Hall v. City and County of Honolulu

Opinion

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

DISTRICT OF HAWAII

ROBIN HALL, CIV. NO. 21-00248 LEK-KJM

Plaintiff,

vs.

CITY AND COUNTY OF HONOLULU, CHRISTOPHER KOANUI, LEONARD LETOTO, DEBRA MAIOHO-POHINA, DOE OFFICER 1, DOE OFFICER 2, JOHN LEO CASTILLO,

Defendants.

ORDER DISMISSING, WITHOUT PREJUDICE, PLAINTIFF’S EQUAL PROTECTION CLAIM AGAINST DEFENDANT DEBRA MAIOHO-POHINA

On April 26, 2022, the Order Granting in Part and Denying in Part Defendant City and County of Honolulu’s and Defendant Debra Maioho-Pohina’s Motions to Dismiss was issued (“4/26/22 Order”). [Dkt. no. 67.1] In the 4/26/22 Order, this Court, inter alia, denied Defendant Debra Maioho-Pohina’s (“Maioho-Pohina”) motion to dismiss to the extent that Maioho- Pohina sought the dismissal of Plaintiff Robin Hall’s (“Hall”) equal protection claim against her on the basis of qualified immunity. See 4/26/22 Order, 2022 WL 1229965, at *9; see also Second Amended Complaint for Declaratory and Injunctive Relief and Damages, filed 10/28/21 (dkt. no. 36) (“Second Amended

1 The 4/26/22 Order is also available at 2022 WL 1229965. Complaint”), at ¶¶ 184-89 (Hall’s equal protection claim (“Claim 5”)). Maioho-Pohina took an interlocutory appeal from that portion of the 4/26/22 Order. See Maioho-Pohina’s notice of appeal, filed 5/6/22 (dkt. no. 71); Ninth Circuit Memorandum, filed 5/3/23 (dkt. no. 97), at 2 n.1 (noting that the appeal

only involved the portion of the order denying Maioho-Pohina’s motion to dismiss Hall’s equal protection claim).2 While Maioho-Pohina’s interlocutory appeal was pending, Hall sought leave to amend her complaint. See Motion for Leave to File Third Amended Complaint, filed 5/26/22 (dkt. no. 78) (“Motion for Leave”). The magistrate judge did not rule on the Motion for Leave because this Court stayed the case, pending the resolution of Maioho-Pohina’s interlocutory appeal. See Minute Order - EO: Order Granting the City Defendants’ Motion for a Stay of All Proceedings, filed 8/1/22 (dkt. no. 92) (“8/1/22 EO”). The case was later closed administratively, pending the outcome of the appeal. See Minute Order - EO: Court

Order Administratively Closing Case, filed 11/15/22 (dkt. no. 96). The Ninth Circuit reversed the portion of the 4/26/22 Order that dismissed Hall’s equal protection claim against Maioho-Pohina, and remanded the case with instructions to

2 The Ninth Circuit Memorandum is also available at 2023 WL 3220909. dismiss the claim. Ninth Circuit Memorandum, 2023 WL 3220909, at *3. However, the Ninth Circuit took no position on either Hall’s Motion for Leave or the issue of whether Hall’s proposed third amended complaint was legally sufficient. See id. The Ninth Circuit issued its Mandate on May 25, 2023. [Dkt.

no. 98.] Pursuant to this Court’s instructions in the 8/1/22 EO, the case was reopened and the stay of the instant case was automatically lifted after the Mandate was issued. See 8/1/22 EO at PageID.1343. In light of the Ninth Circuit Memorandum, the portion of Hall’s Claim 5 alleging an equal protection claim against Maioho-Pohina is DISMISSED WITHOUT PREJUDICE. Neither the other portions of the 4/26/22 Order nor Hall’s pending Motion for Leave is affected by this Order. Defendant City and County of Honolulu, Maioho-Pohina, and Defendant John Leo Castillo (collectively “City Defendants”) are to contact the magistrate judge’s courtroom manager within

seven days after the date of the Mandate to request the scheduling of a trial re-setting conference. See id. IT IS SO ORDERED. DATED AT HONOLULU, HAWAII, May 30, 2023. at cs hie, & S % = % 7 /s/ Leshe E. Kobayashi Leslie E. Kobayashi United States District Judge Orme, we

ROBIN HALL VS. CITY AND COUNTY OF HONOLULU, ET AL; CV 21-00248 LEK-KJM; ORDER DISMISSING, WITHOUT PREJUDICE, PLAINTIFF’S EQUAL PROTECTIVE CLAIM AGAINST DEFENDANT DEBRA MAIOHO-POHINA