Turay v. Cunningham et al

Filing 27

ORDER denying 22 Motion to File "Amendment to Claim" signed by Magistrate Judge Karen L Strombom.(MET) cc: Plaintiff

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 For the reasons stated below, the court finds that the motion should be denied. BACKGROUND Mr. Turay filed his application to proceed in forma pauperis and proposed civil rights lawsuit on July 14, 2010. ECF No. 1. The court granted his application to proceed in forma pauperis and filed the complaint. ECF Nos. 4 and 5. Mr. Turay claims that Kelly Cunningham, the Superintendent of the Stafford Creek Corrections Center (SCCC), and Chaplain Greg Duncan denied Plaintiff's request to attend his father's funeral. ECF No. 5, p. 4. Mr. Turay requested "compensation for grief, pain, mental anguish, psychological abuse, and personal insult." ECF No. 5, p. 3. v. KELLY CUNNINGHAM, CATHI HARRIS, and CHAPLAIN GREG DUNCAN , Defendants. Before the court is Plaintiff's motion to file an "Amendment to Claim." ECF No. 22. RICHARD G. TURAY, Plaintiff, UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT WESTERN DISTRICT OF WASHINGTON AT TACOMA NO. C10-5493 BHS/KLS ORDER DENYING PLAINTIFF'S MOTION TO FILE "AMENDMENT TO CLAIM"

ORDER

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On October 5, 2010, Defendants filed a motion to dismiss Plaintiff's complaint. ECF No. 14. The court converted the motion to dismiss to a motion for summary judgment and noted the motion for January 7, 2011. ECF No. 21. On November 15, 2010, Plaintiff filed the "Amendment to Claim," in which he submits "the arbitrary figure of one million dollars ($1,000,000.00)" to be entered as his claim for damages in order to "satisfy the letter of Court Rules." ECF No. 22-1, p. 1. Plaintiff has not provided the court with a proposed amended complaint. DISCUSSION The Federal Rules of Civil Procedure do not require a statement of the amount of damages being requested. Rather, the rules require that a "demand for the relief sought," be included in a complaint. Fed. R. Civ. P. 8(a)(3). Therefore, there is no need to amend to insert an "arbitrary" amount of damages. In addition, Mr. Turay did not submit a proposed amended complaint. Instead, he submitted an "Amendment to Claim," stating his claim for money damages only. Mr. Turay is advised that an amended complaint supersedes the original in its entirety, making the original as if it never existed. The allegations contained in his motion are not sufficient to properly plead an amended complaint to include all of his factual and legal allegations, including those stated in his original complaint. If Mr. Turay wishes to amend his complaint, he must set forth all of the parties, claims and damages in a proposed amended complaint and submit it for the court's review. The amended complaint must be complete in itself without reference to the original complaint.

ORDER

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Finally, the court notes that there is a pending summary judgment motion. The proposed amendment, to include an "arbitrary figure," does not change the substance of the claims asserted and the proposed amendment should, therefore, be denied. Accordingly, Plaintiff's motion to file "Amendment to Claim" (ECF No. 22) is DENIED. The Clerk shall send copies of this Order to Plaintiff and to counsel for Defendants. DATED this 27th day of December, 2010.

A

Karen L. Strombom United States Magistrate Judge

ORDER

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