Washington v. Magado
- Beth Freeman
- 5:21-cv-08126
- U.S. District Court · Northern District of California
- 3
In Washington v. Magado, Judge Freeman ordered more defendant-identification information for service and denied Washington’s injunction and temporary restraining-order motion.
Christopher N. Washington must provide more information identifying Nurse Magado for service within 28 days or face dismissal without prejudice of his claims against Magado. The court denied Washington’s requested injunction concerning the CMF Vacaville mail room.
What happened
In Washington v. Magado, Christopher N. Washington, a state prisoner representing himself, sued medical staff under a federal civil-rights law. The court had already found a valid medical-care claim against Nurse Magado, but prison officials said they could not identify that nurse well enough for service.
The court ordered Washington to provide more information, such as a first initial, so the U.S. Marshal could serve Magado. If Washington did not provide the information within 28 days, the claims against Magado would be dismissed without prejudice. Washington also sought an injunction about the opening of his legal mail by the mail room at CMF Vacaville.
The court denied that motion because the mail room was not a party to the case and the amended complaint did not include claims about CMF Vacaville. Judge Freeman issued the order on October 31, 2022.
The detailed version
- Washington v. Magado · No. 5:21-cv-08126
- Beth Freeman
- Oct. 31, 2022
Background
Christopher N. Washington, a state prisoner proceeding without a lawyer, filed a civil-rights action under 42 U.S.C. § 1983 against medical staff at Salinas Valley State Prison. The court previously found that his amended complaint stated a legally recognizable claim against Nurse Magado for deliberate indifference to serious medical needs and ordered the matter served. The court dismissed the other named defendants because the complaint did not state recognizable claims against them.
The California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation reported that it could not identify “Nurse Magado.” As a result, the only remaining defendant had not been served. Washington had filed a letter stating that Magado could be served at Salinas Valley State Prison, but the court determined that more identifying information was needed.
Service of Process
The court ordered Washington to file notice providing more information to properly identify Nurse Magado, such as a first initial, so the U.S. Marshal could complete service. The court noted that the case had been pending for more than 90 days. Under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 4(m), a claim may be dismissed without prejudice when service is not completed within the required period unless the plaintiff shows good cause.
The court gave Washington 28 days from the filing date of the order to provide the requested information. If he failed to do so, the court stated that his claims against Magado would be dismissed without prejudice under Rule 4(m), without further notice.
Motion for Injunction
Washington moved for an injunction and temporary restraining order concerning the mail room at CMF Vacaville opening his legal mail. The court denied the motion. It explained that an injunction generally binds the parties and certain people or entities connected with them, and that the CMF Vacaville mail room was not a party to this action. The court also stated that an injunction could not be based on claims that were not included in the complaint. Washington’s amended complaint concerned medical claims against an employee at Salinas Valley State Prison and did not include claims involving CMF Vacaville.
Disposition
The court ordered Washington to provide more information identifying Nurse Magado and stated that failure to do so within 28 days would result in dismissal without prejudice of the claims against Magado. The court denied Washington’s motion for an injunction and temporary restraining order and terminated the motion docketed as No. 12.
Read the full 3-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.