(PC) Calloway v. Nieves

District Court, E.D. California·Decided October 15, 2020·No. 2:19-cv-01792·Unknown

Opinion

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT 9 FOR THE EASTERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA 10 11 JAMISI JERMAINE CALLOWAY, No. 2:19-cv-01792-KJM-CKD P 12 Plaintiff, 13 v. ORDER AND 14 D. NIEVES, et al., FINDINGS AND RECOMMENDATIONS 15 Defendants. 16 17 Plaintiff is a state prisoner proceeding pro se and in forma pauperis in this federal civil 18 rights action filed pursuant to 42 U.S.C. § 1983. Currently pending before the court is 19 defendants’ motion to revoke plaintiff’s in forma pauperis status on the ground that the dismissals 20 of at least three prior actions filed by plaintiff qualify as “strikes” against him pursuant to 28 21 U.S.C. § 1915(g). ECF No. 25. Plaintiff has filed an opposition and defendants have filed a 22 reply. ECF Nos. 30, 31. Therefore, the matter is fully briefed. For the reasons outlined below, 23 the court recommends that defendants’ motion be granted and that plaintiff’s IFP status be 24 revoked. 25 I. Factual and Procedural Background 26 On August 27, 2019, plaintiff filed the pending complaint alleging that while confined at 27 the California Health Care Facility (“CHCF”) he was pepper sprayed in the face without warning 28 //// 1 by defendant Nieves on November 19, 2015.1 ECF No. 1 at 21. Plaintiff was then beat in the 2 head with metal batons by defendants Nieves and Luang. Id. After regaining consciousness from 3 the beating, plaintiff was refused medical treatment by defendants Aungst and Abu. Id. at 22. 4 Defendants Rowland and Mims ordered these medical personnel not to provide assistance to 5 plaintiff. Id. Plaintiff further alleges that he was transferred to San Quentin State Prison without 6 receiving any medical care for the injuries that he received on November 19, 2015. Id. at 23. 7 This court granted plaintiff leave to proceed in forma pauperis (“IFP”) on April 6, 2020. 8 ECF No. 10. In the same order, the court determined that this case could proceed against 9 defendants Nieves and Luang for excessive force claims and against defendants Rowland, Mims, 10 Aungst, and Abu for claims of deliberate indifference to plaintiff’s serious medical needs, all in 11 violation of the Eighth Amendment. ECF No. 10 at 2. However, the court gave plaintiff the 12 option of proceeding on the complaint as screened or of filing an amended complaint to fix the 13 deficiencies with respect to the other defendants and claims. Id. Plaintiff elected to proceed with 14 the original complaint as screened and service was ordered on April 29, 2020. ECF Nos. 13, 14. 15 II. Defendants’ Motion to Revoke In Forma Pauperis Status 16 On July 22, 2020, defendants filed a motion to revoke plaintiff’s IFP status based on seven 17 prior actions or appeals that defendants assert were dismissed as frivolous, malicious, or failed to 18 state a claim upon which relief could be granted. ECF No. 25; see also 28 U.S.C. § 1915(g). 19 Pursuant to Rule 201 of the Federal Rules of Evidence, defendants request that the court take 20 judicial notice of the court records from plaintiff's prior cases that are attached as exhibits. ECF 21 No. 26. They further contend that plaintiff was not under imminent danger of serious physical 22 injury at the time that he filed the complaint to warrant continuing plaintiff’s IFP status under 28 23 U.S.C. § 1915(g). ECF No. 25 at 1-2. As part of the requested relief, defendants ask the court to 24 stay the filing of their responsive pleading until the pending motion is adjudicated. 25 In his opposition to the motion, plaintiff concedes that the prior case of Callaway v. 26 Adams, 1:11-cv-01281-RFB (E.D. Cal.) constitutes a strike under 28 U.S.C. § 1915(g). ECF No. 27 1 The filing date was calculated using the prison mailbox rule. See Houston v. Lack, 487 U.S. 28 266 (1988). 1 30 at 2. However, plaintiff contests the remaining six prior actions cited in defendants’ motion 2 which purportedly count as strikes. He generally argues that several of the prior actions do not 3 count as strikes because the dismissal orders did not specifically state that they counted as strikes. 4 Plaintiff further asserts that his IFP status should not be revoked because he meets the imminent 5 danger exception under 28 U.S.C. § 1915(g). ECF No. 30 at 12. Plaintiff states that he requires 6 ongoing hemodialysis treatment and that when he filed the complaint he was “still being denied 7 adequate housing, hemodialysis and retaliated [against] because his ongoing civil litigation… 8 while an inmate at Kern Valley State Prison. Id. 9 By way of reply, defendants point out that plaintiff did not challenge his two prior cases of 10 Calloway v. Baker, No. 14-16352 (9th Cir.), and Calloway v. Rangel, No. 1:12-cv-00193 (E.D. 11 Cal.), as strikes. ECF No. 31 at 4. Furthermore, defendants emphasize that an order of dismissal 12 need not state that it is a strike in order for it to be counted under § 1915(g). ECF No. 31 at 5 13 (citing Harris v. Mangum, 863 F.3d 1133, 1142 (9th Cir. 2017). With respect to imminent 14 danger, defendants characterize plaintiff’s argument that he faces death by agents of the CDCR 15 regardless of where he is housed as speculative and hypothetical. ECF No. 31 at 6-7. Lastly, 16 defendants point out that there is no nexus between the allegations in the complaint and plaintiff’s 17 assertion of imminent danger based on his ongoing medical issues which require hemodialysis. 18 Id. 19 III. Legal Standards 20 28 U.S.C. § 1915(g) sets forth what is known as the “three strikes” rule. Under this rule, a 21 prisoner who has previously brought three or more lawsuits in a court of the United States that 22 were dismissed on the grounds that they were “frivolous, malicious, or fail to state a claim upon 23 which relief may be granted” may not proceed in forma pauperis in the current litigation unless 24 that prisoner “is under imminent danger of serious physical injury.” 28 U.S.C. § 1915(g). In 25 defining “frivolous,” the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeal has concluded that a claim is frivolous 26 when it lacks any “basis in law or fact” or is “of little weight or importance.” Andrews v. King, 27 398 F.3d 1113, 1121 (9th Cir. 2005) (citations omitted). A claim is “malicious” when it is “filed 28 with the intention or desire to harm another.” Id. Failing to state a claim has been interpreted to 1 be equivalent to a dismissal pursuant to Rule 12(b)(6) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure. 2 See Moore v. Maricopa Cnty. Sheriff’s Office, 657 F.3d 890, 893 (9th Cir. 2011) (citations 3 omitted).

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