Shafer v. Sanchez
Filing
73
ORDER ADOPTING 40 MEMORANDUM AND RECOMMENDATIONS and Denys re: 24 MOTION for Default Judgment against All Defendants (Signed by Judge Nelva Gonzales Ramos) Parties notified.(ChristinaAvila, 2)
Case 2:22-cv-00049 Document 73 Filed on 01/17/23 in TXSD Page 1 of 2
United States District Court
Southern District of Texas
ENTERED
UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF TEXAS
CORPUS CHRISTI DIVISION
RICHARD SCOTT SHAFER,
Plaintiff,
VS.
JERRY SANCHEZ, et al.,
Defendants.
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January 17, 2023
Nathan Ochsner, Clerk
CIVIL ACTION NO. 2:22-CV-00049
ORDER ADOPTING MEMORANDUM AND RECOMMENDATION
Plaintiff Richard Scott Shafer is a state prisoner incarcerated at the Texas
Department of Criminal Justice-Criminal Institutions Division (TDCJ) McConnell Unit in
Beeville, Texas. D.E. 2. On July 13, 2022, United States Magistrate Judge Julie K.
Hampton issued a Memorandum and Recommendation (M&R, D.E. 40), recommending
that Shafer’s motion for default judgment (D.E. 24) be denied.
Shafer timely filed his
objections (D.E. 51). Shafer’s main contention is that he is entitled to default judgment
against Defendant Jerry Sanchez because Sanchez failed to timely respond to the
Magistrate Judge’s Order to Show Cause.
“[T]he entry of default judgment is committed to the discretion of the district judge.”
Mason v. Lister, 562 F.2d 343, 345 (5th Cir. 1977). A party is not entitled to a default
judgment as a matter of right, even where the defendant is technically in default. See Lewis
v. Lynn, 236 F.3d 766, 767 (5th Cir. 2001) (citing Ganther v. Ingle, 75 F.3d 207, 212 (5th
Cir. 1996)). In fact, default judgment is a “drastic remedy not favored by the Federal Rules
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Case 2:22-cv-00049 Document 73 Filed on 01/17/23 in TXSD Page 2 of 2
and resorted to by the courts only in extreme situations.” See Sun Bank of Ocala v. Pelican
Homestead & Sav. Ass'n, 842 F.2d 274, 276 (5th Cir. 1989). The Magistrate Judge properly
noted that Sanchez filed a responsive motion to Shafer’s first amended complaint and is
now appearing and participating in the court proceedings. See D.E. 20; D.E. 40, p. 4. And
Sanchez did respond to the Magistrate Judge’s Order to Show Cause. D.E. 30. It is
therefore a proper use of the Court’s discretion to deny default and Shafer’s objection is
OVERRULED.
Shafer’s other contentions are conclusory and fail to address the Magistrate Judge’s
recommendation. See Malacara v. Garber, 353 F.3d 393, 405 (5th Cir. 2003) (to be
considered, the objection must point out with particularity the error in the magistrate
judge’s analysis).
Having reviewed the findings of fact, conclusions of law, and recommendations set
forth in the Magistrate Judge’s Memorandum and Recommendation, as well as Shafer’s
objections, and all other relevant documents in the record, and having made a de novo
disposition of the portions of the Magistrate Judge’s Memorandum and Recommendation
to which objections were specifically directed, the Court OVERRULES Shafer’s
objections and ADOPTS as its own the findings and conclusions of the Magistrate Judge.
Accordingly, Shafer’s motion for default judgment is DENIED.
ORDERED on January 17, 2023.
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NELVA GONZALES RAMOS
UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE
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