Jenkins v. Bonds et al

Filing 31

ORDER signed by Magistrate Judge Edmund F. Brennan on 1/17/2017 DENYING plaintiff's 30 request for a free copy of his deposition transcript. (Yin, K)

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UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

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FOR THE EASTERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA

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ROBERT LEE JENKINS, JR.,

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No. 2:13-cv-2151-GEB-EFB P

Plaintiff,

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ORDER

v.
BONDS,

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Defendant.

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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. He seeks an order from the court directing defense counsel to provide him with a

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copy of the transcript from his deposition, free of charge. ECF No. 30. Pursuant to Rule 30 of

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the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, however, plaintiff must first pay for a copy of the

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deposition transcript, and then obtain it from the officer before whom the deposition was taken.

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Fed. R. Civ. P. 30(f)(3). Plaintiff cites to no authority suggesting that either the court or the

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defendant, should instead be forced to bear this cost. Although plaintiff is proceeding in forma

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pauperis pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1915, that statute does not authorize the expenditure of public

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funds for deposition transcripts. See 28 U.S.C. § 1915; Tedder v. Odel, 890 F.2d 210, 211-12

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(9th Cir. 1989) (per curiam) (“‘[T]he expenditure of public funds [on behalf of an indigent

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litigant] is proper only when authorized by Congress’”) (alteration in original) (quoting United

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States v. MacCollom, 426 U.S. 317, 321 (1976)).
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Accordingly, IT IS HEREBY ORDERED that plaintiff’s request for a free copy of his

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deposition transcript (ECF No. 30) is denied.

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DATED: January 17, 2017.

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