Chastang v. Cervantes et al

Filing 27

ORDER signed by Magistrate Judge Deborah Barnes on 3/2/2017 DENYING plaintiff's 25 motions to amend the complaint and for an injunction. (Yin, K)

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UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

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FOR THE EASTERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA

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LOTICOL CHASTANG,

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Plaintiff,

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No. 2:15-cv-0961 DB P

v.

ORDER

E. CERVANTES, et al.,

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Defendant.

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Plaintiff is a state prisoner proceeding pro se and in forma pauperis with a civil rights

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action under 42 U.S.C. § 1983. Plaintiff alleges defendants used excessive force when they shot

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him during his altercation with another inmate. Before the court are plaintiff’s motions to amend

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the complaint to add a new party and for an injunction against that party. (ECF No. 25.)

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I.

Motion to Amend

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In his motion, plaintiff seeks to add Officer Hernandez as a defendant in this action.

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Plaintiff contends Hernandez threatened him after plaintiff informed Hernandez that he was going

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to be housed on the ground floor. Plaintiff’s contentions regarding Hernandez have no

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relationship to the subject matter of his complaint. Further, the incident complained of occurred

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on January 24, 2017. (See Mot. (ECF No. 25) at 2.) Therefore, plaintiff could not have

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exhausted his administrative remedies regarding this claim prior to filing this suit. See Vaden v.

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Summerhill, 449 F.3d 1047, 1051 (9th Cir. 2006) (a prisoner “may initiate litigation in federal

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court only after the administrative process ends”); McKinney v. Carey, 311 F.3d 1198, 1199 (9th

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Cir. 2002) (prisoner must exhaust available remedies before he files his complaint; he may not do

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so during the course of the litigation). Accordingly, plaintiff’s motion to amend will be denied.

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II.

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Motion for Restraining Order
Plaintiff seeks an order from the court requiring Officer Hernandez to “stay 10,000 feet away

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from plaintiff.” (ECF No. 25 at 1.) Plaintiff is essentially requesting an injunction directed to

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Officer Hernandez.

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The principal purpose of preliminary injunctive relief is to preserve the court’s power to

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render a meaningful decision after a trial on the merits. See 9 Charles Alan Wright & Arthur R.

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Miller, Federal Practice and Procedure § 2947 (3d ed. 2014). Implicit in this required showing is

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that the relief awarded is only temporary and there will be a full hearing on the merits of the

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claims raised in the injunction when the action is brought to trial. Therefore, a party seeking a

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preliminary injunction must show a “sufficient nexus between the claims raised in a motion for

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injunctive relief and the claims set forth in the underlying complaint itself.” Pacific Radiation

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Oncology, LLC v. Queen’s Med. Ctr., 810 F.3d 631, 636 (9th Cir. 2015). That relationship is

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sufficient to support a preliminary injunction where the injunctive relief sought is “‘of the same

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character as that which may be granted finally.’” Id. (quoting De Beers Consol. Mines v. United

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States, 325 U.S. 212, 220 (1945)). “Absent that relationship or nexus, the district court lacks

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authority to grant the relief requested.” Id. For similar reasons, an injunction against individuals

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not parties to an action is strongly disfavored. See Zenith Radio Corp. v. Hazeltine Research,

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Inc., 395 U.S. 100, 110 (1969) (“It is elementary that one is not bound by a judgment . . .

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resulting from litigation in which he is not designated as a party . . . .”).

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Plaintiff seeks an order requiring Officer Hernandez to stay away from him based on

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Officer Hernandez’s threats to plaintiff. Plaintiff’s concerns about Officer Hernandez are not a

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basis of his complaint in this action and Officer Hernandez is not a party to this action. For these

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reasons, plaintiff’s request for injunctive relief will be denied.
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Accordingly, IT IS HEREBY ORDERED that plaintiff’s motions to amend the complaint

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and for an injunction (ECF No. 25) are denied.

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Dated: March 2, 2017

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DLB:9
DLB1/prisoner-civil rights/chas0961.mta

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