Poslof v. Martel et al
Filing
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ORDER Denying 57 Plaintiff's Request for Order to Show Cause. The Court denies Plaintiff's request for preliminary injunctive relief. Signed by Judge Michael M. Anello on 6/12/2019. (All non-registered users served via U.S. Mail Service)(rmc)
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UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
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SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA
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LONNIE LEE POSLOF, Jr.,
CDCR #BE-0659,
Case No.: 3:18-cv-761-MMA-AGS
ORDER DENYING PLAINTIFF’S
REQUEST FOR ORDER TO SHOW
CAUSE
Plaintiff,
vs.
MICHAEL MARTEL, et al.,
[Doc. No. 57]
Defendants.
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Plaintiff Lonnie Lee Poslof, Jr., a California prisoner proceeding pro se, brings this
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action pursuant to 42 U.S.C. § 1983, alleging violations of his Eighth Amendment rights
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by various medical professionals and correctional officials at California State Prison in
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Lancaster, California, and Richard J. Donovan Correctional Facility in San Diego,
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California. Plaintiff is currently housed at Mule Creek State Prison in Ione, California.
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Plaintiff now seeks a temporary restraining order and requests an order to show cause
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why a preliminary injunction should not be issued against correctional officials at Mule
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Creek State Prison, whom Plaintiff claims confiscated his legal materials in retaliation for
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his litigation activities. See Doc. No. 57. For the reasons set forth below, the Court
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DENIES Plaintiff’s motion.
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3:18-cv-761-MMA-AGS
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DISCUSSION
1. Legal Standard
Injunctive relief, whether temporary or permanent, is an “extraordinary remedy,
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never awarded as of right.” Winter v. Natural Res. Defense Council, 555 U.S. 7, 22
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(2008). A plaintiff seeking injunctive relief “must establish that he is likely to succeed on
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the merits, that he is likely to suffer irreparable harm in the absence of preliminary relief,
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that the balance of equities tips in his favor, and that an injunction is in the public
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interest.” Am. Trucking Ass’ns, Inc. v. City of Los Angeles, 559 F.3d 1046, 1052 (9th Cir.
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2009) (quoting Winter, 555 U.S. at 20). An injunction may only be awarded upon a clear
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showing that the plaintiff is entitled to relief. Winter, 555 U.S. at 22.
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Requests for prospective relief are further limited by the Prison Litigation Reform
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Act, which requires that the Court find the “relief [sought] is narrowly drawn, extends no
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further than necessary to correct the violation of the federal right, and is the least
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intrusive means necessary to correct the violation of the federal right.” 18 U.S.C. §
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3626(a)(1)(A).
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2. Analysis
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In order to merit immediate injunctive relief, Plaintiff must establish probable
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success on the merits with respect to his claims. He fails to do so. Plaintiff must also
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demonstrate that irreparable injury is likely in the absence of an injunction. See
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Stormans, Inc. v. Selecky, 586 F.3d 1109, 1127 (9th Cir. 2009). Plaintiff fails to make the
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required showing. According to Plaintiff, at the time he constructively filed the instant
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motion, he had been without his legal materials for twenty-one (21) days. However,
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Plaintiff was recently transferred to Mule Creek State Prison from California State Prison
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in Sacramento, California. Based on his transfer, it was not unreasonable for correctional
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officials to dispossess Plaintiff of his legal materials for a period of time – three weeks
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without those materials does not establish irreparable injury.
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In addition, a party seeking a preliminary injunction must show a “sufficient nexus
between the claims raised in a motion for injunctive relief and the claims set forth in the
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3:18-cv-761-MMA-AGS
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underlying complaint itself.” Pacific Radiation Oncology, LLC v. Queen’s Med. Ctr.,
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810 F.3d 631, 636 (9th Cir. 2015). “Absent that relationship or nexus, the district court
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lacks authority to grant the relief requested.” Id. Plaintiff’s legal materials are not the
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subject of his claims in this action. Most importantly, the Court does not have
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jurisdiction over the individuals who have custody and control of Plaintiff’s legal
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materials. “A federal court may issue an injunction if it has personal jurisdiction over the
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parties and subject matter jurisdiction over the claim; it may not attempt to determine the
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rights of persons not before the court.” Zepeda v. United States Immigration &
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Naturalization Service, 753 F.2d 719, 727 (9th Cir. 1983). In other words, the Court’s
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injunction would bind only those persons over which the Court has power, i.e., parties to
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this action. Id. The Court lacks personal jurisdiction over the correctional officials at
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Mule Creek State Prison and therefore lacks the authority to enjoin their conduct.
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CONCLUSION
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Based on the foregoing, the Court DENIES Plaintiff’s request for preliminary
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injunctive relief.
IT IS SO ORDERED.
DATE: June 12, 2019
_______________________________________
HON. MICHAEL M. ANELLO
United States District Judge
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3:18-cv-761-MMA-AGS
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