Source: s3://data.kl3m.ai/documents/govinfo/USCOURTS/USCOURTS-azd-3_13-cv-08115/USCOURTS-azd-3_13-cv-08115-1/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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MDR 

WO 

IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT 

FOR THE DISTRICT OF ARIZONA 

David J. Benak, et al., 

Plaintiffs, 

vs. 

Board of Yavapai County Supervisors, 

et al., 

Defendants. 

No. CV 13-8115-PCT-DGC (SPL) 

ORDER 

I. Procedural History. 

On January 8, 2013, Plaintiff David J. Benak and others (Jose L. Islas; Jerry 

Shelton, Jr.; James W. Pletcher; Jeffrey Jensen; and Troy Sims) who are or were confined 

in the Yavapai County Detention Facility, filed a pro se civil rights complaint pursuant to 

42 U.S.C. § 1983—Benak v. Board of Yavapai County Supervisors, 13-CV-8004-PCTDGC (SPL). In a May 9, 2013 order, the Court concluded that unitary adjudication of 

Plaintiffs’ claims would result in unfairness to Plaintiffs, Defendants, and the Court’s 

goals of achieving judicial economy and maintaining efficient control of the Court’s 

docket and that allowing each Plaintiff to proceed separately would overcome the 

unfairness. The Court severed the case into individual actions, one for each Plaintiff. 

In the May 9 order, the Court noted that only one Plaintiff (Troy Sims) had paid 

the filing fee, and therefore gave the other Plaintiffs (including Plaintiff Benak) 30 days 

to either pay the filing fee or file an Application to Proceed In Forma Pauperis. In 

addition, the Court dismissed the complaint for failure to comply with Local Rule of 

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Civil Procedure 3.4. The Court gave each Plaintiff 30 days to file an amended complaint, 

on a court-approved form, that complies with the instructions provided with the form.1

The Court directed the Clerk to assign a new case number to each new individual 

action and to file a copy of the complaint and the May 9 order in each new case. The 

Clerk of Court has done so. This case—Benak v. Board of Yavapai County Supervisors, 

13-CV-8115-PCT-DGC (SPL)—is Plaintiff David J. Benak’s lawsuit. 

II. Filings in this Lawsuit. 

On June 11, 2013, Plaintiff filed a “Motion for Continuance[/]Notice of Change of 

Address.” On June 28, 2013, he filed a Motion for Reconsideration. In a September 5, 

2013 order, the Court denied the Motion for Reconsideration and granted the Motion for 

Continuance. The Court gave Plaintiff an additional 30 days to comply with the May 9 

order by (1) filing an amended complaint and (2) either paying the filing fee or filing an 

Application to Proceed In Forma Pauperis. 

On October 7, 2013, Plaintiff filed a Motion in Response to Order (Doc. 8). In his 

motion, Plaintiff states that he will not be able to comply with the September 5 order 

because he wants to “exercise [his] Lewis v. Casey rights and utilize [his] statute of 

limitations to prepare.” The Court, in its discretion, will construe Plaintiff’s motion as a 

request to voluntarily dismiss this case without prejudice. Under Rule 41(a) of the 

Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, a party may dismiss an action without an order of the 

court by filing a notice of dismissal at any time before service of an answer or a motion 

for summary judgment. The right to voluntarily dismiss an action under these 

circumstances is absolute. Commercial Space Mgmt. Co., Inc. v. Boeing Co., Inc., 193 

F.3d 1074, 1077 (9th Cir. 1999). The Court will therefore grant Plaintiff’s motion and 

will dismiss this case without prejudice. 

 

1

 The Court also granted Plaintiff Benak’s Motion for Status and Document 

requesting status and denied Plaintiff Benak’s Motion to Expedite and another Plaintiff’s 

“Motion for ‘Official pro per Status’ Ordering Defendants to Grant Law Library Access.” 

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As to Plaintiff’s request for a copy of the receipt for the filing fee, the Court, in its 

discretion, will direct the Clerk of Court to send Plaintiff a copy of the receipt for the 

filing fee that was paid in 13-CV-8004-PCT-DGC (SPL) by Nora Jenkins for Troy Sims. 

As to Plaintiff’s request for a copy of the complaint, the Court will deny Plaintiff’s 

request. The Court notes that Nora Jenkins came to the courthouse to file the complaint. 

Any additional copies would have been returned to her by the Clerk of Court after she 

filed the lawsuit. Thus, Plaintiff should contact Nora Jenkins to obtain a copy of the 

complaint. Alternatively, the Clerk of Court charges 50 cents per page for reproducing 

any record or paper. See Judicial Conference Schedule of Fees ¶ 4, foll. 28 U.S.C. 

§ 1914. Therefore, the Clerk of Court will provide Plaintiff with copies of documents 

only upon receipt of a written request accompanied by payment of the 50 cents per page 

copy fee. 

IT IS ORDERED:

 (1) Plaintiff’s Motion in Response to Order (Doc. 8), which the Court has 

construed as a request to voluntarily dismiss this case, is 

(a) granted in part, to the extent that the Court will dismiss this case 

without prejudice and will direct the Clerk of Court to send Plaintiff 

a copy of the payment receipt in 13-CV-8004-PCT-DGC (SPL), and 

(b) denied in part, to the extent Plaintiff is seeking a copy of the 

complaint. 

 (2) This case is dismissed without prejudice. The Clerk of Court must enter 

judgment accordingly. 

 (3) The Clerk of Court must send Plaintiff a copy of the payment receipt in 13-

CV-8004-PCT-DGC (SPL): PHX 129795. 

 Dated this 23rd day of January, 2014. 

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