United States v. $60,141 in United States Currency

• Court: District Court, D. Nevada
• Decided: April 25, 2025
• Docket: 3:24-cv-00480
• Status: Unknown

Opinion

2 UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

3 DISTRICT OF NEVADA

4 UNITED STATES OF AMERICA Case No. 3:24-cv-480-ART-CSD 5 Plaintiff, ORDER 6 v.

7 $60,141 in UNITED STATES CURRENCY, 8 Defendant, 9 JON AARON MONTOYA, 10 Claimant. 11 12 This is a civil forfeiture action instituted by the Government after it seized 13 $60,141 found in Claimant Jon Aaron Montoya’s car. Pending before the Court 14 is the Government’s motion to stay its response to Montoya’s motion to dismiss. 15 (ECF No. 12.) Montoya did not oppose the motion to stay. For the following 16 reasons, the Court grants in part the Government’s motion to stay. The 17 Government shall have until May 15, 2025, to respond to Montoya’s motion to 18 dismiss. 19 I. LEGAL STANDARD 20 Civil forfeiture actions are governed by statute, the Supplemental Rules for 21 Admiralty or Maritime Claims and Asset Forfeiture Actions, and the Federal Rules 22 of Civil Procedure. United States v. $133,420.00 in U.S. Currency, 672 F.3d 629, 23 634 (9th Cir. 2012). Unlike in typical civil proceedings, the government may 24 commence limited discovery immediately after a verified claim is filed. Id. “The 25 government may serve special interrogatories limited to the claimant’s identity 26 and relationship to the defendant property without the court’s leave at any time 27 after the claim is filed and before discovery is closed.” Supp. R. G(6)(a). “The 28 government need not respond to a claimant’s motion to dismiss the action under 1 Rule G(8)(b) until 21 days after the claimant has answered these interrogatories.” 2 Supp. R. G(6)(c). 3 II. DISCUSSION 4 The Government filed the complaint in this case on October 21, 2024. (ECF 5 No. 1.) On November 25, 2024, Montoya filed a judicial claim asserting an 6 ownership and possessory interest in the property. (ECF No. 6.) On December 16, 7 2024, the Government served Montoya with special interrogatories. (ECF No. 12 8 at 2.) On January 29, 2025, Montoya filed a motion to dismiss, arguing that the 9 Government did not have probable cause for forfeiture. (ECF No. 11.) On February 10 23, 2025, The Government filed this motion to stay its response to the motion to 11 dismiss. (ECF No. 12.) It requested a stay until: (1) Montoya responded to the 12 Government’s special interrogatories; (2) the Government has had a “reasonable 13 opportunity to investigate, and attempt to verify, the information contained in 14 those responses”; and (3) the Government has had a “reasonable opportunity to 15 file, and pursue a hearing on, any appropriate Supp. R. G(8) motion.” (ECF No. 16 12 at 11.) 17 Under Supplemental Rule G(6)(c), the Government is entitled to a stay until 18 21 days after Montoya responds to the special interrogatories. Montoya does not 19 contest the Government’s “statutory right to respond to the Motion to Dismiss 20 within 21 days of receiving the responses to the special interrogatories.” (ECF No. 21 17 at 2.) In subsequent briefing, the parties explain that Montoya filed responses 22 to the Government’s special interrogatories on February 22, 2025. (ECF No. 17 23 at 2, 5–14.) The Government was not satisfied with those responses and 24 requested supplemental responses to several of the special interrogatories on 25 March 20, 2025. (ECF No. 18 at 2.) Montoya stated that he would respond to 26 those additional interrogatories by April 21, 2025. (ECF No. 19.) If Montoya met 27 that deadline, a stay until 21 days after April 21 is appropriate and would require 28 the Government to respond by May 15. 1 The Government has not offered any legal authority to support its request 2 || for a stay beyond the time provided for in the Supplemental Rules, and the Court 3 || declines to grant its request for a stay beyond that 21-day period. 4 III. CONCLUSION 5 It is hereby ordered that Plaintiffs motion for a stay to respond to 6 || Claimant’s motion to dismiss (ECF No. 12) is granted in part. 7 The Government shall have until 21 days after Claimant responds to the 8 || Government’s request for supplemental responses to its special interrogatories to 9 || respond to Claimant’s motion to dismiss. 10 11 DATED: April 25, 2025 12 an 13 Ares jlosent 14 ANNER TRAUM 15 UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28