Source: s3://data.kl3m.ai/documents/govinfo/USCOURTS/USCOURTS-caed-2_03-cv-01004/USCOURTS-caed-2_03-cv-01004-11/pdf.json

Nature of Suit Code: 550
Nature of Suit: Prisoner - Civil Rights (U.S. defendant)
Cause of Action: 42:1983 Prisoner Civil Rights

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IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

FOR THE EASTERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA

ANTHONY ARTEAGA,

Plaintiff, No. CIV S-03-1004 FCD KJM P

vs.

EDWARD ALAMEIDA, Jr., et al.,

Defendants. ORDER

 /

On August 10, 2007, defendants filed their motion to seal confidential Exhibits K,

L, and M to their motion for summary judgment. The Court ordered Exhibit L to be sealed. The

Court ordered that Exhibit M to be filed and served on the plaintiff, as Exhibit M was already in

the public record. The request to seal Exhibit K was denied without prejudice on the grounds

that some portions of the document were illegible. On August 16, 2007, defendants resubmitted

legible copies of Exhibit K for the court’s consideration. As Exhibit M has already been

disclosed, plaintiff’s opposition is relevant only to Exhibits K and L. 

According to the defendants’ motion, Exhibit K is a confidential memorandum

that identifies plaintiff as communicating with known EME/Mexican Mafia prison gang

members, as well as the written materials upon which the memorandum was written. Exhibit L

Case 2:03-cv-01004-FCD-KJM Document 66 Filed 10/23/07 Page 1 of 3
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is a copy of written material found in plaintiff’s personal property that demonstrates plaintiff’s

active participation in gang activity, as well as memoranda describing the written material. 

Defendants argue there are legitimate institutional concerns that justify the denial

of access to these confidential documents. In support of their motion, defendants have submitted

the declaration of J. Peterson, who was the Institutional Gang Investigator at High Desert State

Prison when the plaintiff was validated as a member of the Mexican Mafia. Peterson states that

disclosure of Exhibit K to a validated member of the Mexican Mafia could jeopardize

institutional safety and security, ongoing investigations, and promote further gang activity. 

Plaintiff opposes defendants’ motion to seal Exhibits K and L on the grounds that,

without the documents’ disclosure, he will be unable to adequately prosecute his due process

claim. In his opposition, plaintiff references Title 15 of the California Code of Regulations

(CCR), which states that Staff shall disclose material evidencing gang activity to the inmate in a

written form that would not jeopardize the safety of any person or the security of the institution. 

Cal. Code Regs. tit. 15, §3328(8)(L). 

Declarant Peterson indicates that disclosing the confidential information contained

in Exhibits L and K to plaintiff could seriously threaten the ongoing prison investigations into

gang activity and endanger the safety of other inmates. The court finds that these legitimate

institutional concerns justify the denial of access by plaintiff to the confidential memoranda in

accord with due process. 

Alternatively, plaintiff asks to review the confidential material in “redacted” form.

Defendants argue, however, that simply redacting confidential materials is not sufficient in light

of the concerns regarding gang activity. Under the CCR, if an inmate is validated as a gang

member based on confidential information, the inmate must be provided with a Confidential

Disclosure Form, which contains a brief description of the material in his central file. 

Defendants indicate that the plaintiff was provided with the disclosure form and also was

provided a description of the confidential materials in the written responses to his inmate

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appeals. Plaintiff does not dispute this in his opposition. Due to the sensitive nature of the

documents, defendants argue that providing “redacted” copies of Exhibits K and L to the plaintiff

might still negatively impact prison security and ongoing gang-activity investigations. Based on

the record before it, the court agrees. 

IT IS HEREBY ORDERED that:

1. Exhibit L shall remain under seal.

2. Defendants’ motion to seal Exhibit K in support of their motion for summary

judgment is granted. The Clerk of the Court is directed to scan Exhibit K, maintain it under seal,

and return the paper copy to defendants’ counsel. 

DATED: October 22, 2007.

Case 2:03-cv-01004-FCD-KJM Document 66 Filed 10/23/07 Page 3 of 3