Marqus Martinez et al v. County of Sonoma et al

Filing 48

ORDER: The court ordinarily hears from defendants who also are percipient witnesses at settlement conferences and tries not to inconvenience parties overly. That said, the court has worked with both counsel before and trusts their assessment of ap propriate attendance. The court asks counsel to ensure that defendants who might be helpful to the court's ordinary settlement process (including the ordinary joint session) are present. Re: (47 in 3:15-cv-04574-JD) Letter filed by Adam Gordon , Chad McMasters, Kyle Smith, Matthew Crook, Steve Freitas, Michael Patrick, Joseph Medeiros, Robert Travelstead, Jason Squires, Joseph Nougier, Brian Galloway, William Walton, Craig Peterson, Todd Grenier, County of Sonoma, Amanda Lee, Michael Merchen, Joseph Galante, David Cooper. Signed by Magistrate Judge Laurel Beeler on 8/5/2016. (lsS, COURT STAFF) (Filed on 8/5/2016)

LAW OFFICES OF

BERTRAND, FOX, ELLIOT,
OSMAN & WENZEL
A PROFESSIONAL CORPORATION
THE WATERFRONT BUILDING
2749 HYDE STREET

SENDER’S DIRECT E-MAIL:
[e-mail]

SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA 94109
Facsimile [phone]

SENDER’S DIRECT DIAL:
[phone] ext. 104

August 1, 2016
VIA ELECTRONIC FILING (ECF)
Magistrate Judge Laurel Beeler
United States District Court
Northern District of California
San Francisco Courthouse, Courtroom C - 15th Floor
450 Golden Gate Ave., San Francisco, CA 94102

Re:

Martinez, et al. v. County of Sonoma, et al.
USDC Northern District of CA Case No. 15-cv-04574-JD
Lopez, et al. v. County of Sonoma, et al.
USDC Northern District of CA Case No. 16-cv-01573-JD

Dear Magistrate Judge Beeler:
Defendants County of Sonoma (“the County”), Steve Freitas, Michael Merchen, Brian
Gallaway, Chad McMasters, Jason Squires, Robert Travelstead, William Walton, David Cooper,
Matthew Crook, Joseph Galante, Adam Gordon, Todd Grenier, Amanda Lee, Joseph Medeiros,
Joseph Nougier, Michael Patrick, Craig Peterson and Kyle Smith hereby respectfully request that
all individual defendants except Lt. Merchen and Sgt. Gallaway be excused from attending the
Settlement Conference in these matters scheduled for August 16, 2016.
At all relevant times, Freitas, Merchen, Awad, Gallaway, McMasters, Squires,
Travelstead, Walton, Cooper, Crook, Galante, Gordon, Grenier, Lee, Medeiros, Nougier, Patrick,
Peterson and Smith were acting in the course and scope of their employment with the County.
Therefore, the County is providing them with a defense and indemnity. None of the individual
defendants have settlement authority. They do have first-hand information about the incident,
which information was or will be provided to counsel at the deputies’ depositions and which
information will be contained in defendants’ MSC Statement, which will be served on plaintiffs.
Personal attendance of the 18 individual defendants will cause a hardship to the Sonoma
County Sheriff’s Office, Detention Division as it will impact the Division’s ability to properly
staff the shifts worked by these lieutenants, sergeants, and deputies and/or will require the

LAW OFFICES OF

BERTRAND, FOX, ELLIOT,
OSMAN & WENZEL

Magistrate Judge Laurel Beeler
August 1, 2016
Page 2

County to pay significant overtime pay. Further, Steve Freitas is Sheriff-Coroner for the County
of Sonoma. His personal attendance at the mediation will cause a hardship to the County as it
will require the highest ranking law enforcement officer to leave the County and be inaccessible.
Defendants will have present at the Settlement Conference: (1) Janelle Crane, Liability
Manager for the County, who has authority to participate in the Settlement Conference, to enter
into a tentative settlement agreement and authority to recommend the agreement to the Board of
Supervisors; (2) Assistant Sheriff Randall Walker; (3) Lieutenant Michael Merchen; and (4)
Sergeant Brian Gallaway.
Prior to drafting this correspondence, defense counsel discussed the settlement
conference with plaintiff’s counsel, who did not oppose the above-named personnel not being
present.
Defendants thank the Court in advance for its consideration of this request.
Very truly yours,
BERTRAND, FOX, ELLIOT,
OSMAN & WENZEL
By: /s/ Richard W. Osman
Richard W. Osman
RWO/jo
cc:
John H. Scott
Izaak D. Schwaiger
Lizabeth N. deVries

ED
ORDER

R NIA

O
IT IS S

eeler

RT

A

H

ER

FO

NO

aurel B
Judge L

LI

UNIT
ED

S

RT
U
O

The court ordinarily hears from defendants who also are percipient witnesses at settlement
conferences and tries not to inconvenience parties overly. That said, the court has worked with
both counsel before and trusts their assessment of appropriate attendance. The court asks counsel
to ensure that defendants who might be helpful to the court's ordinary settlement process
(including the ordinary joint session) are present.
ISTRIC
Dated: August 5, 2016
ES D
TC
AT
T

N

F
D IS T IC T O
R

C