Opinion
Case No. 19-cv-1405-NJR
11-24-2020
TYRONE GILL, Plaintiff, v. DANIEL SULLIVAN, et al., Defendants.
MEMORANDUM AND ORDER ROSENSTENGEL, Chief Judge :
This matter is before the Court on Plaintiff Tyrone Gill's motion requesting all documents that were ordered in the Court's scheduling order (Doc. 50). Defendants have filed responses (Docs. 58 and 59) to the motion.
Gill seeks the production of the log of all inmates in segregation during the time that bleach was spilled on the floor of his unit, as well as all grievances written by those inmates and the medical records of inmates who sought care for the bleach spill. He also seeks any incident reports written by correctional officers about the event. He believes that he is entitled to these documents under the initial scheduling order's initial disclosure requirements which requires Defendants to produce reports and statements of persons with knowledge of the incident and names of persons with knowledge of the incident (Doc. 40, p. 2).
Defendants indicate that they provided Gill with their initial disclosures (Docs. 58 and 59). Gill does not deny that he received Defendants' initial disclosures, rather he argues that he is entitled to specific documents that he believes will further identify witnesses and those with knowledge of the incident. The Court's initial scheduling order, however, does not require that these documents be produced as part of Defendants' initial disclosures.
To the extent that Gill seeks these documents, he would first have to request them from Defendants in a properly submitted request for documents pursuant to Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 34. But discovery at this time is limited by the Court's initial scheduling order to the issue of whether Gill exhausted his administrative remedies, and none of his requests deal with whether he exhausted his remedies. These requests are related to the merits of Gill's claims, and merits discovery is currently stayed. Once the Court has ruled on any dispositive motions on the issue of exhaustion, it will enter a merits discovery schedule. At that time, Gill may submit discovery requests to the Defendants seeking these documents and may file a motion to compel if Defendants object to providing his requested documents. But his request at this time is premature.
Accordingly, the Court DENIES Gill's motion for documents (Doc. 50).
IT IS SO ORDERED.
DATED: November 24, 2020
s/ Nancy J. Rosenstengel
NANCY J. ROSENSTENGEL
Chief U.S. District Judge