Valerie Mann v. Transportation Security Administration, et al.

Opinion

1 2 3 6 7 VALERIE MANN, Case No. 25-cv-10798-KAW

8 Plaintiff, ORDER DISCHARGING ORDER TO 9 v. SHOW CAUSE; EXTENDING DEADLINE TO SERVE ADMINISTRATION, et al., Re: Dkt. No. 9 11 Defendants. 12 13 On December 18, 2025, Plaintiff Valerie Mann filed the instant action against Defendant 14 Transportation Security Administration (“TSA”) and the United States of America. (Dkt. No. 1.) 15 Pursuant to Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 4(m), Plaintiff had 90 days to complete service of the 16 complaint and summons on Defendants, such that March 18, 2026 was the last day to complete 17 service or to file a Motion for Administrative Relief from the deadline. 18 On May 28, 2026, the Court issued an order to show cause regarding service, as no proof 19 of service had been filed. (Dkt. No. 9.) The Court ordered Plaintiff to file a proof of service by 20 June 22, 2026. On June 18, 2026, Plaintiff filed a proof of service, attaching a certified mail 21 receipt dated March 5, 2026, showing a mailing to the address provided by Defendant TSA. (Dkt. 22 No. 11.) 23 As Plaintiff has filed a proof of service, the Court DISCHARGES the order to show cause. 24 The Court, however, observes that Plaintiff does not appear to have complied with the service 25 requirements of Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 4(i). Rule 4(i)(1) governs service on the United 26 States, and “requires that a plaintiff either ‘deliver a copy of the summons and of the complaint to 27 the United States attorney for the district where the action is brought’ or mail the summons and 1 Postal Serv., No. 21-cv-01322-SK, 2021 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 256402, at *4 (N.D. Cal. Apr. 5, 2021) 2 (quoting Fed. R. Civ. P. 4()(1)(A). Additionally, “[a] plaintiff must also send a copy of the 3 summons and complaint to the United States Attorney General.” /d. (citing Fed. R. Civ. P. 4 } 4G)(1)(B)). Rule 4(1)(2) governs service on a United States agency (such as the TSA), and 5 requires that a plaintiff “serve the United States as provided in Rule 4(i)(1), and must also send a 6 copy of the Summons and Complaint by registered or certified mail to the defendant agency as 7 provided in Rule 4()(2).” See Bothwell v. Brennan, No. C-13-5439 JSC, 2014 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 8 29127, at *10 (N.D. Cal. Mar. 6, 2014). 9 Here, it appears Plaintiff has only sent documents to Defendant TSA using certified mail, 10 and has not yet sent any documents to Defendant United States. As explained above, service on 11 both the United States and a government agency requires that a plaintiff serve the United States in 12 compliance with Rule 44)(1). Thus, service is not complete as to either Defendant in this case. 13 Accordingly, the Court EXTENDS Plaintiff's deadline to serve by 60 days. Plaintiff shall 14 file a proof of service (which must specify the documents that were served) within 75 days of the 3 15 date of this order. a 16 Plaintiff may wish to contact the Federal Pro Bono Project’s Help Desk for assistance—a 17 free service for pro se litigants—by calling (415) 782-8982 to make an appointment. While the Zz 18 || Help Desk does not provide legal representation, a licensed attorney may assist Plaintiff in 19 determining whether there are viable claims, and how to properly plead them. Plaintiff may also 20 wish to consult a manual the court has adopted to assist pro se litigants in presenting their case. 21 This manual, and other free information for pro se litigants, is available online at: 22 https://cand.uscourts.gov/pro-se-litigants/. 24 Dated: July 17, 2026

United States Magistrate Judge 27 28