Lockett v. Smith et al
Filing
39
MEMORANDUM (Order to follow as separate docket entry).Signed by Honorable Malachy E Mannion on 6/12/17. (bs)
UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
MIDDLE DISTRICT OF PENNSYLVANIA
TRAMALE LOCKETT,
:
:
Plaintiff
CIVIL ACTION NO. 3:15-1843
:
v
:
(JUDGE MANNION)
L.T. DELKER. , et al.,
:
Defendants
MEMORANDUM
I. Background
Plaintiff, Tramale Lockett, an inmate formerly confined in the Benner
State Correctional Institution, Bellefonte (“SCI-Benner”), Pennsylvania, filed
the above captioned civil rights action pursuant to 42 U.S.C. §1983. (Doc. 1,
complaint). The named Defendants are Warden Richard C. Smith,
Lieutenants Ashley Delkar, Michael Woods and Jordan Luzier, and Nurses
Mr. Larry, Mrs. Kimberly, Miss Dawn and Mrs. Michelle. Id.
On September 26, 2016, a motion to dismiss was filed on behalf of
Defendants Lieutenant Ashley Delkar, Lieutenant Michael Woods and
Corrections Officer Jordan Luzier. (Doc. 35). On October 10, 2016,
Defendants filed a brief in support of their motion to dismiss. (Doc. 36). By
Order dated April 26, 2017, the Court directed Plaintiff to file a brief in
opposition to Defendants’ motion on, or before, May 10, 2017. (Doc. 37,
Order). The Court forewarned Plaintiff that his failure to communicate with the
Court within twenty (20) days would result in dismissal of Plaintiff’s case. Id.
On May 11, 2017, this Court’s April 26, 2017 Order was returned as
undeliverable, with the notations “return to sender”, “not deliverable as
addressed”, and “paroled”. (Doc. 38). The time for filing a response has now
passed and Plaintiff has failed to respond. Lockett has not communicated with
the Court on this matter since the filing of his amended complaint on August
19, 2016. (Doc. 29). A search of the Department of Corrections inmate locator
confirmed
that
Lockett
is
no
longer
incarcerated.
See
www.inmatelocator.cor.state.pa. For the reasons set forth below, the Court
will dismiss Plaintiff’s action for failure to prosecute.
Discussion
District courts have the inherent power to dismiss an action for failure
to prosecute sua sponte. Chambers v. NASCO, Inc., 501 U.S. 32, 44 (1991).
The United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit has identified six
factors a court should consider before dismissing an action for failure to
prosecute:
(1) the extent of the party’s personal responsibility; (2) the
prejudice to the adversary caused by the failure to meet
scheduling orders and respond to discovery; (3) a history of
2
dilatoriness; (4) whether the conduct of the party or the attorney
was willful or in bad faith; (5) the effectiveness of sanctions other
than dismissal, which entails an analysis of alternative sanctions;
and (6) the meritoriousness of the claim or defense.
Poulis v. State Farm Fire & Cas. Co., 747 F.2d 863, 868 (3d Cir. 1984)
(emphases omitted). No single factor is dispositive, and “[e]ach factor need
not be satisfied for the trial court to dismiss a claim.” Ware v. Rodale Press,
Inc., 322 F.3d 218, 221 (3d Cir. 2003). However, the factors “should be
weighed by the district courts in order to assure that the ‘extreme’ sanction of
dismissal ... is reserved for the instances in which it is justly merited.” Poulis,
747 F.2d at 870.
A pro se plaintiff has the affirmative obligation to keep the court
informed of his address. Should such address change in the course of this
litigation, the plaintiff shall immediately inform the court of such change, in
writing. If the court is unable to communicate with the plaintiff because he has
failed to notify the court of his address, the plaintiff will be deemed to have
abandoned the lawsuit.
Lockett’s last communication with this Court was the filing of his
amended complaint. (Doc. 29). Lockett has not communicated with the Court
since the filing of this pleading. A search of the Department of Corrections
inmate locator indicates that he has been released from custody. Thus, it is
3
reasonable to conclude that Lockett has abandoned this suit. Consequently,
because Plaintiff’s dilatoriness outweighs any other Poulis factors, this action
will be dismissed. A separate Order will be issued.
s/ Malachy E. Mannion
MALACHY E. MANNION
United States District Judge
Dated: June 12, 2017
O:\Mannion\shared\MEMORANDA - DJ\CIVIL MEMORANDA\2015 MEMORANDA\15-1843-01.wpd
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