Source: s3://data.kl3m.ai/documents/govinfo/USCOURTS/USCOURTS-caed-2_06-cv-01413/USCOURTS-caed-2_06-cv-01413-7/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

HARVEY EUGENE LARSON,

Plaintiff, No. CIV 06-1413 ALA P

vs.

RUNNELS, et al.,

Defendants. ORDER

____________________________/

Plaintiff Harvey Eugene Larson, a state prisoner proceeding pro se, has brought this

civil rights action pursuant to 42 U.S.C. § 1983. Pending before the Court is Mr. Larson’s

“Motion for Default Judgment” against Defendants Runnels, Arnold Schwarzenegger and

Tim Leslie, which Mr. Larson filed on July 12, 2007. As Mr. Larson has not obtained entry

of default from the Clerk of Court against Defendants, a prerequisite for obtaining a default

judgment under Rule 55(a) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, the Court construes Mr.

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1 On December 26, 2006, the Court ordered the United States Marshal to serve the

complaint on Defendants. Process directed to Mr. Leslie was returned unserved

because “not in CDC locator data base, unable to locate.” See Order, May 24,

2007, Doc. No. 28.

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Larson’s motion as a request for entry of default. 

As a request for entry of default, Mr. Larson’s motion must be denied. Federal Rule

of Civil Procedure 55(a) permits entry of default only when it appears “by affidavit or

otherwise” that a defendant has failed to plead in response to a complaint. FED. R. CIV. P.

55(a). When Mr. Larson filed his motion for entry of default on July 12, 2007, Defendants

Runnels and Schwarzenegger still had until July 25, 2007 to file a response to his Amended

Complaint. See Order, June 26, 2007, Doc. No. 31. Consequently, Defendants Runnels and

Schwarzenegger had not failed to plead as provided in the Federal Rules, and it is impossible

for Mr. Larson to satisfy Rule 55(a) as to them. 

Entry of default must also be denied as to unserved Defendant Tim Leslie.1 Default

may only be entered against “a party. . . [who] has failed to plead or otherwise defend as

provided by these rules.” FED. R. CIV. P. 55(a) (emphasis added). Under the Federal Rules,

a defendant has “20 days after being served with the summons and complaint” to serve an

answer, or sixty days after the date a request for waiver of service is sent, where service has

been waived. FED. R. CIV. P. 12(a)(1). Because Mr. Leslie has not yet been served, his time

for answering Mr. Larson’s Amended Complaint has not yet commenced. He consequently

has not “failed to plead or otherwise defend” so as to permit entry of default against him. 

The Court notes that it ordered Mr. Larson on May 24, 2007 to “provide additional

information to serve [Mr. Leslie]” and “promptly seek such information through discovery,

the California Public Records Act, Calif. Gov’t. Code § 6250, et seq., or other means

available to plaintiff.” See Order, May 24, 2007, Doc. No. 28. The Court also advised Mr.

Larson that “[i]f access to the required information is denied or unreasonably delayed, [he]

may seek judicial information,” instructed Mr. Larson to notify the Court of any information

he obtained regarding how to serve Mr. Leslie, and cautioned Mr. Larson “that failure to

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effect service may result in the dismissal of unserved defendants.” Id. Mr. Larson has not

filed any additional information in this Court regarding Mr. Leslie’s whereabouts.

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For the foregoing reasons, Mr. Larson’s motion for entry of default (Doc. 33) is

DENIED.

DATED: August 6, 2007

 /s/ Arthur L. Alarcón UNITED STATES CIRCUIT JUDGE

Sitting by Designation

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