Meador v. C.S.P. Dental Annex et al

Filing 35

ORDER signed by Magistrate Judge Edmund F. Brennan on 06/20/11 ordering plaintiff's 11/02/10 request to file documents 22 is granted as provided in this order. Plaintiff's 04/27/11 motion to supplement the motion for a preliminary injunct ion 32 is granted. Plaintiff's 12/20/10 motion for a preliminary injunction 23 is construed as a motion for protective order and, so construed, is denied. Plaintiff's 12/20/10 motion for relief from bond 24 is denied as moot. Plaintiff's 05/11/11 motion to schedule pretrial proceedings 33 is denied. (Plummer, M)

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IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

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FOR THE EASTERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA

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WILLIAM L. MEADOR,

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Plaintiff,

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No. CIV S-10-0860 EFB P

vs.
C.S.P. DENTAL ANNEX, et al.,

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Defendants.

ORDER
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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 before the court are plaintiff’s “Motion to Service Documents During

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Action” (Docket No. 22), motion for preliminary injunction (Docket No. 23) and related motion

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for relief from the bond provisions of Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 65 (Docket No. 24), and

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“motion to schedule pretrial proceedings” (Docket No. 33). For the reasons provided below, the

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court accepts plaintiff’s documentary evidence for filing, but denies plaintiff’s request for a

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preliminary injunction and to schedule pretrial proceedings.

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I.

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“Motion to Service Documents”
Plaintiff has filed a “motion to service documents,” appending 13 pages of documents.

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Dckt. No. 22. He states that he wishes to submit the documents to the court, id. at 1, but it is

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unclear what this evidence is intended to support. Plaintiff indicates that the documents show
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that he exhausted his administrative remedies. Id. at 2. However, currently, no dispositive

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motion is pending to which the attached documents might be relevant. The court will accept the

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documents for filing, but informs plaintiff that, should he rely on the evidence in future briefs, he

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must cite specifically to the docket and page numbers; the court will not scour through the

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exhibits to find evidence supporting plaintiff’s arguments. If plaintiff wishes the exhibits to be a

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part of his complaint, plaintiff must file an amended complaint that includes the exhibits. E.D.

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Cal. L.R. 220 (all pleadings must be complete within themselves and contain all exhibits or

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attachments referred to within the pleading); see Fed. R. Civ. P. 15 (providing procedures for

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amending a pleading).

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II.

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Motion for Preliminary Injunction
In plaintiff’s motion for a preliminary injunction, plaintiff asks the court for an order

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requiring prison officials to transfer him from Solano State Prison, presumably to the California

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Men’s Colony. See Dckt. No. 23 at 8; Dckt. No. 23-1 at 3. Plaintiff claims that mostly

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unidentified prison officials are retaliating against him for his various court actions by searching

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his cell numerous times, moving him to different cells (including one night spent in a cell

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without a functioning toilet), and withholding his legal property. Plaintiff’s complaint, on the

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other hand, levels unrelated allegations against two prison dentists, defendants Crispin and

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Zhang, for deliberately indifferent dental care. Plaintiff has not alleged any action on the part of

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defendants to direct or participate in the alleged retaliation he is suffering. Because the

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allegations of plaintiff’s motion are unrelated to the allegations of the complaint, the motion is

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properly construed as for a protective order rather than a preliminary injunction. See Kaimowitz

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v. Orlando, Fla., 122 F.3d 41, 43 (11th Cir. 1997) (stating that preliminary injunctive relief is

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not appropriate for matters outside the lawsuit’s issues); DeVose v. Harrington, 42 F.3d 470, 471

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(8th Cir. 1994) (per curiam) (same).

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Plaintiff has made an insufficient showing to justify issuance of a protective order here.1

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There is no evidence that plaintiff’s efforts to litigate this case will be hampered unless he is

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transferred from Solano State Prison. While plaintiff’s retaliation allegations may form the basis

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of a different lawsuit, they do not show that plaintiff is currently prevented from effectively

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litigating this suit. If plaintiff is being deprived of access to legal property necessary to the

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litigation of this action, plaintiff may file a new motion for protective order informing the court

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what property is being withheld and why the property is needed to litigate this case. Because the

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court will deny plaintiff’s motion for a preliminary injunction, plaintiff’s related motion to be

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relieved from posting a bond will be denied as moot.

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III.

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Motion to Schedule Pretrial Proceedings
On May 11, 2011, plaintiff filed a brief motion “to schedule pretrial proceedings.” Dckt.

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No. 33. The court issued a discovery and scheduling order governing this case on January 24,

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2011, which remains in effect. Dckt. No. 27. That order provided that the court would schedule

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pretrial proceedings, if necessary, upon the resolution of any pretrial motions filed. Id. at 4. It

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further provided that dispositive motions may be filed until August 5, 2011. Id. After resolution

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of any dispositive motions or expiration of the deadline to bring them the court will set the

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matter for a pretrial conference, if appropriate. As the deadline for filing pretrial motions has not

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yet passed, plaintiff’s motion to schedule pretrial proceedings is premature and will accordingly

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be denied.

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IV.

Order

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Accordingly, it is hereby ORDERED that:

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1. Plaintiff’s November 2, 2010 request to file documents (Docket No. 22) is granted as

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provided in this order;

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The court grants plaintiff’s April 27, 2011 motion to supplement the motion for preliminary
injunctive relief and has considered the materials submitted by plaintiff on that date. Dckt. No. 32.
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2. Plaintiff’s April 27, 2011 motion to supplement the motion for a preliminary

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injunction (Docket No. 32) is granted;
3. Plaintiff’s December 20, 2010 motion for a preliminary injunction (Docket No. 23) is

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construed as a motion for a protective order and, so construed, is denied;

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4. Plaintiff’s December 20, 2010 motion for relief from bond (Docket No. 24) is denied
as moot;

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5. Plaintiff’s May 11, 2011 motion to schedule pretrial proceedings (Docket No. 33) is

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denied.

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Dated: June 20, 2011.

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