In Re: Dominique Merriman

Filing 2

ORDER signed by Magistrate Judge Carolyn K. Delaney on 8/16/2017 GRANTING 1 Motion for Relief from the Standing Order re Procedural Rules for Electronic Submission of Prisoner Litigation; DIRECTING the Clerk of Court to close this case and open the prisoner civil rights case presented to the Court by Dominique Merriman on 8/16/2017. CASE CLOSED. (Michel, G.)

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1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT 9 EASTERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA 10 11 DOMINIQUE MERRIMAN, 12 13 14 15 16 Plaintiff, v. J. LIZARRAGA, et al., Defendants. ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) Case No.: 2:17-mc-00117-CKD ORDER GRANTING PLAINTIFF’S MOTION FOR LEAVE TO EXCEED 25-PAGE LIMITATION FOR CIVIL RIGHTS COMPLAINT BEING E-FILED 17 On August 16, 2017, plaintiff Dominique Merriman filed a motion for leave to exceed 18 the 25-page limitation on e-filing her civil rights complaint pursuant to 42 U.S.C. § 1983. ECF No. 1. 19 I. 20 DISCUSSION 21 On February 24, 2016, this Court issued a Standing Order for the United States District Court 22 for the Eastern District of California that describes a pilot program in which the Court and the 23 California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR) have agreed to participate. As part 24 of the program, initial pleadings submitted by prisoners in civil rights cases involving conditions of 25 confinement claims are electronically filed. To facilitate compliance with Federal Rule of Civil 26 Procedure 8(a)(2), complaints shall not exceed twenty-five (25) pages in length. In the event a 27 plaintiff needs to file a complaint longer than twenty-five (25) pages, he or she must submit a motion 28 1 1 demonstrating the grounds for the need to exceed the page limitation, along with the proposed 2 complaint, to the court for permission to exceed the page limit. In this instance, plaintiff seeks relief from the twenty-five page limitation because: (1) the 3 4 complaint includes over 140 defendants, over 30 claims, and a “variation of different dates spanning 5 over two and a half years” (ECF No. 1 at2 ).; and (2) the allegations in the complaint constitute 6 evidence of a “shown policy, custom, and or usage of deliberate indifference…” id. As instructed, plaintiff filed her proposed complaint with her motion for leave to exceed the 7 8 page limit. Although the proposed complaint is more than twenty-five pages, it appears that plaintiff 9 made a concerted attempt to comply with the court’s instructions in drafting the complaint. Having 10 now reviewed the proposed complaint in connection with plaintiff’s pending motion, the court 11 concludes that judicial efficiency would be best served by allowing plaintiff’s complaint to be filed as 12 a civil rights complaint. The court will still have to screen the complaint as required by statute, but that 13 will occur in due course.1 14 II. 15 ORDER Based on the foregoing, plaintiff’s motion to exceed the twenty-five page limitation for her 16 17 civil rights complaint is HEREBY GRANTED. The Clerk of the Court is directed to close this 18 miscellaneous case, and open a civil rights case. 19 Dated: August 16, 2017 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 1 The court is required to screen complaints brought by prisoners seeking relief against a governmental entity or officer or employee of a governmental entity. 28 U.S.C. § 1915A(a). The court must dismiss a complaint or portion thereof if the prisoner has raised claims that are legally “frivolous or malicious,” that fail to state a claim upon which relief may be granted, or that seek monetary relief from a defendant who is immune from such relief. 28 U.S.C. § 1915A(b)(1),(2). 28 2

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