Moreno v. Medina et al

Filing 143

ORDER signed by Magistrate Judge Edmund F. Brennan on 8/5/14 ORDERING that plaintiffs requests for a court order compelling prison officials to allow him to review and copy his central file and medical records 138 and 139 are DENIED without prejudice; and Plaintiffs request for an extension of time is granted and plaintiff has 21 days from the date of this order to file his opposition to the currently-pending motion for summary judgment. (Dillon, M)

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UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

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FOR THE EASTERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA

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MARK ANTHONY MORENO,

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No. 2:08-cv-01344 JAM EFB P

Plaintiff,
v.
D. MEDINA, et al.,

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ORDER

Defendants.

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Plaintiff is a state prisoner proceeding without counsel in an action brought under 42

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U.S.C § 1983. Currently pending before the court are two motions filed by plaintiff seeking an

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order compelling prison officials to give him access to his central file and medical records. ECF

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Nos. 138, 139. Plaintiff asks for a 30-day extension of time after he has been provided those

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records to file his opposition to defendant Medina’s currently-pending motion for summary

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judgment.

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Plaintiff alleges that he has unsuccessfully attempted to obtain a review of his records

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because he needs such a review to oppose the summary judgment motion. Plaintiff provides no

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details why he currently needs to review the records in order to oppose the motion, however.

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Plaintiff’s case has been pending before the court since 2008. Discovery closed on September 25,

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2009. ECF No. 36. On July 26, 2010, in response to a court order, defense counsel informed the

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court that plaintiff had reviewed all eight volumes of his medical file. ECF No. 68. Several

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motions for summary judgment have already been adjudicated. ECF Nos. 99, 117.

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Moreover, in the inmate appeal form plaintiff has appended to one of his motions, staff

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responded on May 19, 2014 that plaintiff would be allowed to review his files. ECF No. 139 at 4.

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It is not clear whether that review has occurred. Without any indication of how the requested

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records are necessary to the opposition brief and it appearing that at least some of the records

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have already been provided and others are in the process of being provided, the court will not

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order officials to provide them at this time.

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Plaintiff has already been granted a substantial extension of time to file his opposition

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brief. ECF No. 136. Out of an abundance of caution, the court will grant plaintiff an additional

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21 days from the date of this order to file his opposition. If plaintiff is unable to file an opposition

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within that time, he must request another extension of time. Plaintiff is admonished, however,

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that the court will look upon another request to delay the resolution of the motion with disfavor.

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If plaintiff files another request for an extension, that request must detail the efforts he has made

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toward preparing his opposition brief, what records he seeks that he has not already been

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provided, why those records are relevant to this action, and whether (and when) a review of his

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records has been scheduled as indicated on the inmate appeal form.

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Accordingly, it is hereby ORDERED that:

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1. Plaintiff’s requests for a court order compelling prison officials to allow him to review

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and copy his central file and medical records (ECF Nos. 138 and 139) are denied

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without prejudice; and

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2. Plaintiff’s request for an extension of time is granted and plaintiff has 21 days from

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the date of this order to file his opposition to the currently-pending motion for

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summary judgment.

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DATED: August 5, 2014.

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