Blackshire v. Sacramento County

Filing 5

ORDER signed by Magistrate Judge Carolyn K. Delaney on 7/8/15 ORDERING that Plaintiff's amended complaint is dismissed; and Plaintiff is granted thirty days from the date of service of this order to file a second amended complaint that comp lies with the requirements of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, and the Local Rules of Practice; the second amended complaint must bear the docket number assigned this case and must be labeled "Second Amended Complaint"; plaintiff must file an original and two copies of the second amended complaint; failure to file a second amended complaint in accordance with this order will result in a recommendation that this action be dismissed. (Becknal, R)

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UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

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FOR THE EASTERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA

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PATRICK BLACKSHIRE,

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Plaintiff,

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v.

No. 2:15-cv-1126 KJM CKD PS

ORDER

SACRAMENTO COUNTY,

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Defendant.

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Plaintiff is proceeding in this action pro se and in forma pauperis. Plaintiff has filed an

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amended complaint.
The federal in forma pauperis statute authorizes federal courts to dismiss a case if the

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action is legally “frivolous or malicious,” fails to state a claim upon which relief may be granted,

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or seeks monetary relief from a defendant who is immune from such relief. 28 U.S.C.

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§ 1915(e)(2).

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A claim is legally frivolous when it lacks an arguable basis either in law or in fact.

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Neitzke v. Williams, 490 U.S. 319, 325 (1989); Franklin v. Murphy, 745 F.2d 1221, 1227-28 (9th

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Cir. 1984). The court may, therefore, dismiss a claim as frivolous where it is based on an

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indisputably meritless legal theory or where the factual contentions are clearly baseless. Neitzke,

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490 U.S. at 327.

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In order to avoid dismissal for failure to state a claim a complaint must contain more than

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“naked assertions,” “labels and conclusions” or “a formulaic recitation of the elements of a cause

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of action.” Bell Atlantic Corp. v. Twombly, 550 U.S. 544, 555-557 (2007). In other words,

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“[t]hreadbare recitals of the elements of a cause of action, supported by mere conclusory

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statements do not suffice.” Ashcroft v. Iqbal, 129 S. Ct. 1937, 1949 (2009). Furthermore, a claim

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upon which the court can grant relief has facial plausibility. Twombly, 550 U.S. at 570. “A

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claim has facial plausibility when the plaintiff pleads factual content that allows the court to draw

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the reasonable inference that the defendant is liable for the misconduct alleged.” Iqbal, 129 S. Ct.

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at 1949. When considering whether a complaint states a claim upon which relief can be granted,

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the court must accept the allegations as true, Erickson v. Pardus, 127 S. Ct. 2197, 2200 (2007),

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and construe the complaint in the light most favorable to the plaintiff, see Scheuer v. Rhodes, 416

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U.S. 232, 236 (1974).

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Plaintiff has filed a two sentence complaint which does not name any defendant.

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Accordingly, the court finds the allegations in plaintiff’s complaint so vague and conclusory that

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it is unable to determine whether the current action is frivolous or fails to state a claim for relief.

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Although the complaint is short, it does not contain a plain statement as required by Fed. R. Civ.

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P. 8(a)(2). Although the Federal Rules adopt a flexible pleading policy, a complaint must give

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fair notice and state the elements of the claim plainly and succinctly. Jones v. Community Redev.

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Agency, 733 F.2d 646, 649 (9th Cir. 1984). Plaintiff must allege with at least some degree of

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particularity overt acts which defendants engaged in that support plaintiff’s claim. Id. Because

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plaintiff has failed to comply with the requirements of Fed. R. Civ. P. 8(a)(2), the complaint must

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be dismissed. The court will, however, grant leave to file a second amended complaint.

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If plaintiff chooses to amend the complaint, plaintiff must set forth the jurisdictional

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grounds upon which the court’s jurisdiction depends. Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 8(a).

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Further, plaintiff must demonstrate how the conduct complained of has resulted in a deprivation

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of plaintiff’s federal rights. See Ellis v. Cassidy, 625 F.2d 227 (9th Cir. 1980).

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It appears that plaintiff may be trying to state a claim for violation of his civil rights.
Plaintiff is advised that the Civil Rights Act provides as follows:
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Every person who, under color of [state law] . . . subjects, or causes
to be subjected, any citizen of the United States . . . to the
deprivation of any rights, privileges, or immunities secured by the
Constitution . . . shall be liable to the party injured in an action at
law, suit in equity, or other proper proceeding for redress.

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42 U.S.C. § 1983. The statute requires that there be an actual connection or link between the

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actions of the defendants and the deprivation alleged to have been suffered by plaintiff. See

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Monell v. Department of Social Servs., 436 U.S. 658 (1978); Rizzo v. Goode, 423 U.S. 362

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(1976). “A person ‘subjects’ another to the deprivation of a constitutional right, within the

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meaning of § 1983, if he does an affirmative act, participates in another's affirmative acts or

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omits to perform an act which he is legally required to do that causes the deprivation of which

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complaint is made.” Johnson v. Duffy, 588 F.2d 740, 743 (9th Cir. 1978).
To state a claim against the County of Sacramento, plaintiff must set forth facts alleging

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that local government officials have intentionally violated plaintiff’s constitutional rights, the

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violation was part of policy or custom and was not an isolated incident, and that there is a link

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between the specific policy or custom to the plaintiff’s injury. See Monell, 436 U.S. at 690-92.

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In addition, plaintiff is informed that the court cannot refer to a prior pleading in order to

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make plaintiff’s amended complaint complete. Local Rule 15-220 requires that an amended

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complaint be complete in itself without reference to any prior pleading. This is because, as a

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general rule, an amended complaint supersedes the original complaint. See Loux v. Rhay, 375

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F.2d 55, 57 (9th Cir. 1967). Once plaintiff files an amended complaint, the original pleading no

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longer serves any function in the case. Therefore, in an amended complaint, as in an

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original complaint, each claim and the involvement of each defendant must be sufficiently

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alleged.

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In accordance with the above, IT IS HEREBY ORDERED that:

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1. Plaintiff’s amended complaint is dismissed; and

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2. Plaintiff is granted thirty days from the date of service of this order to file a second

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amended complaint that complies with the requirements of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure,

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and the Local Rules of Practice; the second amended complaint must bear the docket number

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assigned this case and must be labeled “Second Amended Complaint”; plaintiff must file an
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original and two copies of the second amended complaint; failure to file a second amended

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complaint in accordance with this order will result in a recommendation that this action be

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dismissed.

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Dated: July 8, 2015

_____________________________________
CAROLYN K. DELANEY
UNITED STATES MAGISTRATE JUDGE

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