Robinson v. Kate et al

Filing 91

FINDINGS and RECOMMENDATIONS signed by Magistrate Judge Allison Claire on 1/14/16 recommending that plaintiff's motion for preliminary injunctive relief 90 be denied. MOTION for PRELIMINARY INJUNCTION 90 referred to Judge Morrison C. England Jr. Objections due within 14 days. (Plummer, M)

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UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

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FOR THE EASTERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA

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ANDRE JAMAL ROBINSON,

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No. 2:11-cv-02555 MCE AC P

Plaintiff,
v.

FINDINGS AND RECOMMENDATIONS

MATTHEW CATE, et al.,
Defendants.

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Plaintiff is a state prisoner incarcerated at the Sierra Conservation Center (SCC), who

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proceeds pro se and in forma pauperis in this civil rights action filed pursuant to 42 U.S.C. §

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1983. Presently pending is plaintiff’s motion for preliminary injunctive relief directing the

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California Department of Corrections (CDCR) and SCC to provide plaintiff with a fully Halal

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diet. For the reasons that follow, this court recommends that plaintiff’s motion be denied.

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Plaintiff is a Muslim who seeks, pursuant to this action, a fully Halal diet. Plaintiff is

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currently offered the options of a Halal meat entrée at dinner and/or a vegetarian Religious Meat

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Alternative Diet. Following this court’s decision granting in part and denying in part defendant’s

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motion for summary judgment, this action proceeds on plaintiff’s First Amended Complaint filed

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March 27, 2013, against defendant George J. Giurbino, former Director of CDCR’s Division of

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Adult Institutions. See ECF Nos. 85-6. Plaintiff proceeds on his claims for declaratory and

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prospective injunctive relief under the Free Exercise Clause of the First Amendment, the Equal

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Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment, and the Religious Land Use and

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Institutionalized Persons Act (RLUIPA). Id. Following summary judgment, the court found that

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appointment of counsel is warranted to assist plaintiff with further proceedings in this action, and

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counsel is currently being sought by the court’s Alternative Dispute Resolution Coordinator. See

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ECF No. 89.

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Pursuant to the instant motion, plaintiff seeks a fully Halal diet pending implementation

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by CDCR of a fully Halal diet program and/or a final judgment in this case that accords plaintiff

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the same relief. See ECF No. 90. Plaintiff asserts that he “is likely to succeed on the merits of

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[his] claims and [that he] has been suffering immediate and irreparable harm since October 2008”

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when he converted to Islam. Id. at 2. Plaintiff contends that if he is required to “continue[] to

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consume haram food, his prayers will not be accepted and subsequently [he will be] denied

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paradise.” Id. at 4.

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“A preliminary injunction is an ‘extraordinary and drastic remedy,’ 11A C. Wright, A.

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Miller, & M. Kane, Federal Practice and Procedure § 2948, p. 129 (2d ed.1995) [] (footnotes

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omitted); it is never awarded as of right, Yakus v. United States, 321 U.S. 414, 440 (1944).”

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Munaf v. Geren, 553 U.S. 674, 689-90 (2008). “The sole purpose of a preliminary injunction is

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to “preserve the status quo ante litem pending a determination of the action on the merits.” Sierra

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Forest Legacy v. Rey, 577 F.3d 1015, 1023 (9th Cir. 2009) (citing L.A. Memorial Coliseum

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Comm’n v. NFL, 634 F.2d 1197, 1200 (9th Cir.1980)); see also 11A Charles Alan Wright &

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Arthur R. Miller, Federal Practice and Procedure, § 2947 (2d ed. 2010)

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In evaluating the merits of a motion for preliminary injunctive relief, the court considers

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whether the movant has shown that “he is likely to succeed on the merits, that he is likely to

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suffer irreparable harm in the absence of preliminary relief, that the balance of equities tips in his

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favor, and that an injunction is in the public interest.” Winter v. Natural Resources Defense

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Council, 555 U.S. 7, 20 (2008); Stormans, Inc. v. Selecky, 586 F.3d 1109, 1127 (9th Cir. 2009)

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(quoting Winter). The propriety of a request for injunctive relief hinges on a significant threat of

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irreparable injury that must be imminent in nature. Caribbean Marine Serv. Co. v. Baldridge, 844

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F.2d 668, 674 (9th Cir. 1988). A preliminary injunction is appropriate when a plaintiff
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demonstrates . . . “serious questions going to the merits and a hardship balance [] tips sharply

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toward the plaintiff, . . . assuming the other two elements of the Winter test are also met.”

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Alliance for the Wild Rockies v. Cottrell, 632 F.3d 1127, 1131-32 (9th Cir. 2011). An injunction

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against individuals who are not parties to the action is strongly disfavored. Zenith Radio Corp. v.

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Hazeltine Research, Inc., 395 U.S. 100 (1969).

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Additionally, in cases brought by prisoners involving conditions of confinement, any

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preliminary injunction “must be narrowly drawn, extend no further than necessary to correct the

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harm the court finds requires preliminary relief, and be the least intrusive means necessary to

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correct the harm.” 18 U.S.C. § 3626(a)(2).

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Although plaintiff has a reasonable opportunity to succeed on the merits of his claims, the

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harm that plaintiff alleges is neither imminent (plaintiff alleges that the harm has been ongoing

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since 2008), nor clearly irreparable (plaintiff’s continuing efforts to obtain a fully Halal diet

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reflect some confidence that any prior diet transgressions may be forgiven within his religion).1

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Additionally, the public interest weighs heavily in favor of postponing implementation of a

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judicially intrusive and costly Halal diet, even if only for plaintiff, until a decision has been

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reached on the merits of plaintiff’s constitutional challenges. Granting plaintiff individual relief

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would likely result in CDCR being inundated with requests for the same relief by other Muslim

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inmates. These are legitimate penological reasons for denying plaintiff’s requested relief until the

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court has addressed the merits of his claims. Moreover, preliminary injunctive relief is not

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necessary to preserve the court’s authority to render a meaningful decision this case. The balance

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of equities tips clearly tip in favor of defendant.

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For these several reasons, this court recommends that plaintiff’s motion for preliminary
injunctive relief, ECF No. 90, be denied.

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These findings and recommendations are submitted to the United States District Judge
assigned to this case, pursuant to the provisions of 28 U.S.C. § 636(b)(l). Within fourteen days

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Indeed, plaintiff testified as deposition that he may eat non-Halal food if it is the only food
available and he is not being willfully disobedient. See Findings and Recommendations
(discussion and citations), ECF No. 85 at 16-7.
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after being served with these findings and recommendations, any party may file written

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objections with the court and serve a copy on all parties. Such a document should be captioned

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“Objections to Magistrate Judge’s Findings and Recommendations.” The parties are advised that

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failure to file objections within the specified time may waive the right to appeal the District

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Court’s order. Martinez v. Ylst, 951 F.2d 1153 (9th Cir. 1991).

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DATED: January 14, 2016

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