United States District Court, E.D. Michigan, Southern Division
George
Caram Steeh Judge
OPINION
AND ORDER (1) CONSTRUING PLAINTIFF'S EMERGENCY MOTION FOR
RECONSIDERATION (DE 60) AS A SUPPLEMENTAL MOTION TO AMEND AND
GRANTING SUCH MOTION; (2) PROVIDING DIRECTION TO THE CLERK OF
THE COURT & THE USMS WITH RESPECT TO SERVICE OF THE
AMENDED COMPLAINT (DE 61) UPON DEFENDANTS BIDDLE AND SMITH;
(3) EXTENDING DATES; (4) DENYING WITHOUT PREJUDICE MOTIONS TO
EXCEED PAGE LIMIT (DES 75, 78); AND, (5)
STRIKING SEVERAL FILINGS (DES 76, 77, 80)
Anthony P. Patti Magistrate Judge
I.
OPINION
A.
Original Complaint
Michael
Kitchen (#189265), is currently in the Michigan Department of
Corrections' (MDOC's) custody at Michigan Reformatory
(RMI) in Ionia, Michigan. (DE 43.) On May 19, 2017, while
incarcerated at the Earnest C. Brooks Correctional Facility
(LRF), Kitchen filed the instant lawsuit in pro per
against ten named defendants, each of whom is identified as
being located at the Saginaw Correctional Facility (SRF). (DE
1 ¶¶ 5-7.) In addition, he listed as Defendants
“Unknown Supervisors or Guards.” (DE 1 ¶ 8.)
Each of
the ten named defendants is represented by Michigan's
Attorney General. Defendants were given until September 27,
2017 by which to file a responsive pleading. (DEs 23, 24.) On
May 22, 2018, Judge Steeh entered an order accepting my
report and recommendation, granting in part and denying in
part Defendants' motion for summary judgment, and
dismissing Plaintiff's claims for money damages against
Defendants in their official capacities. (DE 33.)
B.
Discovery & Dispositive Motion Deadlines
On
September 11, 2018, I entered an order setting the discovery
deadline for November 6, 2018 and the dispositive motion
cutoff for December 6, 2018. (DE 37.) Since then, there have
been several extensions: (1) on December 4, 2018, the
discovery deadline was extended to Monday, January 7, 2019,
and the dispositive motion deadline was extended to
Wednesday, February 6, 2019; (2) on February 27, 2019, the
dispositive motion cutoff was extended to June 5, 2019; and,
(3) on July 30, 2019, the discovery deadline was extended to
July 16, 2019, and the dispositive motion cut-off was set for
August 15, 2019.
C.
Plaintiff's Attempt to Amend His Complaint
Meanwhile, on January 25, 2019, Plaintiff filed a motion to
amend his complaint, attached to which was a proposed amended
complaint. (DE 45, DE 45- 1.) On April 8, 2019, I entered an
opinion and order granting in part and denying in part
Plaintiff's motion. (DE 57.) Among other things, I stated
that “the Court is not convinced that there was
adequate information for prison officials to know that
Plaintiff was grieving proposed Defendants Biddle and
Smith.” (DE 57 at 14; see also DE 57 at 17.)
Therefore, the Court denied Plaintiff's motion to amend
as to proposed Defendants Biddle and Smith. (DE 57 at 23.)
D.
Instant Matter
Among
the many motions currently pending before the Court is
Plaintiff's April 23, 2019 emergency motion for
reconsideration of the Court's April 8, 2019 order (DE
57), to the extent it denied the motion to amend as to adding
Defendants Smith and Biddle. (DE 60 at 1-5.) Defendants filed
a response on May 24, 2019, wherein they state that Plaintiff
“has now identified the source of his contention that
Biddle and Smith are involved in the chain of events that
this suit is based upon, ...