89 results for 'cat:"Civil Rights" AND cat:"Discovery"'.
J. Estudillo grants the family's motion to exclude the testimony of Kitsap County's expert about her opinions on constitutional or legal standards regarding the family's claim that the prison healthcare services' negligent practices concerning suicide prevention led to the death of the inmate. The expert's assertion that Kitsap County providing the inmate constitutionally required minimum care is equivalent to a reasonable standard of care is improper, because it suggests that the family must prove that the county committed a constitutional violation to prove their negligence claim, which would confuse a jury about the actual legal standards for a negligence claim.
Court: USDC Western District of Washington, Judge: Estudillo, Filed On: September 11, 2023, Case #: 3:21cv5800, NOS: Other Civil Rights - Civil Rights, Categories: civil Rights, Experts, discovery
J. Chun denies the city's motion to strike the testimony of the psychiatrist's expert regarding the psychiatrist's lawsuit alleging that the health department invaded his privacy when investigating an anonymous complaint accusing the psychiatrist of engaging in "prostitution solicitation, illicit drug use and child pornography." While the expert misspoke on some issues, his testimony relies on several documents in the record and he can “reexamine any misstatements before trial."
Court: USDC Western District of Washington, Judge: Chun, Filed On: August 17, 2023, Case #: 3:20cv6015, NOS: Other Civil Rights - Civil Rights, Categories: civil Rights, Experts, discovery
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J. Metcalf denies a citizen his fourth motion compelling discovery against a town and its former police chief because the town alleges it does not to have the chief’s personnel file, which the citizen requested. In response to the first three motions, the town said it was illegal to produce the file without a protective order, which counsel then sent. The town, required to produce the file within two weeks, did not respond until two months later, saying it was unable to locate the file. Therefore, the order cannot be enforced. However, the town is commanded to address whether sanctions should be considered.
Court: USDC Western District of North Carolina, Judge: Metcalf, Filed On: August 15, 2023, Case #: 3:17cv638, NOS: Other Civil Rights - Civil Rights, Categories: civil Rights, Evidence, discovery
J. Rodriguez partially grants a motion by a civil rights group to compel the production of documents in a massive and ongoing legal dispute centered on the legal and constitutional validity of SB 1, a sweeping election security bill passed by the Texas legislature in 2021. While Texas may withhold some of the requested documents, in the case of others they have improperly asserted privilege or have already waived that privilege — for example, by sharing requested documents with third parties.
Court: USDC Western District of Texas , Judge: Rodriguez, Filed On: July 31, 2023, Case #: 5:21cv844, NOS: Voting - Civil Rights, Categories: civil Rights, Elections, discovery
MJ. Eifert grants and part and denies in part an education board’s motion to compel a couple to respond to its discovery responses, and grants the couple’s motion to compel the board to respond to theirs in the couple’s suit claiming special education teachers abused and neglected their 15-year-old son. The couple must answer the board’s interrogatories on specific dates and times their son’s classmates were mistreated, when one of the teachers inappropriately touched their son and the extent of the his injuries, but are not required to produce any of theirs or his medical records. The board must produce footage of the boy’s classroom and his whereabout In the building each day he attended school.
Court: USDC Southern District of West Virginia, Judge: Eifert, Filed On: July 6, 2023, Case #: 3:22cv592, NOS: Amer w/Disabilities - Other - Civil Rights, Categories: civil Rights, Education, discovery
J. Ray partially grants the estate's motion to compel the county to produce documents in a civil rights and wrongful death action arising from the decedent's death while incarcerated at the Chatham County Detention Center. The documents include reports about the provider's provision of services at the detention center, doctors' review of the decedent's medical charts, an inmate mortality chart related to a different deceased inmate and inmate health compliance monitoring reports. The reports created by the doctor did not become attorney-client privileged information just because the county attorney received them. Two reports are also not protected from disclosure by the work product doctrine. However, the motion to compel the inmate healthcare provider to produce documents is partially denied because email communications between an employee and the provider's general counsel are protected by attorney-client privilege.
Court: USDC Southern District of Georgia, Judge: Ray, Filed On: July 6, 2023, Case #: 4:22cv67, NOS: Other Civil Rights - Civil Rights, Categories: civil Rights, Wrongful Death, discovery
J. Leupold grants the deputies' motion to compel discovery as part of their claim that the county assigned them to the Special Investigation Unit, which investigates narcotics and enforces anti-vice laws in the county, before also placing them on the Pierce County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office Brady/Potential Impeachment Evidence list. The county must turn over documents related to Kris Nordstrom discussing the deputies because the deputies argue that those documents contain criticisms that the county and others made against them, and they argue that Nordstrom was an employee who made false claims against them.
Court: USDC Western District of Washington, Judge: Leupold, Filed On: June 30, 2023, Case #: 3:21cv5592, NOS: Other Civil Rights - Civil Rights, Categories: civil Rights, Employment, discovery
J. Whitehead grants the city's motion for a protective order blocking the arrestee from deposing Tacoma Mayor Victoria Woodards and Tacoma Police Chief Avery Moore for his lawsuit, which alleges that the city's police officers arrested him based on a suspect description and then unreasonably slammed him onto a picnic table. There is no need to depose Woodards and Moore because the arrestee does not argue that they have first-hand information that he cannot obtain from other witnesses or discovery means that would not inconvenience the city by taking time away from high-raking officials.
Court: USDC Western District of Washington, Judge: Whitehead, Filed On: June 26, 2023, Case #: 3:22cv5106, NOS: Other Civil Rights - Civil Rights, Categories: civil Rights, discovery
J. Aiken grants the estate representative's motion for sanctions claiming that the healthcare company purged its emails of evidence related to the lawsuit alleging the county's subordinates were responsible for the decedent's death. The estate representative plausibly alleges its claim because the first email purge happened after the healthcare company received notices of a tort claim and evidence preservation, and the healthcare company denied doing so for months despite repeated inquiries.
Court: USDC Oregon, Judge: Aiken, Filed On: June 14, 2023, Case #: 6:19cv1883, NOS: Other Civil Rights - Civil Rights, Categories: civil Rights, Sanctions, discovery
J. Pascal partially quashes a request to access a borough police officer's employment records in claims brought after plaintiff was shot during a foot chase because the officer had a history of excessive force and subsequently had been fired for an unrelated incident, and the borough may have disregarded whether the officer was highly likely to use excessive force. However, personnel files retained by other employers should remain confidential.
Court: USDC New Jersey, Judge: Pascal , Filed On: June 2, 2023, Case #: 1:21cv20738, NOS: Other Civil Rights - Civil Rights, Categories: civil Rights, discovery, Privilege
J. Martinez rule on several motions in limine in the mother's lawsuit alleging that the county wrongfully removed her infant and placed the infant into foster care after both tested positive for methadone. The mother's request to exclude unabridged DSHS court reports, caretaker reports and social worker reports from trial is denied, as these documents are relevant and highly probative. However, the county may not refer to any of the mother's objections to discovery requests or discuss any discovery disputes, as these are almost always excluded at trial and the county has not presented an adequate basis for presenting them to the jury.
Court: USDC Western District of Washington, Judge: Martinez, Filed On: June 2, 2023, Case #: 2:20cv1665, NOS: Other Civil Rights - Civil Rights, Categories: civil Rights, Jury, discovery