Whitall v. Palomares
- Charles Breyer
- 3:20-cv-01441
- U.S. District Court · Northern District of California
- 1
In Whitall v. Palomares, Judge Breyer denied more time but granted Whitall’s request to dismiss the case without prejudice.
Raymond Richard Whitall’s case was closed after his request for voluntary dismissal without prejudice was granted. S. Palomares and the other defendants were not required to litigate the proposed claims in this action, and the court did not decide those claims on the merits.
What happened
In Whitall v. Palomares, the court had previously dismissed Raymond Richard Whitall’s complaint but allowed him 28 days to amend it to pursue possible claims involving a search and retaliation.
Whitall asked for more time, until December 28, 2020, so he could complete the prison grievance process before amending. He alternatively asked to voluntarily dismiss the case without prejudice.
Judge Charles R. Breyer denied the extension request but granted the alternative request for voluntary dismissal without prejudice. The clerk was directed to close the case, and the court did not decide the proposed search or retaliation claims.
The detailed version
- Whitall v. Palomares · No. 3:20-cv-01441
- Charles Breyer
- Aug. 6, 2020
Background
The court had dismissed Raymond Richard Whitall’s complaint on July 1, 2020, while allowing him 28 days to file an amended complaint. The court identified possible Fourth Amendment and retaliation claims under Section 1983 against individual correctional officers.
Motion
Whitall moved for an extension of time until December 28, 2020, to amend his complaint so he could exhaust available administrative remedies for those claims. He alternatively requested voluntary dismissal without prejudice so he could later file a new complaint adding retaliation and illegal-search-and-seizure claims.
Ruling
The court denied the request for a lengthy extension. It cited the rule that a prisoner plaintiff should complete available administrative exhaustion before filing suit. The court granted Whitall’s alternative request for voluntary dismissal without prejudice under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 41(a). The clerk was instructed to terminate the motion at ECF No. 7 and close the file. The order did not decide the merits of the proposed Fourth Amendment or retaliation claims.
Read the full 1-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.