White v. Smyers et al

Filing 171

ORDER signed by Magistrate Judge Allison Claire on 10/6/15 ORDERING that The October 16, 2015 deadline for conducting plaintiffs deposition is VACATED. Within 21 days after the filing date of this order, Ms. Ellen Hung, theDeputy Attorney General re presenting the majority of defendants in this action, shall file and serve a statement addressing the following matters: Contact with the HDSP Litigation Coordinator (and, if necessary, the CSATFLitigation Coordinator and other appropriate officials with the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation) to ascertain the location(s) of all of plaintiffs legal materials pertaining to the instant action; andif plaintiff is not in possession of all pertinent legal materials, identifying t he missing materials, their location(s), and the date(s) when such documents will be delivered to plaintiff. If plaintiff is not in possession of all pertinent legal materials within the twenty-onedayperiod provided herein, the Deputy Attorney Gener al shall file and serve a statement informing the court and other parties when such materials are delivered to plaintiff; if necessary, the Deputy Attorney General shall provide status reports every 14 days until such materials are delivered to plai ntiff. Within fourteen days after plaintiff is in possession of all pertinent legal materials, counsel for all defendants shall file and serve a joint statement informing the court of the date and time scheduled for plaintiffs further and final deposition, which shall be scheduled at the earliest convenience of the parties and HDSP officials.(Dillon, M)

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UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

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FOR THE EASTERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA

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WALTER HOWARD WHITE,

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No. 2:12-cv-2868 MCE AC P

Plaintiff,

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v.

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SMYERS, et al.,

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ORDER

Defendants.

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Counsel for defendant Miranda requests an extension of time within which to conduct

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plaintiff’s continued deposition, ECF No. 170, in response to plaintiff’s recent statement that he

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has not received two boxes of his legal materials after being transferred back to High Desert State

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Prison (HDSP) from the California Substance Abuse Treatment Facility (CSATF), see ECF No.

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169 at 3. The current deadline for conducting defendant’s deposition is October 16, 2015. See

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ECF No. 153 at 8-9. For the reasons stated herein, the court suspends the deadline in order to

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obtain additional information and briefing.
Defendants are represented by three different attorneys. The court previously directed all

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defense counsel to schedule plaintiff’s further deposition between August 31 and October 16,

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2015, and to inform the court of such date within five days of scheduling. See ECF No. 153 at 8-

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9. As of this writing, the court has not received notice of a scheduled deposition.

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In support of his current request, counsel for defendant Miranda states, ECF No. 170 at 12:

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At past deposition sessions, White stated that he was unable to
answer a substantial number of questions, as his files and materials
were not all available. It is anticipated that the same issue will arise
if the deposition proceeds without his possession of the documents.
[¶] To avoid the need for multiple sessions of the deposition,
Miranda requests that the deadline for taking the deposition be
extended for 60 days, to allow for delivery of the documents.

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The court has previously considered and rejected plaintiff’s numerous objections to

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defendants’ efforts to resume and conclude plaintiff’s deposition. See ECF No. 153 at 5-8

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(including citations to previous similar orders). Although plaintiff’s instant objection signals

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caution in considering further delays in this action, the court finds good cause to support the

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following order.

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Accordingly, IT IS HEREBY ORDERED that:

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1. The October 16, 2015 deadline for conducting plaintiff’s deposition is vacated.

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2. Within twenty-one (21) days after the filing date of this order, Ms. Ellen Hung, the

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Deputy Attorney General representing the majority of defendants in this action, shall file and

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serve a statement addressing the following matters:

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a. Contact with the HDSP Litigation Coordinator (and, if necessary, the CSATF

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Litigation Coordinator and other appropriate officials with the California Department of

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Corrections and Rehabilitation) to ascertain the location(s) of all of plaintiff’s legal materials

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pertaining to the instant action; and

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b. If plaintiff is not in possession of all pertinent legal materials, identifying the missing

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materials, their location(s), and the date(s) when such documents will be delivered to plaintiff.

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3. If plaintiff is not in possession of all pertinent legal materials within the twenty-one-

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day period provided herein, the Deputy Attorney General shall file and serve a statement

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informing the court and other parties when such materials are delivered to plaintiff; if necessary,

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the Deputy Attorney General shall provide status reports every fourteen (14) days until such

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materials are delivered to plaintiff.

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4. Within fourteen days after plaintiff is in possession of all pertinent legal materials,

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counsel for all defendants shall file and serve a joint statement informing the court of the date and

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time scheduled for plaintiff’s further and final deposition, which shall be scheduled at the earliest

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convenience of the parties and HDSP officials.

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SO ORDERED.
DATED: October 6, 2015

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