Source: s3://data.kl3m.ai/documents/govinfo/USCOURTS/USCOURTS-cand-5_04-cv-04002/USCOURTS-cand-5_04-cv-04002-0/pdf.json

Nature of Suit Code: 555
Nature of Suit: Prisoner - Prison Condition
Cause of Action: 42:1983 Prisoner Civil Rights

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United States District Court

For the Northern District of California

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United States District Court

For the Northern District of California

IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

FOR THE NORTHERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA

SAN JOSE DIVISION

HARLAN LOVELL WALKER,

Plaintiff(s),

 v.

PELICAN BAY PRISON MEDICAL

STAFF, et al.,

Defendant(s). /

NO. C 04-04002 JW PR

ORDER OF DISMISSAL

Plaintiff Harlan Lovell Walker filed the above-titled civil rights complaint pursuant to 42

U.S.C. § 1983. On March 8, 2006, the Court ordered, inter alia, as follows: 

Plaintiff has not communicated with the Court for almost a year-and-a-half. 

Proceeding forward by requiring Defendants to file an Answer or dispositive motion

is fruitless if Plaintiff cannot be located by the Court. In the interests of justice and

judicial efficiency, the Court will not proceed with this action until Plaintiff informs

the Court of his continued intent to prosecute this action.

Accordingly, no later than twenty (20) days of the date of this Order, Plaintiff

shall file with the Court a notice of his current address and his continued intent to

prosecute this action. Failure to do so will result in the dismissal of this action

without prejudice for failure to prosecute under Rule 41(b) of the Federal Rules

of Civil Procedure. 

March 8, 2006 Order at 2 (emphasis added). 

Nearly two months have passed, and Plaintiff has filed no response to the Court's order. A

district court may sua sponte dismiss an action for failure to prosecute or to comply with a court

order pursuant to Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 41(b). See Link v. Wabash R.R., 370 U.S. 626,

Case 5:04-cv-04002-JW Document 8 Filed 05/03/06 Page 1 of 3
United States District Court

For the Northern District of California

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 The Court should also afford the litigant prior notice of its intention to dismiss, id. at 133,

as this Court has done.

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633 (1962); McKeever v. Block, 932 F.2d 795, 797 (9th Cir. 1991). The court should consider five

factors before dismissing an action under Rule 41(b): (1) the public interest in the expeditious

resolution of the litigation: (2) the court's need to manage its docket; (3) the risk of prejudice to the

defendants; (4) the availability of less drastic sanctions; and (5) the public policy favoring the

disposition of actions on their merits. See Malone v. United States Postal Serv., 833 F.2d 128, 130

(9th Cir. 1987).1 The first three factors, above, weigh in favor of dismissal in light of the amount of

time that has passed without Plaintiff filing anything in this matter, including his not responding to

the Court's March 8, 2006 Order. The fourth factor also weighs in favor of dismissal because less

drastic sanctions would have little impact in light of Plaintiff's apparent lack of interest in this case. 

Although the fifth factor appears to weigh against dismissal, dismissal is appropriate in light of the

other four factors. See Pagtalunan v. Galaza, 291 F.3d 639, 643 (9th Cir. 2002) (finding district

court did not abuse its discretion in dismissing petition with prejudice where three of the five factors

weighed in favor of dismissal). 

Accordingly, this action is DISMISSED for failure to prosecute, pursuant to Federal Rule of

Civil Procedure 41(b).

The Clerk of the Court shall close the file and terminate any pending motions. 

Dated: May 3, 2006 

JAMES WARE

United States District Judge

Case 5:04-cv-04002-JW Document 8 Filed 05/03/06 Page 2 of 3
United States District Court

For the Northern District of California

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28 Order of Dismissal

P:\PRO-SE\SJ.Jw\CR.04\walker400241(b)dismissal.wpd

THIS IS TO CERTIFY THAT COPIES OF THIS ORDER HAVE BEEN DELIVERED TO:

Harlan Lovell Walker

P. O. Box 600

Tracy, Ca 95378-0600

Dated: May 3, 2006 Richard W. Wieking, Clerk

By: /s/JW Chambers 

Melissa Peralta

Courtroom Deputy

Case 5:04-cv-04002-JW Document 8 Filed 05/03/06 Page 3 of 3