Moore v. Palmer et al

Filing 137

ORDER Denying 129 Motion to Compel. Signed by District Judge Matthew F. Leitman. (HMon)

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
EASTERN DISTRICT OF MICHIGAN
SOUTHERN DIVISION
MAURICE MOORE,
Plaintiff,

Case No. 12-cv-14783
Hon. Matthew F. Leitman

v.
CARMEN PALMER et al.,
Defendants.
_________________________________/

ORDER DENYING MOTION TO COMPEL (ECF #129)
Plaintiff Maurice Moore (“Moore”) is a former inmate of the Michigan
Department of Corrections (“MDOC”). On October 29, 2012, Moore filed this
action in which he asserted that MDOC employees at three facilities -- Marquette
Branch Prison, Michigan Reformatory, and G. Robert Cotton Correctional Facility - violated his constitutional rights while he was incarcerated. (See Compl., ECF #1.)
On November 16, 2017, Moore filed a motion to compel discovery against
Defendants. (See Motion, ECF #129.) Moore specifically “seek[s] the production
of (9) specific photographs in their original color format.” (Id. at Pg. ID 1224.)
The Defendants filed a response to the motion to compel and attached
affidavits from employees at the three correctional facilities in question – Marquette
Branch Prison, Michigan Reformatory, and G. Robert Cotton Correctional Facility.
(See ECF #135; Aff. of Aaron Vroman (“Vroman Aff.”), ECF #135-2; Aff. of Jerry
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Hoult (“Hoult Aff.”), ECF #135-3; Aff. of Kimberly Napier (“Napier Aff.”), ECF
#135-4.) In each affidavit, the employee swears under oath that his facility does not
have color versions of the photos identified by Moore. (See Vroman Aff. at ¶3, ECF
#135-2 at Pg. ID 1449 (“After conducting a review of the indicated critical incident
report, I have determined that there are no color photographs attached to that
report.”); Hoult Aff. at ¶3, ECF #135-3 at Pg. ID 1453 (same); Napier Aff. at ¶3,
ECF #135-4 at Pg. ID 1457 (same).) Moore has not presented any evidence calling
the affidavits into question or indicating that the requested color photographs do, in
fact, exist.
IT IS HEREBY ORDERED that Moore’s motion to compel (ECF #129) is
DENIED because the nine photographs in their original color format do not exist
and therefore cannot be produced.
s/Matthew F. Leitman
MATTHEW F. LEITMAN
UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE
Dated: January 24, 2018
I hereby certify that a copy of the foregoing document was served upon the parties
and/or counsel of record on January 24, 2018, by electronic means and/or ordinary
mail.
s/Holly A. Monda
Case Manager
[phone]

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