Brown v. King County Jail et al

Filing 82

ORDER granting Plaintiff's 56 Motion to Amend/Change Name of Defendant. Plaintiff's motion to withdraw his motion to amend the title of his third amended complaint (Dkt. 74 ) is GRANTED, and plaintiff's motion to amend the title o f his amended complaint (Dkt. 57 ) is STRICKEN pursuant to his request. Plaintiff's motion to conduct additional discovery (Dkt. 72 ) is STRICKEN as premature. Signed by Hon. James P. Donohue.**3 PAGE(S), PRINT ALL**(Dranoel Brown, Prisoner ID: 314960)(TH)

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UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
WESTERN DISTRICT OF WASHINGTON
AT SEATTLE

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DRANOEL ENAJ BROWN,
Plaintiff,

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Case No. C16-1332-JCC-JPD
ORDER GRANTING PLAINTIFF’S
MOTION TO CHANGE NAME OF
DEFENDANT

v.
KING COUNTY, et al.,
Defendants.

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This is a civil rights action brought under 42 U.S.C. § 1983. This matter comes before

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the Court at the present time on plaintiff’s motions to amend his complaint to change the name of

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a defendant, to amend the title of his third amended complaint, to withdraw his motion to amend

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the title of his third amended complaint, and to conduct additional discovery. Defendants oppose

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plaintiff’s motions to change the name of a defendant and to conduct additional discovery, but do

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not oppose plaintiff’s other two motions. The Court, having considered plaintiff’s motions,

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defendants’ responses, and the balance of the record, hereby Orders as follows:

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(1)

Plaintiff’s motion to amend his complaint to change the name of a defendant (Dkt.

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56) is GRANTED. On August 23, 2017, plaintiff filed a motion for leave to amend his

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complaint together with a proposed third amended complaint. Among the claims he sought to

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ORDER GRANTING PLAINTIFF’S MOTION
TO CHANGE NAME OF DEFENDANT - 1

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add in his third amended complaint was a claim that Catherine Schroeder, a member of the King

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County jail health services staff, took his wheelchair away in October 2015, thereby violating his

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rights under the Eighth and Fourteenth Amendments. (See Dkt. 59 at 5-6.) On October 4, 2017,

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this Court issued an Order in which it denied plaintiff’s request to add Ms. Schroeder as a

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defendant because plaintiff could not confirm that Ms. Schroeder was the medical provider who

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took his wheelchair away. (See Dkt. 58.) The Court failed to recognize prior to issuing its Order

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that plaintiff, on September 29, 2017, had filed the instant motion seeking to substitute King

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County medical provider Nancy Ledgerwood for Ms. Schroeder, having discovered through his

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review of his medical files that it was Ms. Ledgerwood who took away his wheelchair in October

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2015.
Defendants object to plaintiff’s request to substitute Ms. Ledgerwood for Ms. Schroeder

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on the grounds of undue delay. (Dkt. 64.) Defendants raised a similar objection in response to

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plaintiff’s motion to file his third amended complaint, an objection which this Court rejected.

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(See Dkts. 46 and 58.) Had the Court recognized at the time it issued its October 4, 2017 Order

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that plaintiff had requested to substitute Ms. Ledgerwood for Ms. Schroeder, it would have

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granted that request. The Court will not penalize plaintiff now because of its own oversight.

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Plaintiff’s request to substitute Ms. Ledgerwood is therefore granted. The Court will issue a

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service order in conjunction with this order directing service of plaintiff’s third amended

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complaint on Ms. Ledgerwood.

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(2)

Plaintiff’s motion to withdraw his motion to amend the title of his third amended

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complaint (Dkt. 74) is GRANTED, and plaintiff’s motion to amend the title of his amended

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complaint (Dkt. 57) is STRICKEN pursuant to his request.

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ORDER GRANTING PLAINTIFF’S MOTION
TO CHANGE NAME OF DEFENDANT - 2

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(3)

Plaintiff’s motion to conduct additional discovery (Dkt. 72) is STRICKEN as

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premature. It appears that plaintiff is seeking additional time to conduct limited discovery with

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respect to proposed defendant Nancy Ledgerwood. While the Court has granted plaintiff’s

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motion to add Ms. Ledgerwood as a defendant, Ms. Ledgerwood has not yet been served nor has

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she had an opportunity to file a responsive pleading. Plaintiff may renew his motion to conduct

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additional discovery once Ms. Ledgerwood has filed a responsive pleading in this matter.

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Plaintiff is advised that any such motion must state with greater specificity than the current

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motion what additional discovery is desired and why it is necessary.

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(4)

The Clerk is directed to send copies of this Order to plaintiff, to counsel for

defendants, and to the Honorable John C. Coughenour.
DATED this 7th day of November, 2017.

A

JAMES P. DONOHUE
Chief United States Magistrate Judge

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ORDER GRANTING PLAINTIFF’S MOTION
TO CHANGE NAME OF DEFENDANT - 3