Smith v. Weiss et al

Filing 44

ORDER GRANTING 43 Defendants' Motion to Modify Discovery and Scheduling Order Deadlines signed by Magistrate Judge Barbara A. McAuliffe on 4/22/2020. Discovery Deadline Reset to 7/29/2020. Dispositive Motion Deadline Reset to 9/29/2020. (Rivera, O)

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UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

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EASTERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA

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LAWRENCE CHRISTOPHER SMITH,

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Plaintiff,

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v.
WEISS, et al.,

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Case No. 1:18-cv-00852-NONE-BAM (PC)
ORDER GRANTING DEFENDANTS’
MOTION TO MODIFY DISCOVERY AND
SCHEDULING ORDER DEADLINES
(ECF No. 43)

Defendants.

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Discovery Deadline: July 29, 2020
Dispositive Motion Deadline: September 29,
2020

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Plaintiff Lawrence Christopher Smith (“Plaintiff”) is a state prisoner proceeding pro se

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and in forma pauperis in this civil rights action pursuant to 42 U.S.C. § 1983. This action

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proceeds against Defendants Weiss, Hurtado, and Zavleta for the excessive force incident of

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November 15, 2013, in violation of the Eighth Amendment.
The Court issued a discovery and scheduling order on July 15, 2019. (ECF No. 21.) On

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August 29, 2019, Plaintiff filed a motion for a protective order to quash his video deposition.

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(ECF No. 23.) On March 2, 2020, the Court denied the motion and directed the parties to meet

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and confer, and agree on a date for Plaintiff’s deposition, to be taken on or before April 30, 2020.

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The discovery deadline was extended to April 30, 2020, and the dispositive motion was extended

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to July 1, 2020. (ECF No. 38.)

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On March 30, 2020, Plaintiff filed a motion for reconsideration of the March 2, 2020

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order, and a renewed motion for protective order to quash or stay his deposition pending the

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Court’s resolution of his motion for reconsideration. (ECF No. 41.) The motion was denied by

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the District Judge on April 3, 2020, and the deadline for the taking of Plaintiff’s deposition

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remained April 30, 2020. (ECF No. 42.)
Currently before the Court is Defendants’ motion to modify the discovery and scheduling

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order deadlines, filed April 13, 2020. (ECF No. 43.) Defendants state that while they diligently

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attempted to comply with the existing deadlines by noticing Plaintiff’s deposition for April 16,

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2020, due to the COVID-19 outbreak the deposition can no longer move forward as planned.

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Defense counsel has been unable to locate a court reporter willing to accommodate the deposition

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on prison grounds, and CDCR has reported that legal visits and even phone calls are being limited

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to urgent matters only. Finally, due to circumstances arising from the COVID-19 crisis, defense

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counsel expects to take an extended leave of absence through mid-June 2020. Defendants

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therefore request a 90-day extension of the deadline to depose Plaintiff and to file any dispositive

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motions, to July 29, 2020 and September 29, 2020, respectively. (Id.)

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Plaintiff has not yet had an opportunity to file a response, but the Court finds a response is
unnecessary. The motion is deemed submitted. Local Rule 230(l).

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Having considered the request, the Court finds good cause to grant the requested

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extensions of the discovery and dispositive motion deadlines. Fed. R. Civ. P. 16(b)(4).

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Defendants have worked diligently to meet the deadlines set by the Court for taking Plaintiff’s

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deposition and filing dispositive motions, but those deadlines are no longer feasible due to the

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circumstances surrounding the COVID-19 outbreak. The Court finds that Plaintiff will not be

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prejudiced by the extension granted here.

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IV.

Conclusion and Order

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For the reasons stated above, IT IS HEREBY ORDERED as follows:

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1. Defendants’ motion to modify discovery and scheduling order deadlines, (ECF No.

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43), is GRANTED;
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2. The Discovery Deadline is extended from April 30, 2020 to July 29, 2020; and

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3. The Dispositive Motion Deadline is extended from July 1, 2020 to September 29,

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2020.

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IT IS SO ORDERED.
Dated:

/s/ Barbara

April 22, 2020

A. McAuliffe

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UNITED STATES MAGISTRATE JUDGE

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