Source: s3://data.kl3m.ai/documents/govinfo/USCOURTS/USCOURTS-caed-2_16-cv-02295/USCOURTS-caed-2_16-cv-02295-0/pdf.json

Nature of Suit Code: 446
Nature of Suit: Americans with Disabilities Act - Other
Cause of Action: 42:12101 Americans with Disabilities Act

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UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT 

FOR THE EASTERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA 

LEONARD TOBIA, 

Plaintiff, 

v. 

RALPHS GROCERY COMPANY, INC. 

dba FOOD CO., STORE #501, ALAN J. 

REED and DOES 1-10, 

Defendants. 

No. 2:16-cv-02295 TLN AC 

ORDER 

 Plaintiff has requested authority under 28 U.S.C. § 1915(a) to proceed in forma pauperis. 

Plaintiff has submitted the affidavit required by § 1915(a) showing that he is unable to prepay 

fees and costs or give security for them. Accordingly, the request to proceed in forma pauperis 

will be granted. 

I. SCREENING 

 Granting IFP status does not end the court’s inquiry, however. The federal IFP statute 

requires federal courts to dismiss a case if the action is legally “frivolous or malicious,” fails to 

state a claim upon which relief may be granted, or seeks monetary relief from a defendant who is 

immune from such relief. 28 U.S.C. § 1915(e)(2). 

 Plaintiffs must assist the court in making this determination by drafting their complaint so 

that it contains a “short and plain statement” of the basis for federal jurisdiction (that is, the 

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reason the case is filed in this court, rather than in a state court), as well as a short and plain 

statement showing that plaintiffs are entitled to relief (that is, who harmed the plaintiffs, and in 

what way). Plaintiffs’ claims must be set forth simply, concisely and directly. See “Rule 8” of 

the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure (Fed. R. Civ. P. 8). The Federal Rules of Civil Procedure 

are available online at www.uscourts.gov/rules-policies/current-rules-practice-procedure/federalrules-civil-procedure. Forms are also available to help pro se plaintiffs organize their complaint 

in the proper way. They are available at the Clerk’s Office, 501 I Street, 4th Floor, Sacramento, 

CA 95814, or online at www.uscourts.gov/forms/pro-se-forms. 

 A claim is legally frivolous when it lacks an arguable basis either in law or in fact. 

Neitzke v. Williams, 490 U.S. 319, 325 (1989). In reviewing a complaint under this standard, the 

court will (1) accept as true all of the factual allegations contained in the complaint, unless they 

are clearly baseless or fanciful, (2) construe those allegations in the light most favorable to the 

plaintiff, and (3) resolve all doubts in the plaintiff’s favor. See Neitzke, 490 U.S. at 327; 

Erickson v. Pardus, 551 U.S. 89, 94 (2007); Von Saher v. Norton Simon Museum of Art at 

Pasadena, 592 F.3d 954, 960 (9th Cir. 2010), cert. denied, 564 U.S. 1037 (2011); Hebbe v. Pliler, 

627 F.3d 338, 340 (9th Cir. 2010). However, legal conclusions cast in the form of factual 

allegations, or allegations that contradict matters properly subject to judicial notice, need not be 

accepted as true. See Western Mining Council v. Watt, 643 F.2d 618, 624 (9th Cir. 1981); 

Sprewell v. Golden State Warriors, 266 F.3d 979, 988 (9th Cir.), as amended, 275 F.3d 1187 

(2001). 

 Pro se pleadings are held to a less stringent standard than those drafted by lawyers. 

Haines v. Kerner, 404 U.S. 519, 520 (1972). Pro se complaints are construed liberally and may 

only be dismissed if it appears beyond doubt that the plaintiff can prove no set of facts in support 

of his claim which would entitle him to relief. Nordstrom v. Ryan, 762 F.3d 903, 908 (9th Cir. 

2014). A pro se litigant is entitled to notice of the deficiencies in the complaint and an 

opportunity to amend, unless the complaint’s deficiencies could not be cured by amendment. See 

Noll v. Carlson, 809 F.2d 1446, 1448 (9th Cir. 1987). 

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II. THE COMPLAINT 

 The Complaint in this case satisfies the requirements set out above. It contains facts that 

properly allege claims for violations of the federal Americans with Disabilities Act, 42 U.S.C. § 

12101, et seq. and supplemental State claims under California statutes intended to assure equal 

access of disabled citizens of the State to places of public accommodation. Cal. Civ. Code §§ 51-

53, 54-58, and general tort law claims, which, if proven, would entitled the plaintiff to some or all 

of the relief sought. 

 IT IS THEREFORE ORDERED 

1. The Clerk of the Court shall forthwith issue, and the U.S. Marshal is directed to serve 

within ninety days of the date of this order, all process pursuant to Federal Rule of 

Civil Procedure 4, without prepayment of costs. 

2. The Clerk of the Court shall send plaintiff, for each defendant named in the caption of 

the case, one USM 285, one summons, a copy of the complaint and an appropriate 

form of consent to trial by a magistrate judge. 

3. Plaintiff is directed to supply the U.S. Marshal, within 15 days from the date this order 

is filed, all information needed by the Marshal to effect service of process and shall 

file a statement with the court that said documents have been submitted to the United 

States Marshall. The Court anticipates that, to effect service, the U.S. Marshall will 

require, for each defendant named in the caption of the Complaint, at least: 

a. One completed summons; 

b. One completed USM-285 form; 

c. One copy of the endorsed filed complaint, with an extra copy for the U.S. 

Marshal; and 

d. One copy of this Order. 

4. In the event the U.S. Marshal is unable, for any reason whatsoever, to effect service on 

the named defendants within 90 days from the date of this Order, he is directed to 

report that fact, and the reasons for it, to the undersigned. 

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5. The Clerk of the Court is directed to serve a copy of Order on the U.S. Marshal, 501 

“I” Street, Sacramento, CA, 95814, Tel. No. (916) 930-2030. 

6. Failure to comply with this Order may result in a recommendation that the action be 

dismissed. 

DATED: September 30, 2016 

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