Cantrell v. General Security, Inc. et al

Filing 43

PROTECTIVE ORDER regarding Sheriff's Investigative Records - Signed by United States Magistrate Judge Robert B. Jones, Jr on 2/23/2017. (Briggeman, N.)

IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
FOR THE EASTERN DISTRICT OF NORTH CAROLINA

Western Division
No. 5:16-cv-00374-D

Louise A. Cantrell, Administrator of the
Estates of Edward D. Cantrell, Isabella
Cantrell, and Natalia Cantrell
(Decedents), Individually, and as the
Personal Representative ofthe Estates and
Beneficiaries ofDecedents,

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V.
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General Security, Inc., Time Warner )
Cable, Inc., Time Warner Cable )
Enterprises, LLC, Time Warner Cable )
Plaintiffs,

Southeast, LLC,

Defendants.

PROTECTIVE ORDER
re Sheriff's Investigative Records

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Pursuant to Rule 26( c) the Court finds and orders as follows:
1.

Plaintiffs Complaint concerns a criminal investigation conducted by agents
with the Cumberland County Sheriffs Office.

2.

N.C.Gen.Stat. § 132-1.4 deems records of criminal investigations to be
confidential and not subject to disclosure under the Public Records Act and,
thus, nonpublic records.

3.

Counsel for Defendants have requested, pursuant to subpoena, that the
Cumberland County Sheriffs Office investigative file be produced, and the
Sheriffs Office has requested that such file be produced subject to a

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protective order, pursuant to Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 26(c) and 45
and in compliance with N.C.Gen.Stat. § 132.1-4, restricting the use to the
prosecution and defense of this lawsuit and prohibiting the disclosure to
unauthorized persons.
4.

A protective order is appropriate upon the following terms and conditions
with respect to the use and disclosure of the requested Cumberland County
Sheriffs Office file or records:
a. All documents identified as confidential shall be revealed only to and
used only by "qualified persons" as provided in subparagraph 4(b) of
this Order and only in connection with the prosecution or defense of this
case, including any appeal thereof;
b. As used herein, "qualified persons" means:
1.

This Court, including its staff and any jury selected in this case,
under such safeguards as are provided in this Order or as are
required by the Court in the event any confidential matter is to be
used or introduced at trial;

11.

Present and subsequent in-house and outside counsel for the parties
to this action, together with their paralegals and clerical employees
actually working on the case at any time;

111.

Outside experts consulted or retained by counsel in connection with
the preparation for trial or trial;
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IV.

Court appointed mediators or any mediator agreed to by all parties;

v.

Court reporters, their transcribers, assistants, and employees; and

v1. The individual and entity parties to this action and witnesses m
connection with the preparation for trial or at trial, including
discovery conducted in connection with the prosecution or defense
of this case.
5.

It shall be the responsibility of counsel for each party to this action to

ensure that qualified persons receiving the Cumberland County Sheriffs
Office file pursuant to this Order have knowledge of the terms of this Order
and agree to be bound by them and to make disclosure only as consistent
with this order, the rules of this Court or as permitted pursuant to this order
or a subsequent order of the Court. Without limiting the foregoing, it shall
be the responsibility of counsel filing or disclosing any documents from the
Cumberland County Sheriffs Office file or records to comply with the
requirements of the Court for redaction of information pursuant to F. R.
Civ. P. 5.2 and Local Civil Rule 5.1(g) (E.D.N.C.).
6.

In the event that material produced pursuant to this order which may be
required to be restricted, then, the submitting party shall comply with
Electronic Case Filing Administrative Policies and Procedures Manual,
particularly, Section T(l)(a)l(I) through (v) with respect to the filing of

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sealed material, and with respect to Filing Restricted Documents m
CM/ECF:
a. Except for motions filed under seal in accordance with Section T(l )(a)7,
each time a party seeks to file under seal, said party shall accompany the
request with a motion to seal, which may be filed without a supporting
memorandum only if the filing party can cite a statute or rule (federal,
local or standing order) that requires the filing to be sealed. Absent such
authority, the filing party must submit a supporting memorandum that

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specifies:
1.

the exact document or item, or portions thereof, for which filing
under seal is requested;

11.

how such request to seal overcomes the common law or the First
Amendment presumption to access;

111.

the specific qualities of the material at issue which justify sealing
such material, taking into account the balance of competing interest
m access;

1v. the reasons why alternatives to sealing are inadequate; and
v.

whether there is consent to the motion; and

In addition, the proposed sealed document shall be filed in accordance with
Local Civil Rule 79.2 to the motion and supporting memorandum, the filing
party must set out such findings in a proposed order to. seal.
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7.

Ultimate disposition of protected materials will be subject to final Order of
the Court upon completion of litigation.

8.

This Order shall not constitute a waiver of the parties' right to object to the
disclosure of material on grounds relating to discovery or to its
admissibility into evidence.

SO ORDERED, this the

Z~

day ofFebruary 2017.

United States Magistrate Judge

Consented to this 26 1h day of January, 2017.
/s/ Thomas David Hoyle

/s/ Laura E. Dean

Thomas David Hoyle
John David Hurst

Laura E. Dean
Frank Marshall Wall

Motley Rice LLC
28 Bridgeside Boulevard
Post Office Box 65000 I
Mount Pleasant, SC 29464
Telephone: [phone]
Fax: [phone]
Email: jhurst(ii)motlevrice.com
Email: [e-mail]
Attorneys for Plaintiff

Cranfill Sumner & Hartzog, LLP
Post Office Box 27808
5420 Wade Park Boulevard, Suite 300
Raleigh, NC 27611-7808
Telephone: [phone]
Fax: [phone]
Email: [e-mail]
Email: [e-mail]
Attorneys for Defendant, General Security, Inc.

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/s/ David L. Brown

/s/ Ronnie M. Mitchell

David L. Brown
David G. Harris, II
Goldberg Segalla LLP
800 Green Valley Road, Suite 302
Greensboro, NC 27408
Telephone: [phone]
Fax: [phone]
Email: [e-mail]
Email: [e-mail]
Attorney for Defendants, Time Warner Cable,
Inc., Time Warner Cable Enterprises, LLC, Time
Warner Cable Southeast, LLC

Ronnie M. Mitchell
Legal Counsel
Office of the Sheriff
Cumberland County NC
131 Dick Street
Fayetteville, North Carolina 28301
Telephone: [phone]
Facsimile: 910.321.6780
[e-mail]
Attorney for Movant (Interested Party) Ennis W
Wright, Sheriff of Cumberland County

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