Warren v. City of Chico ( 2022 )

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT 9 FOR THE EASTERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA 10 11 BOBBY WARREN, et al., No. 2:21–cv–640–MCE–KJN 12 Plaintiffs, ORDER 13 v. (ECF No. 160.) 14 CITY OF CHICO, et al., 15 Defendants. 16 17 In January of 2022, the parties settled this case, and all claims were dismissed. (ECF No. 18 153.) In the settlement agreement, the parties provided for continuing jurisdiction and 19 enforcement of the settlement with the undersigned. Thereafter, the parties negotiated over, 20 among other things, the rules for the housing site (hereafter the “Campus”). In April, the parties 21 requested rulings on some of the City’s proposed rules, and so the court set a hearing and ordered 22 briefing. (ECF Nos. 160 to 166.) On April 28, 2022, the court held a hearing regarding the areas 23 in dispute. (ECF No. 168.) 24 Under California law, “contracts are to be interpreted according to the objective intent of 25 the parties.” Daniels v. Aguillera, 2019 WL 95510, *3 (E.D. Cal. Jan. 3, 2019) (citing Beck v. 26 American Health Group Int'l, Inc., 211 Cal. App. 3d 1555, 1562 (Cal. Ct. App. 1989); Cal. Civ. 27 Code § 1636 (2009)). When reduced to writing, “the intention of the parties is to be ascertained 28 from the writing alone, if possible. Evans v. Y’s Fries, Inc., 2011 WL 1899778, *2 (E.D. Cal. 1 May 19, 2011) (citing AIU Ins. Co. v. Superior Court, 51 Cal.3d 807, 822 (1990)). After 2 discussion with the parties, and for the reasons stated on the record, the court ORDERS: 3 1. The City’s request to include a 3-bin limit for personal property is DENIED (but 4 personal property may be limited as set forth in the settlement agreement). 5 2. The City’s request to institute a curfew from 11:00 p.m. to 7:00 a.m. is DENIED. 6 However, the City may institute expanded quiet hours between 10:00 p.m. and 7:00 7 a.m. 8 3. The City’s request to conduct warrant checks is GRANTED IN PART. The City may 9 conduct warrant checks on individuals seeking housing on the Campus, and may 10 notify law enforcement if any such person has an outstanding warrant for a violent 11 felony or sex offense. At this time, the City may not include a rule requiring 12 notification of any outstanding misdemeanor warrants. However, the parties shall 13 come to an agreement on whether there are any violent misdemeanors for which law 14 enforcement and the campus operators should be notified. To effectuate the 15 notification process, the City shall maintain an information wall between its agent 16 checking all warrants and the law enforcement officers responsible for acting on any 17 outstanding warrants addressed in this rule. 18 4. The City’s request to include a rule allowing for the expulsion from the Campus of an 19 occupant solely for acts that occur outside of the Campus is DENIED without 20 prejudice. 21 5. The City’s request to include a rule requiring dogs to be muzzled while on the Campus 22 and outside of the occupant’s unit is GRANTED. The City shall provide a muzzle to 23 any occupant needing one for purposes of this rule. Counsel shall promptly confer on 24 any possible ways to modify this rule, while still maintaining the safety of the 25 residents as well as other dogs on the campus. 26 6. The City’s request to limit one dog at a time in the pet run is DENIED without 27 prejudice, subject to the parties conferring on how to make best use of the dog run(s). 28 7. The parties agree on the terms of the current bag search and amnesty box provisions ] on a temporary basis, and so the City’s request regarding these rules is GRANTED. 2 8. Now that the Campus is open and assessing individuals, and now that all rules are in 3 place for the operation of the Campus, the City may begin enforcing its ordinances as 4 provided for by Paragraphs 9, 10 and related sections of the Settlement Agreement. 5 6 All of these rulings are potentially subject to revisiting and revising in the future based 7 || upon actual experiences at the campus, to ensure the campus is being operated in the safest, most 8 | optimal fashion for the residents of the campus and the City of Chico. 9 || Dated: April 29, 2022 0 Foci) Aharon 11 KENDALL J. NE UNITED STATES MAGISTRATE JUDGE 12 warr.640 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28