Morgan v. Middlesex Sheriff's Office et al

Filing 31

Judge Indira Talwani: MEMORANDUM AND ORDER. In accordance with this Court's order dated August 13, 2014, and the plaintiff not having shown good cause why this case should not be dismissed for failure to state a claim, it is ORDERED that the within action be and it is hereby DISMISSED. In addition, in accordance with the above, Plaintiffs motion seeking government files at docket #27 is hereby DENIED. (PSSA, 4)

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
DISTRICT OF MASSACHUSETTS

PATRICK MORGAN,
Plaintiff,
v.
MIDDLESEX SHERIFF’S OFFICE, et al.
Defendants.

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Civil Action No.
14-10659-IT

MEMORANDUM AND ORDER
TALWANI, D.J.
For the reasons stated below, this action is dismissed for failing to state a claim on which
relief may be granted.
BACKGROUND
In March 2014, Patrick Morgan (“Morgan”) initiated this action against the Middlesex
Sheriff’s Office and other defendants. By Memorandum and Order dated April 16, 2014,
Morgan was advised that if he wanted to proceed with this action, he must either file an amended
habeas petition or a complaint. See Docket No. 5. Morgan filed a civil complaint, see Docket
No. 9, and by Memorandum and Order dated August 13, 2014, Morgan was permitted to proceed
in forma pauperis but was ordered to show cause why his complaint should not be dismissed, or
in the alternative, to file an amended complaint. See Docket No. 14. The court also denied
without prejudice plaintiff’s motion for appointment of counsel. Id. at 14-15. By Procedural
Order dated November 18, 2014, Morgan was advised that if he wishes to pursue his claim, his
deadline for complying with the 08/13/14 Memorandum and Order was extended to December

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31, 2014. See Docket No. 18. Morgan responded by filing several motions and requested an
extension of time. See Docket Nos. 20, 21, 22. By Order dated December 5, 2014, the court,
among other things, granted Morgan an extension of time until January 9, 2015 to file an
amended complaint. See Docket No. 24. On January 15, 2015, Morgan filed a document
entitled “Motion to Strike and Amend Complaint and Petition the Court for Access to Court and
Raw Materials.” See Docket No. 26 (Plaintiff’s Am. Compl.). On May 15, 2015, Morgan filed a
motion pursuant to the Freedom of Information Act to obtain any files that the government may
have on him. See Docket No. 27.
DISCUSSION
As an initial matter, Morgan failed to comply with a court imposed deadline for filing his
amended complaint. By Order dated December 5, 2014, Morgan was granted until January 9,
2015, to file an amended complaint. Six days after the court imposed deadline, on January 15,
2015, Morgan filed his amended complaint. The cover letter accompanying the amended
complaint is dated January 13, 2015. Despite the fact that his amended complaint was not timely
filed, the court will allow the filing of Morgan’s amended complaint,
The court provided several opportunities to Morgan to allege facts sufficient to state a
claim. The court’s August 13, 2014 Memorandum and Order explained that any amended
complaint must set forth the cause of action (that is, the legal theory of liability) asserted against
each defendant separately, along with a brief statement of the underlying facts to support each
claim (that is, the "who, what, when, where, and why" information required by the federal
courts) and the relief to which Morgan is allegedly entitled. See Docket No. 14. The order
advised Morgan that failure to comply with these directives will result in dismissal of this action.

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Id.
In his January 15, 2015 amended complaint, Morgan again seeks assistance from the court,
this time in the provision of “raw materials.” See Docket No. 26. He explains that he is indigent
and does not possess the “raw materials and/or mechanical inclinations to completely adhere to
all rules of civil procedure in great part due to [his handicap].” Id. As to his effort to show
cause why his claims should not be dismissed, the amended complaint contains conclusory
allegations that does not provide sufficient details of the underlying facts supporting the
allegations. Morgan references several “‘notarized’ cases” where courts have held liable “prison
officials, and other elected officials.” Id. at p. 6. Morgan reminds the court that he filed
“repeated grievances to no avail,” id. at p. 3, and now suffers “from memory loss, ‘ticks’ and
other psychological and neurological ailments that seriously impede [his] ability to maintain and
sustain gainful employment.” Id. at p. 4.
By issuing its previous orders and allowing Morgan to amend his complaint, the court gave
Morgan the opportunity to further develop the underlying factual basis for his civil rights claims.
However, after reviewing the amended complaint, the court finds that the amended complaint
still does not contain enough facts to plead any plausible claims against any of the defendants.
See Bell Atl. Corp. v. Twombly, 550 U.S. 544, 555–58 (2007) (holding that a complaint must
include factual allegations that, taken as true, demonstrate a plausible claim for relief). After
carefully reviewing Morgan’s submissions, I find that he has failed to demonstrate any reason
why this action should not be dismissed. It does not seem likely that Morgan will be able to
sufficiently plead any claim and the court concludes that it would be futile to permit further
amendment.

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Finally, as to Morgan’s motion pursuant to the Freedom of Information Act to obtain any
files that the government may have on him, see Docket No. 27, Morgan must file any requests to
the governmental agencies that possess the information he seeks.
ORDER
Based upon the foregoing, it is hereby ORDERED that, in accordance with this Court's
order dated August 13, 2014, and the plaintiff not having shown good cause why this case should
not be dismissed for failure to state a claim, it is ORDERED that the within action be and it is
hereby DISMISSED for the reasons stated above. In addition, in accordance with the above,
Plaintiff’s motion seeking government files at docket #27 is hereby DENIED.
So ordered.

/s/ Indira Talwani
Indira Talwani
United States District Judge
Dated: June 4, 2015

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