Hardin v. Solano State Prison, et al

Filing 58

RELATED CASE ORDER signed by Magistrate Judge Kendall J. Newman on 12/11/2014 REASSIGNING the action denominated as 2:14-cv-1796 KJN to Magistrate Judge Edmund F. Brennan. (Yin, K)

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UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

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FOR THE EASTERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA

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KEVIN HOSEA HARDIN,

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Plaintiff,

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No. 2:10-cv-1133 KJM EFB P

v.
KAREN LATIMER, et al.,

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Defendants.

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KEVIN HOSEA HARDIN,
Plaintiff,

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No. 2:14-cv-1796 KJN P

v.
REGINALD GOWAN, et al.,
Defendants.

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Plaintiff is a state prisoner proceeding without counsel. In Case No. 2:14-cv-1796,

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plaintiff consented to proceed before a magistrate judge for all purposes. See 28 U.S.C. § 636(c).

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The operative complaints in these actions are essentially identical, aside from the Northern

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District’s complaint form appended to the beginning of the complaint filed in Case No. 2:14-cv-

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1796. (Compare id., ECF No. 5 at 5-12 with 2:10-cv-1133, ECF No. 18 at 1-9.) On March 31,

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2014, Case No. 10-cv-1133 was dismissed without prejudice based on plaintiff’s failure to timely

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file a pretrial statement. Given the duplicative nature of plaintiff’s allegations, it may be

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appropriate to construe plaintiff’s filing in Case No. 2:14-cv-1796 as a motion to set aside the

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judgment in 2:10-cv-1133 under Rule 60(b) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure. But at a

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minimum, these cases are related within the meaning of Local Rule 123(a). The actions involve

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the same property, transaction or event and similar questions of fact and the same question of law.

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Accordingly, assignment of the matters to the same judge is likely to effect a substantial saving of

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judicial effort and is also likely to be convenient for the parties.

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The parties should be aware that relating the cases under Local Rule 123 merely has the

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result that the actions are assigned to the same judge; no consolidation of the actions is effected.

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Under the regular practice of this court, related cases are generally assigned to the judge and

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magistrate judge to whom the first filed action was assigned.

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Therefore, IT IS HEREBY ORDERED that:

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1. The action denominated as 2:14-cv-1796 KJN is reassigned to Magistrate Judge

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Edward F. Brennan, Jr. Henceforth, the caption on documents filed in the reassigned case shall

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be shown as No. 2:14-cv-1796 EFB P; and

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2. The Clerk of the Court shall make appropriate adjustment in the assignment of civil

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cases to compensate for this reassignment.

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Dated: December 11, 2014

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/hard1796.860

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