(PC)Valdez v. California Department of Corrections & Rehabilitation et al

Filing 21

ORDER Discharging 19 Order to Show Cause signed by Magistrate Judge Helena M. Barch-Kuchta on 03/26/2024.(Flores, E)

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UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

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EASTERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA

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JORGE LUIS VALDEZ,

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Plaintiff,

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Case No. 1:23-cv-01729-HBK (PC)
ORDER DISCHARGING ORDER TO SHOW
CAUSE

v.
(Doc. No. 19)
CDCR, et al.,

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Defendants.

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Currently before the Court is Plaintiff’s response, filed February 29, 2024, to the Court’s

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February 8, 2024 order to show cause why Plaintiff’s Complaint should not be dismissed for

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failure to exhaust administrative remedies. (Doc. No. 8). In his response, Plaintiff acknowledges

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that the face of his Complaint indicates he did not exhaust his administrative remedies, but

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attributes this to Defendants “divert[ing] [his grievances] due to this lawsuit being against them.”

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(Id. at 1). Further, the response asserts that “Plaintiff’s life and safety has been placed in jeopardy

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with retaliation. Therefore, I plaintiff reconsidered any further filing of grievances.” (Id.).

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Liberally construed, Plaintiff appears to contend that the grievance process was unavailable to

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him.
Considering Plaintiff’s averments, the Court will discharge the order to show cause.1 The

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The Court’s discharge of the order to show cause should not be implied as a ruling on the exhaustion
issue. A prisoner need not plead or prove exhaustion. Instead, it is an affirmative defense that must be
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Court will screen Plaintiff’s pending Complaint in due course.

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Accordingly, it is hereby ORDERED:

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1. The February 8, 2024 Order to Show Cause, (Doc. No. 19), is DISCHARGED.

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2. The Court will screen Plaintiff’s Complaint in due course.

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Dated:

March 26, 2024
HELENA M. BARCH-KUCHTA
UNITED STATES MAGISTRATE JUDGE

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proved by defendant. Jones v. Bock, 549 U.S. 199, 211 (2007). A prison’s internal grievance process, not
the PLRA, determines whether the grievance satisfies the PLRA exhaustion requirement. Id. at 218.

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