Burton v. Rockmon et al

Filing 31

ORDER ADOPTING REPORT AND RECOMMENDATIONS: As discussed in the attached Order, the Court ADOPTS Magistrate Judge Williams' Report and Recommendations (Doc. 30 ), GRANTS Defendants' Motion for Sanctions (Doc. 27 ), and DISMISSES with prejudice Plaintiff's complaint (Doc. 1 ). All settings, including the November 7, 2016 Jury Trial, are CANCELLED. The Clerk of Court SHALL enter judgment accordingly. Signed by Chief Judge Michael J. Reagan on 9/14/15. (mea)

IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
FOR THE SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF ILLINOIS

CHRISTOPHER M. BURTON,
Plaintiff,
vs.
HEAD WARDEN ROCKMON,
RANDY VALDEZ, and
MIKE SANDERS,
Defendants.

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MEMORANDUM & ORDER
REAGAN, Chief Judge:
On April 11, 2014, Plaintiff Christopher Burton, while incarcerated at Stateville
Correction Center, commenced this civil rights action (Doc. 1). A threshold review
under 28 U.S.C. § 1915A was conducted on May 2, 2015 (Doc. 7), in which the Court
noted the Plaintiff’s continuing obligation to inform the Court of his address (Id. at 7),
which the Plaintiff has not done. Defendants have attempted to engage the Plaintiff in
discovery by sending correspondence to his last known address, and have had no
success. Defendants noticed up the Plaintiff’s deposition, and the Plaintiff failed to
appear or otherwise respond (Docs. 27-1 and 27-2).
On July 27, 2015, the Defendants filed a motion for sanctions (Doc. 27), which
received no response. The Honorable Stephen C. Williams, United States Magistrate
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Judge, held a hearing on August 12, 2015 to hear argument on the motion; the Plaintiff
did not appear (Doc. 29).
Now before the Court is a Report and Recommendation (“R&R”) submitted by
Judge Williams on August 12, 2015 (Doc. 30), detailing the above series of facts, noting
that the Plaintiff has had ample opportunity to prosecute the case, but has filed nothing
with the Court since the date of his initial filing. It further specifically warned that
continued neglect of the lawsuit could result in dismissal under Federal Rule of Civil
Procedure 41(b) (Id. at 3).

Finally, the Magistrate Judge recommends that the

undersigned grant the Defendants’ motion for sanctions and dismiss the Plaintiff’s case
with prejudice (Id.). The parties had until August 31, 2015 to object to the R&R, and that
deadline has elapsed. No party filed any objections or requested an extension of the
objection-filing deadline.
Accordingly, pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 636(b), the undersigned District Judge need
not conduct de novo review of the R&R. 28 U.S.C. § 636(b)(1)(C) (“A judge of the court
shall make a de novo determination of those portions of the report or specified
proposed findings or recommendations to which objection is made.”).

See also

Thomas v. Arn, 474 U.S. 140 (1985); Johnson v. Zema Systems Corp., 170 F.3d 734, 741
(7th Cir. 1999); Video Views Inc., v. Studio 21, Ltd., 797 F.2d 538 (7th Cir. 1986).
The Court hereby ADOPTS the R&R (Doc. 30) in its entirety, GRANTS the
Defendants’ motion for sanctions, and DISMISSES the Plaintiff case with prejudice.

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All settings related to this matter are hereby CANCELLED, including the November 7,
2016 jury trial. The Clerk of Court SHALL enter judgment accordingly.
IT IS SO ORDERED.
DATED:

September 14, 2015
s/ Michael J. Reagan
Michael J. Reagan
Chief Judge
United States District Court

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