Dunlap v. House
- Kandis Westmore
- 3:25-cv-09225
- U.S. District Court · Northern District of California
- 2
In Jevarien Zymell Dunlap v. Samaritan House, Judge Westmore recommended dismissal without prejudice after returned mail and no address update.
Jevarien Zymell Dunlap's case was recommended for dismissal without prejudice because court mail was returned as undeliverable and no current address was provided. Samaritan House was the defendant, but the opinion does not state that the court reached the merits of Dunlap's allegations.
What happened
Jevarien Zymell Dunlap v. Samaritan House concerns a complaint filed without a lawyer alleging sexual harassment at Samaritan House in violation of Title VII. The court had allowed Dunlap to proceed without paying the filing fee but found that the complaint did not provide the required short and plain statement of a claim.
Court mail was returned as undeliverable, and Dunlap did not file a new address or any further papers. A local court rule permits dismissal without prejudice when mail to a self-represented party is returned and the party does not provide a current address within 60 days.
Magistrate Judge Kandis A. Westmore reassigned the case to a district judge and recommended that the case be dismissed without prejudice under that rule. The recommendation was not itself a final dismissal; the parties could object within 14 days after receiving it.
The detailed version
- Dunlap v. House · No. 3:25-cv-09225
- Kandis Westmore
- Mar. 2, 2026
Background
Jevarien Zymell Dunlap filed a complaint without a lawyer alleging one Title VII claim based on sexual harassment that allegedly occurred on several occasions at Samaritan House. The opinion states that Dunlap alleged being sexually teased regularly by men described in the complaint as homosexual.
On October 29, 2025, the court granted Dunlap permission to proceed without paying the filing fee. The court also found that the complaint failed to provide the short and plain statement required by Rule 8 of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure.
Address and Procedural History
On December 26, 2025, court mail was returned as undeliverable. As of the order, Dunlap had not filed a notice of a new address or submitted additional pleadings. Civil Local Rule 3-11 requires a party proceeding without a lawyer to keep the court informed of the party's current address. The rule allows the court to dismiss a complaint without prejudice when court mail is returned as undeliverable and the court receives no written communication providing a current address within 60 days.
Recommendation and Effect
Magistrate Judge Kandis A. Westmore ordered that the case be reassigned to a district judge and recommended that the case be dismissed without prejudice under Civil Local Rule 3-11. The recommendation was based on the returned mail and Dunlap's failure to provide a current address; the opinion did not decide whether the alleged sexual harassment violated Title VII. Any party could object within 14 days after being served with the recommendation. The opinion states that failing to object within that period may waive the right to appeal the district court's order.
Read the full 2-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.