Lacey v. C.S.P. Solano Medical Staff

990 F. Supp. 1199, 1997 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 21404, 1997 WL 819927
CourtDistrict Court, E.D. California
DecidedDecember 22, 1997
DocketCiv S-96-1452 LKK DAD P
StatusPublished
Cited by26 cases

This text of 990 F. Supp. 1199 (Lacey v. C.S.P. Solano Medical Staff) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, E.D. California primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Lacey v. C.S.P. Solano Medical Staff, 990 F. Supp. 1199, 1997 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 21404, 1997 WL 819927 (E.D. Cal. 1997).

Opinion

ORDER

KARLTON, District Judge.

Plaintiff, a state prisoner proceeding pro se, has filed this civil rights action seeking relief under 42 U.S.C. § 1983. The matter was referred to a United States Magistrate Judge pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 636(b)(1)(B) and Local General Order No. 262.

On October 17, 1997, the magistrate judge filed findings and recommendations herein which were served on all parties and which contained notice to all parties that any objections to the findings and recommendations were to be filed within twenty days. Defendants have filed objections to the findings and recommendations, and plaintiff has filed a reply.

In accordance with the provisions of 28 U.S.C. § 636(b)(1)(C) and Local Rule 72-304, this court has conducted a de novo review of this case. Having carefully reviewed the entire file, the court finds the findings and recommendations to be supported by the record and by proper analysis.

Accordingly, IT IS HEREBY ORDERED that:

*1201 1. The findings and recommendations filed October 17, 1997, are adopted in full: and

2. Defendants’ April 29, 1997 motion to dismiss is denied.

ORDER AND FINDINGS AND RECOMMENDATIONS

DROZD, United States Magistrate Judge.

Plaintiff is a state prisoner proceeding pro se with this civil rights action seeking relief pursuant to 42 U.S.C. § 1983. Defendant Scotti’s motion to dismiss is before the court.

BACKGROUND

On April 29, 1997, the defendant filed a motion to dismiss pursuant to Fed.R.Civ.P. 12(b)(1) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure. Plaintiff did not file opposition to the motion. Accordingly, in findings and recommendations filed on June 25, 1997, the court recommended that defendant’s motion be granted. After plaintiff filed timely objections to the findings and recommendations, the court granted plaintiff an extension of time to file and serve opposition to the motion to dismiss. Plaintiff has filed opposition to defendant’s motion with a certificate of service on defendant’s counsel. Good cause appearing, the June 25, 1997 findings and recommendations will be vacated.

In his August 25, 1997 opposition, plaintiff requests that the court “re-cheek [his] file in search of[his] opposition filed on 4-29-97.” (Pl.’s Opp’n filed Aug. 25,1997.) The court’s records reflect that defendant’s motion to dismiss was filed and served on April 29, 1997. No documents were filed in this action between the filing of defendants’ motion to dismiss on April 29, 1997, and the filing of the court’s findings and recommendations on June 25,1997.

Plaintiff requests that the court provide him with copies of documents submitted in support of his opposition. Plaintiff is informed that the Clerk of the Court cannot provide parties with free copies of documents and cannot serve documents on behalf of any party. Accordingly, plaintiffs request for copies is denied.

PLAINTIFF’S CLAIM

Plaintiff, who is incarcerated at California State Prison-Solano, filed this action on July 11, 1996, in the United States District Court for the Northern District. The action was transferred to the Eastern District by order filed on August 8,1996.

Plaintiffs claim concerns medical care at California State Prison-Solano. In his September 24, 1996 amended complaint, plaintiff alleges that defendant Seotti told him he would be seen by an orthopedic surgeon as soon as possible after X-rays were taken of his knees, that he was not seen, and that his knees got worse. By way of relief, plaintiff requests compensation, including punitive damages, for the alleged lack of medical attention.

DEFENDANT’S MOTION TO DISMISS

I. The Parties’ Contentions

Defendant Seotti seeks dismissal of the action pursuant to Rule 12(b)(1) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure due to plaintiffs alleged failure to exhaust administrative remedies prior to bringing the action, as required by 42 U.S.C. § 1997e.

In his amended complaint, plaintiff alleges that there is a grievance procedure available, that he filed a grievance concerning the facts relating to his civil rights complaint, and that the grievance process has not been completed. (Am.Compl. at 2.) Attached to plaintiffs opposition to defendant’s motion to dismiss is a copy of an administrative grievance submitted by plaintiff on February 23, 1996, in which he states that he was injured on his job’in February, 1996, and wishes to be seen as soon as possible by an orthopedic surgeon. At the informal level, a medical secretary responded on June 27, 1996, that plaintiff was scheduled to be seen again on July 12, 1996. Plaintiff bypassed the first formal level of appeal. At the second formal level, the appeal was partially granted by the Chief Medical Officer, who found that plaintiffs appeal had merit and that plaintiff had been seen on May 17,1996.

*1202 II. The Statute

The question before the court requires interpretation of the exhaustion provision in the Prison Litigation Reform Act (“PLRA”), Pub.L. No. 104-134, 110 Stat. 1321-71. 1 The PLRA made several changes to the statutes governing federal proceedings in prisoner civil rights actions. 2 One of those changes is to require prisoners to exhaust available administrative remedies before bringing certain suits. Specifically, the PLRA amended 42 U.S.C. § 1997e to provide that “[n]o action shall be brought with respect to prison conditions under section 1983 of this title, or any other Federal law, by a prisoner confined in any jail, prison,'or other correctional facility until such administrative remedies as are available are exhausted.” See 42 U.S.C. § 1997e(a) (as amended 1996). 3

Little case law exists ihuminating application of § 1997e(a) to actions such as this, thus leading to the lengthy analysis set forth below.

III. The Exhaustion Doctrine and Jurisdictional Implications

Free access — add to your briefcase to read the full text and ask questions with AI

Related

Serrano v. Alvarado
169 F. Supp. 2d 14 (D. Puerto Rico, 2001)
Torres v. Alvarado
143 F. Supp. 2d 172 (D. Puerto Rico, 2001)
Concepcion v. Morton
125 F. Supp. 2d 111 (D. New Jersey, 2000)
Raines v. Pickman
103 F. Supp. 2d 552 (N.D. New York, 2000)
Feliciano v. Servicios Correccionales
79 F. Supp. 2d 31 (D. Puerto Rico, 2000)
Howard v. Headly
72 F. Supp. 2d 118 (E.D. New York, 1999)
Marrie v. Nickels
70 F. Supp. 2d 1252 (D. Kansas, 1999)
Johnson v. Garraghty
57 F. Supp. 2d 321 (E.D. Virginia, 1999)
Langford v. Couch
50 F. Supp. 2d 544 (E.D. Virginia, 1999)
State Ex Rel. Ledford v. CIRCUIT COURT FOR DANE CTY.
599 N.W.2d 45 (Court of Appeals of Wisconsin, 1999)
State ex rel. Ledford v. Circuit Court for Dane County
599 N.W.2d 45 (Court of Appeals of Wisconsin, 1999)
Cooper v. Garcia
55 F. Supp. 2d 1090 (S.D. California, 1999)
Sallee v. Joyner
40 F. Supp. 2d 766 (E.D. Virginia, 1999)
York v. Huerta-Garcia
36 F. Supp. 2d 1231 (S.D. California, 1999)
Blas v. Endicott
31 F. Supp. 2d 1131 (E.D. Wisconsin, 1999)
Beeson v. Fishkill Correctional Facility
28 F. Supp. 2d 884 (S.D. New York, 1998)
Basham v. Uphoff
Tenth Circuit, 1998
Plasencia v. State of California
29 F. Supp. 2d 1145 (C.D. California, 1998)
Alexander v. Hawk
159 F.3d 1321 (Eleventh Circuit, 1998)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
990 F. Supp. 1199, 1997 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 21404, 1997 WL 819927, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/lacey-v-csp-solano-medical-staff-caed-1997.