Jones v. Fogam

Filing 18

ORDER granting 15 Motion for More Definite Statement. Within thirty days Fogam shall file an answer to all of Jones' complaint filings. Signed by Magistrate Judge G. R. Smith on 11/21/2013. (loh)

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF GEORGIA
SAVANNAH DIVISION
LESTER BERNARD JONES,
Plaintiff,

Case No. CV413-131

V.

DR. ERIC FOGAM, Medical
Director,

Defendant.
ORDER
In its last order the Court reviewed plaintiff Lester Bernard Jones'
amended 42 U.S.C. § 1983 complaint against his prison doctor, Eric
Fogam, M.D. Doe. 10; reported as Jones v. Fogam, 2013 WL 4590406
(S.D. Ga. Aug. 28, 2013). There the Court screened his claims and
green-lighted his medical needs claim, which was based on his claim that
defendant Dr. Fogam refused to furnish him with a prosthetic leg. Doe.
10 at 7. Jones also claimed that the defendant denied him the leg because
of his race. The Court found that claim to be legally deficient but gave
Jones a chance to re-plead it. Doe. 10 at 8-9.
Jones has responded with an amended complaint and a motion for a

preliminary injunction (he wants his prosthetic leg now).

Doc. 13-1.

Fogam, meanwhile, has waived service (does. 14 & 17) but moves for a
"more definite statement." Doe. 15. He wants to know to which of
Jones' filings he should respond, as Jones has loaded up the record with
multiple, largely repetitive filings. Id. at 1-2.
In his latest amended complaint, Jones supplies factual details about
similarly situated, white amputee inmates who have received prosthetics
while Jones and another black inmate have not. Doe. 13-1 at 5-6.
Applying the ease law previously noted, doe. 10 at 8-9, the Court concludes
that he has pled enough to warrant a response. Accordingly, the Court
also green-lights Jones' race-discrimination claim.
Finally, the Court GRANTS defendant Fogam's definite-statement
motion. Doe. 15. Within 30 days, Fogam shall file an Answer (and any
dispositive motion he wants) to all of Jones' complaint filings, does. 1, 9,
12 & 13-1, and also respond to his preliminary injunction motions. Does.
3 & 13-1. As Fogam's counsel knows, this Court is obligated to construe
a pro se plaintiff's pleadings liberally. Mendenhall v. Blackmun, 456 F.
App'x 849, 851-52 (11th Cir. 2012). Jones has been irritatingly
repetitious, but has sufficiently pled medical-needs and race-based claims,

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and it is not an undue burden to thread through his filings, especially
since repetition need only be read once.
To that end, the Court has already furnished Fogam with a running
start -- its case law discussion in its last Order -- thus mitigating his task
somewhat. Jones, meanwhile, is reminded to serve Fogam with all
future filings pursuant Fed. R. Civ. P. 5.
SO ORDERED this 21st day of November, 2013.

UNITED STATES MAGISTRATE JUDGE

SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF GEORGIA

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