Saldana v. Sayre
Filing
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ORDER by Judge Lucy H. Koh denying 31 Motion to Appoint Counsel ; granting 38 Motion to Stay Discovery; denying 42 Motion to Appoint Counsel ; denying 29 Motion to Stay Summary Judgment Proceedings (Attachments: # 1 Certificate/Proof of Service) (mpb, COURT STAFF) (Filed on 1/3/2013)
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IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
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FOR THE NORTHERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA
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SAMUEL SALDANA,
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Plaintiff,
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v.
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MICHAEL SAYRE, et al.,
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Defendants.
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No. C 11-3921 LHK (PR)
ORDER ADDRESSING
PENDING MOTIONS
(Docket Nos. 28, 29, 31, 42)
Plaintiff, a state prisoner proceeding pro se, filed an amended civil rights complaint
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pursuant to 42 U.S.C. § 1983, alleging that prison officials were deliberately indifferent to his
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serious medical needs. On September 7, 2012, Defendants filed a motion for summary
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judgment. On September 27, 2012, Plaintiff filed a motion to stay summary judgment
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proceedings, a motion to appoint a medical expert, and a motion to appoint counsel. On October
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25, 2012, Defendants filed oppositions to Plaintiff’s motion to stay summary judgment
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proceedings and motion to appoint a medical expert. On October 26, 2012, Defendants filed a
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motion to stay discovery pending the disposition of their argument that they are entitled to
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qualified immunity.
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A.
Motion to appoint a medical expert
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Plaintiff moves, pursuant to Rule 706 of the Federal Rules of Evidence, for appointment
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of a medical expert to respond to Defendants’ motion for summary judgment. Pursuant to Rule
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702 of the Federal Rules of Evidence, “[i]f scientific, technical, or other specialized knowledge
Order Addressing Pending Motions
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will assist the trier of fact to understand the evidence or to determine a fact in issue, a witness
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qualified as an expert by knowledge, skill, experience, training, or education, may testify thereto
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in the form of an opinion or otherwise.” Fed. R. Evid. 702. Under Rule 706, the Court may on
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its own motion, or on the motion of a party appoint an expert witness. Fed. R. Evid. 706(a).
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However, the Court finds that appointment of an expert is not necessary or appropriate at
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this time. First, the Court does not need an expert witness to aid its understanding of the
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deliberate indifference claim in this action. Second, in a civil rights action such as this, Rule
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706(b) contemplates that the expert would be paid by the parties, but here, Defendants would
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have to bear the entire cost because Plaintiff would be unable to pay for the expert. There is no
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showing that it is appropriate or fair to require Defendants to bear the sole burden of paying an
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expert witness to present Plaintiff’s point of view.
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Nonetheless, at this point in the proceedings, the Court finds it is premature to decide
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whether appointment of a medical expert is warranted. Specifically, until the Court has had the
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opportunity to review the arguments and evidence submitted by the parties on summary
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judgment, no determination can be made that the issues are so complex as to require the
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testimony of an expert to assist the trier of fact. Accordingly, Plaintiff’s motion for appointment
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of a medical expert will be DENIED. This denial is without prejudice to renewal, once
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Defendants’ motion for summary judgment has been submitted and considered.
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B.
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Discovery motions
Plaintiff moves to stay summary judgment proceedings so that he can have more time to
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conduct discovery. Plaintiff also claims that he needs more time to access the law library so that
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he can file an opposition to Defendants’ motion for summary judgment. Defendants have filed a
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motion to stay discovery proceedings pending the Court’s disposition of the issue of qualified
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immunity.
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As a general rule, a district court should stay discovery until the issue of qualified
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immunity is resolved. See Crawford-El v. Britton, 523 U.S. 574, 598 (1998); Harlow v.
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Fitzgerald, 457 U.S. 800, 818 (1982). Accordingly, Defendants’ motion to stay discovery until
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the Court has ruled on the issue of qualified immunity, as raised in Defendants’ motion for
Order Addressing Pending Motions
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summary judgment, is hereby GRANTED. Plaintiff’s motion to stay summary judgment
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proceedings pursuant to Rule 56(d), therefore, is DENIED as moot. See Fed. R. Civ P. 56(d).
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At this time, Plaintiff’s opposition is overdue. However, because Plaintiff appears to
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have had difficulty accessing the law library to conduct whatever research he believes he needs
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to file a proper opposition, the Court sua sponte extends the deadline for Plaintiff to file an
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opposition to Defendants’ motion for summary judgment. Plaintiff shall file his opposition no
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later than twenty eight days from the filing date of this order. Defendants shall file their reply
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fourteen days thereafter.
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C.
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Motions to appoint counsel
Plaintiff’s motions for appointment of counsel are DENIED for want of exceptional
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circumstances. See Rand v. Rowland, 113 F.3d 1520, 1525 (9th Cir. 1997); see also Lassiter v.
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Dep’t of Social Services, 452 U.S. 18, 25 (1981) (there is no constitutional right to counsel in a
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civil case). The issues in this case are not particularly complex, and Plaintiff has thus far been
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able to adequately present his claims. This denial is without prejudice to the Court’s sua sponte
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appointment of counsel at a future date should the circumstances of this case warrant such
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appointment.
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This order terminates docket numbers 28, 29, 31, and 42.
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IT IS SO ORDERED.
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DATED:
1/2/13
LUCY H. KOH
United States District Judge
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Order Addressing Pending Motions
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