process clause protects Plaintiff from “the use
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of excessive force that amounts to punishment.” Gibson v. Cty. of Washoe, Nev., 290
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F.3d 1175, 1197 (9th Cir. 2002) (overruled on other grounds by Castro v. Cty. of Los
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Angeles, 833 F.3d 1060, 1076 (9th Cir. 2016)); see also Bell v. Wolfish, 441 U.S. 520,
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535 (1979) (noting that civilly committed persons may not be subjected to conditions
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amounting to punishment). Claims of excessive force by detainees are analyzed under
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the “objective reasonableness” standard, which requires an evaluation of whether the
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officer’s actions are objectively reasonable in light of the facts and circumstances
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confronting him, regardless of the officer’s underlying intent or motive. Kingsley v.
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Hendrickson, 135 S. Ct. 2466, 2472-73 (2015). In applying this standard, “a court must
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also account for the legitimate interests that stem from the government’s need to
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manage the facility in which the individual is detained, appropriately deferring to policies
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and practices that in the judgment of [staff] are needed to preserve internal order and
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discipline and to maintain institutional security.” Kingsley, 135 S. Ct. at 2473 (internal
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quotation marks and brackets omitted) (quoting Bell, 441 U.S. at 540). Courts may
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examine a variety of factors to determine whether the force used was objectively
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unreasonable, including but not limited to: the relationship between the need for the use
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of force and the amount of force used, the extent of the detainee’s injury, the threat
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reasonably perceived by the officer, and whether the detainee was actively resisting.
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Kingsley, 135 S. Ct. at 2473.
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“Considerations such as the following may bear on the reasonableness or
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unreasonableness of the force used: the relationship between the need for the use of
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force and the amount of force used; the extent of the plaintiff’s injury; any effort made by
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the officer to temper or to limit the amount of force; the severity of the security problem at
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issue; the threat reasonably perceived by the officer; and whether the plaintiff was
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actively resisting.” Id.
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Here, Plaintiff has not alleged sufficient facts to give rise to a cognizable claim.
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Although civil detainees are protected from the use of excessive force amounting to
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punishment, the facts as alleged here do not rise to such a level. Plaintiff alleges
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Defendant Young “twisted” Plaintiff’s arms behind his back (presumably in an effort to
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move Plaintiff, against his will, from the floor where Plaintiff was reading a book). Without
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more, such facts do not sufficiently plead a cognizable excessive force claim under the
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Fourteenth Amendment. Plaintiff does not describe the events leading up to and
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surrounding the use of force.
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Young’s conduct may have been necessary to maintain discipline and security.
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Additionally, the allegations suggest that the amount of force was minimal, and Plaintiff
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does not allege any injury resulting from the incident.
Without more, Plaintiff’s allegations are insufficient to state a claim on which relief
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As a result, the Court cannot determine if Defendant
may be granted. Plaintiff’s claim will be dismissed with leave to amend.
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B. Preliminary Injunction
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Plaintiff asks the Court to provide injunctive relief and “remove” Defendant from
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having “access” to Plaintiff and to “arrest” Defendant. Although unclear from the
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complaint, the Court construes this as a request for preliminary injunctive relief.
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Injunctive relief is an “extraordinary remedy never awarded as of right.” Winter v.
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Natural Res. Def. Council, 555 U.S. 7, 22 (2008). “A plaintiff seeking a preliminary
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injunction must establish that he is likely to succeed on the merits, that he is likely to
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suffer irreparable harm in the absence of preliminary relief, that the balance of equities
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tips in his favor, and that an injunction is in the public interest.” Am. Trucking Ass’ns, Inc.
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v. City of Los Angeles, 559 F.3d 1046, 1052 (9th Cir. 2009) (quoting Winter, 555 U.S. at
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At this stage of the proceedings, Plaintiff is not entitled to preliminary injunctive
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relief. As discussed above, Plaintiff’s excessive force claim fails to rise to a cognizable
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claim. Thus, Plaintiff has not shown that he is likely to succeed on the merits.
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Accordingly, Plaintiff’s request for injunctive relief will be denied without prejudice.
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V.
Conclusion and Order
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Plaintiff’s complaint fails to state a claim on which relief may be granted. The
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Court will grant Plaintiff an opportunity to file an amended complaint. Noll v. Carlson, 809
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F.2d 1446, 1448-49 (9th Cir. 1987). Plaintiff should note that although he has been
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granted the opportunity to amend his complaint, it is not for the purposes of adding new
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claims. George v. Smith, 507 F.3d 605, 607 (7th Cir. 2007). Plaintiff should carefully
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review this screening order and focus his efforts on curing the deficiencies set forth
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above.
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Finally, Plaintiff is advised that Local Rule 220 requires that an amended
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complaint be complete in itself without reference to any prior pleading. As a general rule,
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an amended complaint supersedes the original complaint. See Loux v. Rhay, 375 F.2d
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55, 57 (9th Cir. 1967). Once an amended complaint is filed, the original complaint no
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longer serves a function in the case. Id. Thus, in an amended complaint, as in an original
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complaint, each claim and the involvement of each defendant must be sufficiently
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alleged. The amended complaint should be clearly titled, in bold font, “First Amended
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Complaint,” reference the appropriate case number, and be an original signed under
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penalty of perjury. Plaintiff’s amended complaint should be brief. Fed. R. Civ. P. 8(a).
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Although accepted as true, the “[f]actual allegations must be [sufficient] to raise a right to
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relief above the speculative level . . . .” Twombly, 550 U.S. at 555 (citations omitted).
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Accordingly, it is HEREBY ORDERED that:
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1. Plaintiff’s request for preliminary injunctive relief is denied without prejudice;
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2. Plaintiff’s complaint is dismissed for failure to state a claim on which relief may
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be granted;
3. The Clerk’s Office shall send Plaintiff a blank civil rights complaint form and a
copy of his complaint, filed March 9, 2017;
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4. Within thirty (30) days from the date of service of this order, Plaintiff must file a
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first amended complaint curing the deficiencies identified by the Court in this
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order or a notice of voluntary dismissal; and
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5. If Plaintiff fails to file an amended complaint or notice of voluntary dismissal,
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the undersigned will recommend the action be dismissed, with prejudice, for
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failure to comply with a court order and failure to state a claim.
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IT IS SO ORDERED.
Dated:
April 23, 2017
/s/
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Michael J. Seng
UNITED STATES MAGISTRATE JUDGE
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