Source: s3://data.kl3m.ai/documents/govinfo/USCOURTS/USCOURTS-caed-1_08-cv-01896/USCOURTS-caed-1_08-cv-01896-6/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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UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

EASTERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA

JASIMI JERMAINE CALLOWAY,

Plaintiff,

v.

WARDEN M. VEAL, et al., 

Defendants.

 /

1:08-cv-01896-LJO-GSA-PC

ORDER DENYING MOTION TO AMEND

COMPLAINT

(Doc. 48.)

 

I. BACKGROUND

Jasimi Jermaine Calloway (“Plaintiff”) is a state prisoner proceeding pro se in this civil

rights action filed pursuant to 42 U.S.C. § 1983. Plaintiff commenced this action on December 10,

2008. (Doc. 1.) This action now proceeds on the Third Amended Complaint filed on October 5,

2009, on Plaintiff’s Eighth Amendment claims, against defendant Dr. Wang for deliberate

indifference to Plaintiff’s serious medical needs, and against defendants C/O Hayward and C/O Oaks

for use of excessive force. (Doc. 20.) Pursuant to the scheduling order entered on June 14, 2011, 1

the deadline for the parties to amend the pleadings was December 14, 2011. (Doc. 31.) Now

pending is Plaintiff’s motion to amend the complaint, filed on December 27, 2011. (Doc. 48.) 

On March 17, 2011, the Court dismissed all other claims and defendants from this action, under Rule 18(a)

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or for Plaintiff’s failure to state a claim. (Doc. 24.)

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II. MOTION TO AMEND COMPLAINT 

Plaintiff seeks leave to file a Fourth Amended Complaint to add five defendants for violation

of his rights to due process, use of excessive force, and failure to provide adequate medical care. 

Under Rule 15(a) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, a party may amend the party’s

pleading once as a matter of course at any time before a responsive pleading is served. Otherwise,

a party may amend only by leave of the court or by written consent of the adverse party, and leave

shall be freely given when justice so requires. Fed. R. Civ. P. 15(a). In this case, a responsive

pleading has been served. Therefore, Plaintiff may not file a Fourth Amended Complaint without

leave of court. 

“Rule 15(a) is very liberal and leave to amend ‘shall be freely given when justice so

requires.’” AmerisourceBergen Corp. v. Dialysis West, Inc., 445 F.3d 1132, 1136 (9th Cir. 2006)

(quoting Fed. R. Civ. P. 15(a)). However, courts “need not grant leave to amend where the

amendment: (1) prejudices the opposing party; (2) is sought in bad faith; (3) produces an undue

delay in the litigation; or (4) is futile.” Id. The factor of “‘[u]ndue delay by itself . . . is insufficient

to justify denying a motion to amend.’” Owens v. Kaiser Foundation Health Plan, Inc., 244 F.3d

708, 712,13 (9th Cir. 2001) (quoting Bowles v. Reade, 198 F.3d 752, 757-58 (9th Cir. 1999))

Rule 15(a)is furtherlimited byRule 16. Once a district court has issued a pretrial scheduling

order pursuant to Rule 16, which establishes a timetable to amend pleadings, that Rule's standards

control. Johnson v. Mammoth Recreations, Inc., 975 F.2d 604, 607-608 (9th Cir. 1992). Thus,

Plaintiff's ability to amend his complaint is governed by Rule 16(b), not Rule 15(a). See Id. (citing

Forstmann v. Culp, 114 F.R.D. 83, 85 (M.D.N.C.1987)) (party seeking to amend pleading after date

specified in scheduling order must first show “good cause” for amendment under Rule 16(b), then,

if “good cause” be shown, the party must demonstrate that amendment was proper under Rule 15).

Unlike Rule 15(a)'s liberal amendment policy which focuses on the bad faith of the party

seeking to interpose an amendment and the prejudice to the opposing party, the “good cause”

standard of Rule 16(b) primarily considers the diligence of the party seeking the amendment. The

district court may modify the pretrial schedule “if it cannot reasonably be met despite the diligence

of the party seeking the extension.” Fed. R. Civ. P. 16 advisory committee's notes (1983

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amendment). Moreover, carelessness is not compatible with a finding of diligence and offers no

reason for a grant of relief. Cf. Engleson v. Burlington Northern R.R. Co., 972 F.2d 1038, 1043 (9th

Cir.1992) (carelessness not a ground for relief under Rule 60(b)); Martella v. Marine Cooks &

Stewards Union, 448 F.2d 729, 730 (9th Cir.1971) (same), cert. denied, 405 U.S. 974 (1972); Smith

v. Stone, 308 F.2d 15, 18 (9th Cir.1962) (same). 

The Court set a schedule in this action on June 14, 2011, establishing a deadline of December

14, 2011, for the parties to amend the pleadings. (Doc. 31.) Thus, Plaintiff's motion to amend his

complaint, filed after the deadline on December 27, 2011, is untimely. Plaintiff claims that he

“discovered” the five new defendants by reviewing his Rules Violation Report [RVR-115 form],

which was brought to his attention by Defendants’ motion for summary judgment. (Reply, Doc. 51

¶6; Exh. A to lodged Fourth Amended Complaint, Doc. 49 at 13-33.) Plaintiff claims that until

Defendants filed their motion, he did not have evidence of the five new defendants’ involvement. 

(Reply, Doc. 51 ¶6.) 

The Court has reviewed Plaintiff’s motion and his proposed Fourth Amended Complaint. 

Plaintiff seeks to add defendants C/O R. Mills, C/O T. Sears, Sergeant D. Canales, and Sergeant J.

Moore, for their participation in the May 7, 2008 assault upon Plaintiff which is the subject of this

action. Plaintiff alleges that each of these defendants deliberately assisted defendants Hayward and

Oaks in assaulting Plaintiff by punching him, kicking him, and breaking his hand. Plaintiff also

alleges that these four defendants denied him medical treatment along with defendant Dr. Wang. 

Plaintiff also seeks to add a fifth defendant, Lieutenant J. Callow, for violating his rights to due

process by denying Plaintiff his right to question witnesses at his RVR 115 hearing. 

In opposition to Plaintiff’s motion, Defendants argue that it is highly unlikely that Plaintiff

did not recall that four additional correctional officers participated in the alleged May 7, 2008 attack

as opposed to the two officers he identified in his Third Amended Complaint. Defendants also argue

that the due process claim Plaintiff wishes to add is identical to the one that was already dismissed

by the Court. Defendants argue that the RVR 115 report of June 15, 2008 does not support

Plaintiff’s new allegations against the five new defendants or his claim of recent discovery of new

information. Defendants also argue that Plaintiff’s motion should be denied at this late stage of the

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litigation as prejudicial to Defendants, because Defendants have alreadyconductedwritten discovery

in this case and responded to Plaintiff’s discovery and motion to compel. Defendants maintain that

if Plaintiff is allowed to amend the complaint, this lawsuit will be dramatically extended beyond the

three years it has already lasted, allowing memories to fade even further. 

The Court has examined the RVR 115 report of June 15, 2008 submitted by Plaintiff. (Exh.

A to lodged Fourth Amended Complaint, Doc. 49 at 13-33.) The report indicates at the bottom of

each page that a copy of the report was given to Plaintiff on or before June 27, 2008, contradicting

Plaintiff’s claim that the report was “new” to him when he received a copy of it with Defendants’

motion for summary judgment served on August 11, 2011. Further, the Court finds no evidence in

the report that C/O R. Mills, C/O T. Sears, Sergeant D. Canales, or Sergeant J. Moore participated

in the alleged May 7, 2008 assault against Plaintiff or denied him adequate medical care. Moreover,

the Court agrees with Defendants that it is highly unlikely that Plaintiff would not have been aware

until August 2011 that four officers, in addition to the two officers he identified in the Third

Amended Complaint, participated in the assault against him in May 2008. With respect to the due

process claim against Lieutenant Callow which Plaintiff seeks to add, the Court dismissed this claim

on March 17, 2011, and Plaintiff has not shown that he is capable of curing the deficiencies

previously found by the Court.

In light of the foregoing, the Court cannot find that Plaintiff has been diligent in amending

the complaint before the December 14, 2011 deadline in the Court’s scheduling order. Plaintiff has

already filed four complaints in this action within three years, and his present motion to amend was

filed after the deadline established by the Court’s scheduling order. Plaintiff has not shown good

cause for the Court to modify the scheduling order to grant him leave to amend at this stage of the

proceedings. Therefore, Plaintiff’s motion to amend shall be denied.

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III. CONCLUSION

Based on the foregoing, the Court finds that Plaintiff has not shown good cause for the Court

to allow him to amend the complaint at this time. Therefore, IT IS HEREBY ORDERED that

Plaintiff's motion to amend, filed on December 27, 2011, is DENIED.

IT IS SO ORDERED. 

Dated: April 2, 2012 /s/ Gary S. Austin 

6i0kij UNITED STATES MAGISTRATE JUDGE

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