Robinson v. City of St. Gabriel et al

Filing 15

RULING granting 14 Motion to Compel Discovery. Plaintiff shall serve his answers to interrogatories, and produce for inspection and copying all documents responsive to the defendants' requests for production, without objections, within 10 days. Pursuant to Rule 37(d)(3), the plaintiff is also ordered to pay to the defendants, within 10 days, reasonable expenses in the amount of $250. Signed by Magistrate Judge Stephen C. Riedlinger on 3/3/2014. (SMG)

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
MIDDLE DISTRICT OF LOUISIANA
CHAD DURRELL ROBINSON
CIVIL ACTION
VERSUS
NUMBER 13-298-BAJ-SCR
CITY OF ST. GABRIEL, ET AL
RULING MOTION TO COMPEL DISCOVERY
Before the court is Defendants’ Motion to Compel Plaintiff’s
Discovery Responses filed by The City of St. Gabriel, Mayor Lionel
Johnson, Police Chief Kevin Ambeau, Officer Robert Jones, Jr.,
Officer J. Darville, and Officer S. Redditt.
number 14.

Record document

No opposition has been filed.

Defendants filed this motion to compel the plaintiff to
respond to their Interrogatories and Request for Production of
Documents propounded on November 21, 2013.1

Defendants’ attorney

sent a letter to the plaintiff’s attorney on December 23, 2013
inquiring

about

the

past

due

discovery

responses.2

When

no

response was received, the defendants’ attorney sent a second
letter on January 14, 2014 to schedule a Rule 37, Fed.R.Civ.P.,
conference for January 21, 2014.3

Defendants asserted that their

counsel spoke to the plaintiff’s attorney’s assistant on the day of
the conference who stated that responses would be provided by

1

Record document 14-3, Exhibit A.

2

Record document 14-4, Exhibit B.

3

Record document 14-5, Exhibit C.

February 3, 2014.

No responses had been received at the time this

motion was filed.
Despite multiple efforts to obtain the discovery responses,
the plaintiff did not serve his answers to interrogatories or
produce responsive documents.

Nor has the plaintiff responded to

this motion or otherwise furnished any information indicating when
his discovery responses will be provided.

In these circumstances,

under Rule 37(b) and (d)(1)(A), Fed.R.Civ.P., the defendants are
entitled to an order compelling the plaintiff to respond and
imposing sanctions.

Plaintiff will be required to answer the

interrogatories and produce responsive documents for inspection and
copying within 10 days.
37(d)(3)

incorporates

37(b)(2)(A)(i)-(vi).

No objections will be allowed.4
the

sanctions

However,

the

available

defendants

under

did

not

Rule
Rule
seek

additional sanctions.
Under Rule 37(d)(3) the court must require the party failing
to act, or the attorney advising that party, or both, to pay the
reasonable

expenses,

including

attorney’s

fees

caused

by

the

failure unless the failure was substantially justified or other
circumstances make an award of expenses unjust. Defendants’ motion
shows that a good faith attempt was made to obtain the discovery

4

Generally, discovery objections are waived if a party fails
to timely object to interrogatories, production requests or other
discovery efforts.
See, In re U.S., 864 F.2d 1153, 1156 (5th
Cir.), reh’g denied, 869 F.2d 1487 (5th Cir. 1989); Godsey v. U.S.,
133 F.R.D. 111, 113 (S.D. Miss. 1990.)
2

responses without court action.

Nothing in the record indicates

that the plaintiff’s failure was substantially justified or that
there are any circumstances which would make an award of expenses
unjust.

Therefore, the defendants are entitled to reasonable

expenses under Rule 37(d)(3).

Defendants did not claim a specific

amount of expenses incurred in filing this motion.

However, a

review of the motion and memorandum supports the conclusion that an
award of $250.00 is reasonable.
Accordingly,

Defendants’

Motion

to

Compel

Plaintiff’s

Discovery Responses filed by The City of St. Gabriel, Mayor Lionel
Johnson, Police Chief Kevin Ambeau, Officer Robert Jones, Jr.,
Officer J. Darville, and Officer S. Redditt is granted.
shall

serve

his

answers

to

interrogatories,

and

Plaintiff

produce

for

inspection and copying all documents responsive to the defendants’
requests

for

production,

without

objections,

within

10

days.

Pursuant to Rule 37(d)(3), the plaintiff is also ordered to pay to
the defendants, within 10 days, reasonable expenses in the amount
of $250.00.
Baton Rouge, Louisiana, March 3, 2014.

STEPHEN C. RIEDLINGER
UNITED STATES MAGISTRATE JUDGE

3