Bailey v. Doyle et al

Filing 59

ORDER TO ISSUE THIRD PARTY SUBPOENA. Signed by Chief Judge S. Thomas Anderson on 8/1/18. (mbm)

IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
FOR THE WESTERN DISTRICT OF TENNESSEE
WESTERN DIVISION
MICHAEL B. BAILEY,
Plaintiff,
v.

Civil Action No. 2:16-cv-02577-STA-egb

ASHLEY DOYLE, et al.,
Defendants.

ORDER TO ISSUE THIRD PARTY SUBPOENA

On March 24, 2017, the Court entered an order directing that service of process be issued
and served on Defendants Ashley Doyle, Jacqueline McDougle, and Thomas Shell. (ECF No.
15.) The summons was returned unexecuted on Defendant McDougle stating that she “no longer
works for WTSP in Henning, Tennessee.” (ECF No. 22.)
On July 26, 2018, the Court granted Plaintiff’s motion to dismiss the claims against
Defendants Shell and Doyle without prejudice. Because the lawsuit remained pending against
Defendant McDougle, Plaintiff was ordered to file a status report concerning his intent as to the
claims against Defendant McDougle. (ECF No. 57.) Plaintiff filed his report on July 30, 2018,
and states that he does want to pursue his claims against Defendant McDougle. (ECF No. 58.)
When an indigent plaintiff has taken reasonable steps to identify and locate a defendant,
the Court is responsible for ensuring that service is properly effected:
[Twenty-eight] U.S.C. § 1915(c) provides that the officers of the court “shall
issue and serve all process” when a plaintiff is proceeding in forma pauperis.
Fed. R. Civ. P. 4(c)(2) dovetails with § 1915(c) by providing that the court must
appoint a United States Marshal to serve plaintiff’s process “when the plaintiff is
authorized to proceed in forma pauperis pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1915.”
Together, Rule 4(c)(2) and 28 U.S.C. § 1915(c) stand for the proposition that

when a plaintiff is proceeding in forma pauperis the court is obligated to issue
plaintiff’s process to a United States Marshal who must in turn effectuate service
upon the defendants, thereby relieving a plaintiff of the burden to serve process
once reasonable steps have been taken to identify for the court the defendants
named in the complaint.
Byrd v. Stone, 94 F.3d 217, 219 (6th Cir. 1996). In the present case, Plaintiff has sufficiently
identified Defendant.
The Court hereby DIRECTS the Clerk to prepare a third-party subpoena for the
Tennessee Department of Correction and deliver it to the Marshal for service, along with a copy
of this order. The subpoena shall direct Commissioner, Tennessee Department of Correction,
Rachel Jackson Building, Sixth Floor, 320 Sixth Avenue North Nashville, Tennessee 372430465 to supply the last known home address and telephone number of Jacqueline McDougle who
was a correctional officer at West Tennessee State Penitentiary on or about May 24, 2015. This
information should be provided on or before September 1, 2018. Due to security and privacy
concerns, information provided in compliance with the subpoena shall not be made available to
Plaintiff, but shall be filed by the Clerk ex parte and under seal. A summons shall then be reissued and provided to the Marshal for service.
IT IS SO ORDERED.
s/ S. Thomas Anderson
S. THOMAS ANDERSON
CHIEF UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE
Date: August 1, 2018

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