Patterson v. Santini et al

Filing 34

MINUTE ORDER granting 32 Motion to Stay. Scheduling Conference set for 7/3/12 is VACATED. By Magistrate Judge Kristen L. Mix on 5/11/12.(cmacd )

IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
FOR THE DISTRICT OF COLORADO
Civil Action No. 11-cv-01899-PAB-KLM
GERALD LEE PATTERSON,
Plaintiff,
v.
GEORGE SANTINI, M.D.,
CAMACHO, P.A., and
FIVE JOHN/JANE DOES,
Defendants.
_____________________________________________________________________
MINUTE ORDER
_____________________________________________________________________
ENTERED BY MAGISTRATE JUDGE KRISTEN L. MIX
This matter is before the Court on Defendants’ Motion to Stay [Docket No. 32;
Filed May 10, 2012] (the “Motion”). Defendants request that this matter be stayed pending
a determination of whether they are entitled to qualified immunity. On March 28, 2012, the
Court issued a Recommendation to the District Judge, which recommended finding that
Defendants are not entitled to qualified immunity at this stage of the proceeding. See Rec.,
[#24] at 8. The Recommendation remains pending.
Qualified immunity “give[s] government officials a right, not merely to avoid ‘standing
trial,’ but also to avoid the burdens of ‘such pretrial matters as discovery . . . .’” Behrens
v. Pelletier, 516 U.S. 299, 308 (1996) (citation omitted). Immunity questions should be
resolved at the earliest possible stage of the litigation, thereby avoiding many of the
associated burdens and costs. Albright v. Rodriguez, 51 F.3d 1531, 1534 (10th Cir. 1995).
In light of the Court’s obligation to “exercise its discretion so that officials [properly asserting
qualified immunity] are not subjected to unnecessary and burdensome discovery or trial
proceedings,” Crawford-El v. Britton, 523 U.S. 574, 597-98 (1998),
IT IS HEREBY ORDERED that the Motion is GRANTED as follows. This case is
STAYED pending the resolution of the Recommendation [#24] and Defendants’ Motion to
Dismiss [#17].
IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that the Scheduling Conference set for July 3, 2012,
is VACATED.
Dated: May 11, 2012