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UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

NORTHERN DISTRICT OF FLORIDA

PENSACOLA DIVISION

LAVAROS DAVIS,

Plaintiff,

v. Case No. 3:20cv5935-MCR-HTC

SGT. DANIELS, et al.,

Defendants.

_________________________/

ORDER

On August 31, 2022, Defendants Daniels, Newcomb, Nousiane, and Vaughn

(“Defendants”) filed an amended motion for summary judgment, with exhibits. ECF 

Doc. 96. If Plaintiff opposes Defendants’ motion, Plaintiff shall file a response 

consistent with this Order. 

In responding to the amended motion for summary judgment, Plaintiff should 

pay close attention to the discussion below of the types of evidentiary support he 

must rely upon in opposing the motion. In short, he cannot rely upon mere 

allegations or bare legal conclusions; he must file sworn testimony, affidavits, or any 

other documents or evidentiary materials as required by Federal Rule of Civil 

Procedure 56 and Local Rule 56.1(C). Although Plaintiff is the nonmoving party, 

having brought this action against Defendants, he has the burden of proof on the 

elements of his claim. Summary judgment will be granted “if the movant shows that 

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there is no genuine dispute as to any material fact and the movant is entitled to 

judgment as a matter of law.” Fed. R. Civ. P. 56(a). The rule does not require a 

party seeking summary judgment to submit evidence negating Plaintiff’s claim, but 

only to demonstrate (“with or without supporting affidavits”) the Rule 56(a) standard 

is satisfied. See Celotex Corp. v. Catrett, 477 U.S. 317, 323 (1986). 

Plaintiff must dispute or contradict Defendants’ arguments with evidence of a 

substantial nature, as distinguished from legal conclusions or mere allegations. 

Plaintiff cannot successfully defeat Defendants’ motion with mere formal denials or 

general allegations that do not disclose the facts in detail and with precision, nor can 

he simply rely upon the pleadings. A general denial unaccompanied by any 

evidentiary support will not suffice. See, e.g., Courson v. McMillian, 939 F.2d 1479 

(11th Cir. 1991); Hutton v. Strickland, 919 F.2d 1531 (11thCir. 1991).

Evidentiary material that is acceptable in opposition to a motion for summary 

judgment includes “depositions, documents, electronically stored information, 

affidavits or declarations, stipulations (including those made for purposes of the 

motion only), admissions, interrogatory answers, or other materials . . . .” Fed. R. 

Civ. P. 56(c)(1)(A). Affidavits must be based on personal knowledge, setting forth 

such facts as would be admissible into evidence and affirmatively showing the 

affiant is competent to testify to the matters stated therein. Fed. R. Civ. P. 56(c)(4). 

If affidavits or other evidence are unavailable, Plaintiff should indicate this by his 

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own affidavit, specifying the reasons why, and he should file a motion for extension 

of time if such is necessary to obtain the evidence. Fed. R. Civ. P. 56(d). If Plaintiff 

is unable to present, by affidavit or other evidence, facts essential to justify his 

opposition to Defendants’ motion, then Plaintiff must file a sworn statement as to 

why he is unable to do so. Id. Plaintiff should thoroughly review Rule 56 of the 

Federal Rules of Civil Procedure as well as Local Rule 56.1 before responding to 

Defendants’ motion.

Materials submitted on a motion for summary judgment are viewed in the 

light most favorable to the party opposing the motion (Plaintiff), but unreasonable 

and speculative inferences will not be drawn from the materials. See Tyler v. 

Vickery, 517 F.2d 1089 (5th Cir. 1975).1

 Evidence filed by Defendants in support 

of the motion for summary judgment may be accepted as true by the Court if Plaintiff 

does not file contrary evidence in the form of sworn affidavits or other materials in 

compliance with Rule 56. See Brown v. Shinbaum, 828 F.2d 707 (11th Cir. 1987). 

Plaintiff’s summary judgment response must include an opposing 

memorandum. See N.D. Fla. Loc. R. 56.1(C). In this memorandum, Plaintiff must 

either include his own statement of facts in opposition, or he must otherwise respond 

to Defendants’ statement of facts. Id. Each assertion of fact that is made must be 

1 In Bonner v. City of Prichard, 661 F.2d 1206, 1209 (11th Cir. 1981) (en banc), the Eleventh 

Circuit adopted as binding precedent all decisions handed down by the Fifth Circuit before the 

close of business on September 30, 1981.

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supported by a pinpoint citation to the record evidence that supports that assertion—

identifying the docket, exhibit, and page or paragraph number as necessary. Id. 

Plaintiff’s statement of facts may not be set out in a separate document; it must be 

included in the memorandum. Id. In total, Plaintiff’s memorandum must not exceed 

8,000 words in length. Any evidentiary materials Plaintiff submits in support of his 

response to Defendants’ motion should be attached to his memorandum but should 

not be included in the word count. Plaintiff shall include a certificate stating the 

number of words in the memorandum.2

Only those pleadings and evidentiary materials currently in the record or filed 

in accordance with this Order will be considered by the Court in ruling on 

Defendants’ motion. A motion for summary judgment will result in a final judgment 

without trial or any further proceeding if the pleadings, sworn affidavits, and other 

evidentiary materials properly filed in the record show there is no genuine issue as 

to any material fact and the moving party is entitled to judgment as a matter of law. 

See Celotex, 477 U.S. at 322-23; Anderson v. Liberty Lobby, Inc., 477 U.S. 242 

(1986). The motion for summary judgment may be resolved against a party without 

2 The Court recognizes that many of its pro se litigants do not use computer word processing 

software when drafting pleadings and documents for the Court and that as a result, Local Rule 

7.1(F), which allows a party to rely upon the automatic word-counting function that such software 

packages generally provide, is unavailable to them. Accordingly, should Plaintiff need to submit 

his memorandum without the use of such software, the Court will accept without further 

investigation that the memorandum is within the word limit so long as it: (1) is drafted in an 

ordinary typewritten font or an ordinary handwriting size; (2) is double-spaced; (3) observes a oneinch margin on all sides of the page; and (4) is no longer than thirty (30) pages in length.

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a hearing—and without further notice—at any time after the party has had an 

opportunity to file a memorandum and evidence under Local Rule 56.1. See N.D. 

Fla. Loc. R. 56.1(G). Plaintiff is further advised that if Plaintiff fails to file a 

response to the motion, the Court will consider the motion unopposed and may 

enter judgment in favor of the Defendants. See Smith v. Sch. Bd. of Orange Cty., 

487 F.3d 1361, 1368 (11th Cir. 2007).

Accordingly, it is ORDERED:

1. Within thirty (30) days from the date of this Order, Plaintiff shall file 

a response to Defendants’ Amended Motion for Summary Judgment, ECF Doc. 96. 

2. Pursuant to Local Rule 56.1(D), Defendants may file a reply within 

seven (7) days of the filing of Plaintiff’s response if the response raises new matters 

not addressed in Defendants’ motion. 

3. The Court will take the matter under advisement after the above 

deadlines have expired.

DONE AND ORDERED this 1st day of September 2022.

/s/ Hope Thai Cannon

HOPE THAI CANNON

UNITED STATES MAGISTRATE JUDGE

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