Greystoke v. Clallam County Corrections Facility et al
Filing
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ORDER TO SHOW CAUSE OR AMEND COMPLAINT by 11/2/2018, signed by Magistrate Judge Theresa L Fricke. (Attachments: # 1 Second Amended Complaint Form, # 2 Second Amended Defendant Service for)**12 PAGE(S), PRINT ALL**(John Greystoke, Prisoner ID: 403362)(GMR)
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UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
WESTERN DISTRICT OF WASHINGTON
AT TACOMA
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JOHN GREYSTOKE,
Case No. C18-5217-RJB-TLF
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Plaintiff,
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ORDER TO SHOW CAUSE OR
AMEND THE COMPLAINT
v.
CLALLAM COUNTY CORRECTIONS
FACILITY, ET AL,
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Defendants.
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This matter is before the Court on plaintiff’s filing of a proposed amended civil rights
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complaint. 1 Plaintiff has been granted leave to proceed in forma pauperis. In light of the
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deficiencies in the amended complaint discussed herein, however, the undersigned will not direct
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service of the amended complaint at this time. Plaintiff, though, will be provided the opportunity
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by the date set forth below to show cause why the amended complaint should not be dismissed or
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to file a second amended complaint.
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Screening Requirements
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The Court must dismiss the complaint of a prisoner proceeding in forma pauperis “at any
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time if the [C]ourt determines” that the action: (a) “is frivolous or malicious”; (b) “fails to state a
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claim on which relief may be granted”’ or (c) “seeks monetary relief against a defendant who is
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immune from such relief.” 28 U.S.C. § 1915(e)(2); 28 U.S.C. § 1915A(a), (b). A complaint is
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Dkt. 15.
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ORDER TO SHOW CAUSE OR AMEND THE
COMPLAINT - 1
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frivolous when it has no arguable basis in law or fact. Franklin v. Murphy, 745 F.3d 1221, 1228
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(9th Cir. 1984).
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Before the Court may dismiss the complaint as frivolous or for failure to state a claim,
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though, it “must provide the [prisoner] with notice of the deficiencies of his or her complaint and
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an opportunity to amend the complaint prior to dismissal.” McGucken v. Smith, 974 F.2d 1050,
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1055 (9th Cir. 1992); see also Sparling v. Hoffman Constr., Co., Inc., 864 F.2d 635, 638 (9th Cir.
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1988); Noll v. Carlson, 809 F.2d 1446, 1449 (9th Cir. 1987). On the other hand, leave to amend
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need not be granted “where the amendment would be futile or where the amended complaint
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would be subject to dismissal.” Saul v. United States, 928 F.2d 829, 843 (9th Cir. 1991).
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Rule 8(a) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure provides that in order for a pleading to
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state a claim for relief it must contain a short and plain statement of the grounds for the court’s
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jurisdiction, a short and plain statement of the claim showing that the pleader is entitled to relief,
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and a demand for the relief sought. The statement of the claim must be sufficient to “give the
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defendant fair notice of what the plaintiff’s claim is and the grounds upon which it rests.”
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Conley v. Gibson, 355 U.S. 41, 47 (1957). The factual allegations of a complaint must be
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“enough to raise a right to relief above the speculative level.” Bell Atlantic Corp. v. Twombly,
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550 U.S. 544, 555 (2007). In addition, a complaint must allege facts to state a claim for relief
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that is plausible on its face. Ashcroft v. Iqbal, 556 U.S. 662, 678 (2009).
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In order to state a claim for relief under 42 U.S.C. § 1983, a plaintiff must show (1) that
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he suffered a violation of rights protected by the Constitution or created by federal statute, and
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(2) that the violation was proximately caused by a person acting under color of state or federal
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law. See Crumpton v. Gates, 947 F.2d 1418, 1420 (9th Cir. 1991). To satisfy the second prong, a
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plaintiff must allege facts showing how individually named defendants caused, or personally
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ORDER TO SHOW CAUSE OR AMEND THE
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participated in causing, the harm alleged in the complaint. See Arnold v. IBM, 637 F.2d 1350,
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1355 (9th Cir. 1981).
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A defendant cannot be held liable solely on the basis of supervisory responsibility or
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position. Monell v. Department of Social Servs., of City of New York, 436 U.S. 658, 691-694
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(1978). Rather, a plaintiff must allege that a defendant’s own conduct violated the plaintiff's civil
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rights. City of Canton, Ohio v. Harris, 489 U.S. 378, 385-90 (1989).
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Plaintiff’s Amended Complaint
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The Court issued a prior Order to Show Cause in this case indicating that plaintiff’s
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original complaint was deficient in part because it failed to allege a plausible set of facts to
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support the claims and because it failed to allege any facts to show defendants caused or
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personally participated in causing a constitutional violation. Dkt. 14; Fed. R. Civ. P. 8(a). In
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response to the Court’s order plaintiff filed this amended complaint which names Dr. Arthur
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Tordini and C. Sanders as defendants. Dkt. 15. Although plaintiff’s amended complaint does
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allege some additional facts than were alleged in his original complaint, the Court declines to
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order that plaintiff’s amended complaint be served because it remains deficient in the following
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respects:
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Plaintiff’s pleading remains generally deficient because it does not comply with the
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requirements of Rule 8(a). Plaintiff’s pleading is difficult to read, vague and confusing in places,
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and insufficient to put the purported defendants on notice of plaintiff’s claims and the grounds
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upon which they rest. With respect to defendant Tordini, plaintiff’s amended complaint appears
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to state that defendant Tordini “examined me for an infection with his pecker.” Dkt. 15, at 3. In
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the first place it is not entirely clear to the Court what plaintiff is alleging occurred. It is unclear
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whether plaintiff is alleging he was harmed as a result of a medical examination, whether he is
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ORDER TO SHOW CAUSE OR AMEND THE
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alleging he was assaulted by defendant Tordini, or something else. Furthermore, plaintiff fails to
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provide any facts regarding when, where, or how the alleged harm occurred. If plaintiff wishes to
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proceed with this action he must provide more specificity and clarity with respect to his claims,
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and the facts which he believes support those claims. Plaintiff should be specific about dates,
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times, locations, and detail exactly what defendant Tordini did or failed to do and how that
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caused plaintiff injury or violated his rights. Plaintiff should also include any other facts that
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show why he believes what happened was wrong.
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With respect to defendant Sanders, the Court is unable to read all of the allegations
because the writing is illegible. Plaintiff is possibly alleging that defendant Sanders “opened all
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my mail with my presence.” Dkt. 15, at 3. He also appears to challenge defendant Sanders’
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actions while plaintiff was in segregation for two years, stating “not only has [defendant
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Sanders] slandered me in public and private but has done all he can to keep me incarcerated for
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as long as possible.” Id.
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He also cites generally to the Eighth and Fourteenth Amendments and alleges torture.
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Dkt. 15, at 3. Another possible claim: that funds in the plaintiff’s prisoner trust account were
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taken from him (in the amount of $1982.00), which allegedly violated the “Takings Clause and
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may require compensation under the same.” Dkt. 15, at 6.
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If plaintiff wishes to proceed with this action he must provide more specificity and clarity
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with respect to his claims, and the facts which he believes support those claims. Plaintiff should
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be specific about dates, times, locations, and detail exactly what each of the defendant(s) did or
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failed to do that caused plaintiff injury or violated his rights. Plaintiff should also include any
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other facts that show why he believes what happened was wrong.
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ORDER TO SHOW CAUSE OR AMEND THE
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Plaintiff is further advised that while “a prison inmate[] enjoys a First Amendment right
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to send and receive mail”, Witherow v. Paff, 52 F.3d 264, 265 (9th Cir. 1995), this right is
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subject to “substantial limitations and restrictions in order to allow prison officials to achieve
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legitimate correctional goals and maintain institutional security,” Walker v. Sumner, 917 F.2d
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382, 385 (9th Cir.1990) (citations omitted). Prison officials may “adopt regulations which
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impinge on an inmate’s constitutional rights if those regulations are ‘reasonably related to
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legitimate penological interests.’” Id. (quoting Turner v. Safley, 482 U.S. 78, 89 (1987)). Plaintiff
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is also advised that slander is not in and of itself a cognizable claim under § 1983. Hollister v.
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Tuttle, 210 F.3d 1033, 1036 (9th Cir. 2000) (“There is no civil rights action for slander.”).
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Due to the deficiencies described above, the Court will not serve the amended complaint.
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Plaintiff may show cause why his amended complaint should not be dismissed or may file a
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second amended complaint to cure, if possible, the deficiencies noted herein, on or before
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November 2, 2018. If a second amended complaint is filed, it must be legibly rewritten or
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retyped in its entirety and contain the same case number. Any cause of action alleged in the
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original complaint or first amended complaint that is not alleged in the second amended
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complaint is waived. Forsyth v. Humana, Inc., 114 F.3d 1467, 1474 (9th Cir. 1997), overruled in
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part on other grounds, Lacey v. Maricopa Cnty., 693 F.3d 896 (9th Cir. 2012).
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The Court will screen the second amended complaint to determine whether it states a
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claim for relief cognizable under 42 U.S.C. § 1983. If the second amended complaint is not
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timely filed or fails to adequately address the issues raised herein, the undersigned will
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recommend dismissal of this action as frivolous under 28 U.S.C. § 1915, and the dismissal will
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count as a “strike” under 28 U.S.C. § 1915(g). Plaintiff should be aware that a prisoner who
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brings three or more civil actions or appeals that are dismissed on the grounds that they are
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ORDER TO SHOW CAUSE OR AMEND THE
COMPLAINT - 5
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legally frivolous, malicious, or fail to state a claim, will be precluded from bringing any other
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civil action or appeal in forma pauperis, “unless the prisoner is under imminent danger of serious
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physical injury.” 28 U.S.C. § 1915(g).
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The Clerk is directed to send plaintiff the appropriate forms for filing a 42 U.S.C. § 1983
civil rights complaint and for service, a copy of this Order and the Pro Se Information Sheet.
Dated this 12th day of October, 2018.
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A
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Theresa L. Fricke
United States Magistrate Judge
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ORDER TO SHOW CAUSE OR AMEND THE
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