Hamner v. Contra Costa Sheriffs Office Medical Staff
- Lin
- 3:25-cv-04086
- U.S. District Court · Northern District of California
- 2
In Hamner v. Contra Costa Sheriffs Office Medical Staff, Judge Lin reopened the case and allowed Hamner to file an amended complaint.
James Scott Hamner and the status of his federal civil-rights action.
What happened
James Scott Hamner’s federal civil-rights case was previously dismissed because he had not completed his request to proceed without paying the filing fee or paid the full fee. He later completed the request and asked the court to reopen the case.
The court granted the request to reopen. It vacated the earlier dismissal order and judgment, and confirmed that Hamner’s request to proceed without paying the filing fee had been granted.
Judge Rita F. Lin also granted Hamner permission to file an amended complaint by January 5, 2026. The court said the amended complaint must include all claims and defendants, use the required court form and case information, and cannot rely on earlier complaints by reference.
The detailed version
- Hamner v. Contra Costa Sheriffs Office Medical Staff · No. 3:25-cv-04086
- Lin
- Nov. 5, 2025
Background
This federal civil-rights action had been dismissed because James Scott Hamner had not completed his application to proceed without paying the filing fee or submitted payment of the full filing fee. After the dismissal, Hamner completed the application and filed a motion to reopen the action.
Rulings
The court granted Hamner’s motion to reopen. It ordered that the action be reopened, directed the Clerk to update the docket, and vacated the prior judgment and dismissal order. The opinion also states that Hamner’s request to proceed without paying the filing fee had been granted.
The court granted Hamner’s motion for leave to file an amended complaint. The amended complaint must be filed by January 5, 2026, use the caption and civil case number specified in the order, state “FIRST AMENDED COMPLAINT” on its first page, and use the court’s required form. Because an amended complaint replaces earlier complaints, it must include every claim and defendant Hamner wishes to pursue and may not incorporate earlier complaints by reference. If Hamner does not file it by the deadline, the action will proceed based on the original complaint.
Next step
The court stated that it will issue a screening order under 28 U.S.C. § 1915A(a) after the amended complaint is filed or after the filing deadline passes. The Clerk was directed to terminate the two motions addressed by the order. Judge Rita F. Lin signed the order.
Read the full 2-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.