Quair v. Speer ( 2020 )

1 2 3 4 UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT 5 NORTHERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA 6 7 DAVID SABINO QUAIR, Case No. 20-cv-00222-JD 8 Plaintiff, ORDER DISMISSING COMPLAINT 9 v. WITH LEAVE TO AMEND 10 B. SPEER, et al., Defendants. 11 12 13 Plaintiff, a state prisoner, has filed a pro se civil rights complaint under 42 U.S.C. § 1983. 14 He has been granted leave to proceed in forma pauperis. 15 DISCUSSION 16 STANDARD OF REVIEW 17 Federal courts must engage in a preliminary screening of cases in which prisoners seek 18 redress from a governmental entity or officer or employee of a governmental entity. 28 U.S.C. 19 § 1915A(a). In its review, the Court must identify any cognizable claims, and dismiss any claims 20 which are frivolous, malicious, fail to state a claim upon which relief may be granted, or seek 21 monetary relief from a defendant who is immune from such relief. Id. at 1915A(b)(1),(2). Pro se 22 pleadings must be liberally construed. Balistreri v. Pacifica Police Dep’t, 901 F.2d 696, 699 (9th 23 Cir. 1990). 24 Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 8(a)(2) requires only “a short and plain statement of the 25 claim showing that the pleader is entitled to relief.” Although a complaint “does not need detailed 26 factual allegations, . . . a plaintiff’s obligation to provide the ‘grounds’ of his ‘entitle[ment] to 27 relief’ requires more than labels and conclusions, and a formulaic recitation of the elements of a 1 the speculative level.” Bell Atlantic Corp. v. Twombly, 550 U.S. 544, 555 (2007) (citations 2 omitted). A complaint must proffer “enough facts to state a claim to relief that is plausible on its 3 face.” Id. at 570. The United States Supreme Court has explained the “plausible on its face” 4 standard of Twombly: “While legal conclusions can provide the framework of a complaint, they 5 must be supported by factual allegations. When there are well-pleaded factual allegations, a court 6 should assume their veracity and then determine whether they plausibly give rise to an entitlement 7 to relief.” Ashcroft v. Iqbal, 556 U.S. 662, 679 (2009). 8 To state a claim under 42 U.S.C. § 1983, a plaintiff must allege that: (1) a right secured by 9 the Constitution or laws of the United States was violated, and (2) the alleged deprivation was 10 committed by a person acting under the color of state law. West v. Atkins, 487 U.S. 42, 48 (1988). 11 LEGAL CLAIMS 12 Plaintiff seeks to make out a variety of claims about the conditions of his incarceration. 13 For his medical claims, deliberate indifference to serious medical needs violates the Eighth 14 Amendment’s proscription against cruel and unusual punishment. Estelle v. Gamble, 429 U.S. 97, 15 104 (1976); McGuckin v. Smith, 974 F.2d 1050, 1059 (9th Cir. 1992), overruled on other grounds, 16 WMX Technologies, Inc. v. Miller, 104 F.3d 1133, 1136 (9th Cir. 1997) (en banc). A 17 determination of “deliberate indifference” involves an examination of two elements: the 18 seriousness of the prisoner’s medical need and the nature of the defendant’s response to that need. 19 Id. at 1059. 20 A serious medical need exists if the failure to treat a prisoner’s condition could result in 21 further significant injury or the “unnecessary and wanton infliction of pain.” Id. The existence of 22 an injury that a reasonable doctor or patient would find important and worthy of comment or 23 treatment, the presence of a medical condition that significantly affects an individual’s daily 24 activities, or the existence of chronic and substantial pain are examples of indications that a 25 prisoner has a serious need for medical treatment. Id. at 1059-60. 26 Plaintiff’s claims are undermined by a lack of factual allegations, let alone facts that might 27 make his claims plausible. For these reasons, the complaint is dismissed with leave to amend. If 1 rights were violated. For example, for the medical claims, he should describe his medical 2 || condition, what treatment should have been provided, and the injuries that resulted from the lack 3 of that treatment. Simply stating he is dependent on insulin and has cirrhosis of the liver is 4 || insufficient. He must also identify the actions of specific defendants. Plaintiff must only discuss 5 medical treatment that was denied at San Quentin State Prison. If plaintiff wishes to raise claims 6 || regarding treatment at California Men’s Colony, he must file a case in the Central District of 7 California. If plaintiff wishes to challenge his conviction, he must file a habeas petition. Plaintiff 8 will only be provided one opportunity to amend. 9 CONCLUSION 10 1. The complaint is DISMISSED with leave to amend. The amended complaint must 11 be filed within forty-two (42) days of the date this order is received and must include the caption 12 and civil case number used in this order and the words AMENDED COMPLAINT on the first 5 13 page. Because an amended complaint completely replaces the original complaint, plaintiff must 14 include in it all the claims he wishes to present. See Ferdik v. Bonzelet, 963 F.2d 1258, 1262 (9th 15 || Cir. 1992). He may not incorporate material from the original complaint by reference. Failure to 16 amend within the designated time will result in the dismissal of this case. 5 17 2. It is the plaintiff’s responsibility to prosecute this case. Plaintiff must keep the 3 18 Court informed of any change of address by filing a separate paper with the clerk headed “Notice 19 of Change of Address,” and must comply with the Court’s orders in a timely fashion. Failure to 20 || do so may result in the dismissal of this action for failure to prosecute pursuant to Federal Rule of 21 Civil Procedure 41(b). 22 IT IS SO ORDERED. 23 Dated: March 27, 2020 24 25 JAMES TO 26 United Stges District Judge 27 28