Opinion
1:19-cv-01338-AWI-JLT (PC)
08-31-2021
EARNEST S. HARRIS, Plaintiff, v. D. NEVE, Defendant.
ORDER DENYING PLAINTIFF'S MOTION
FOR SERVICE OF SUBPOENA
(Doc. 53)
JENNIFER L. THURSTON, CHIEF UNITED STATES MAGISTRATE JUDGE
Plaintiff has filed a subpoena deuces tecum with the Court. (Doc. 53.) The Court construes the filing as a request to have the subpoena served on Defendant.
Plaintiff is entitled to the issuance of subpoenas commanding the production of documents, electronically stored information, or tangible things from non-parties. Fed.R.Civ.P. 45(a). In addition, because he is proceeding in forma pauperis, Plaintiff is entitled to service of completed subpoenas by the United States Marshal Service. See 28 U.S.C. 1915(d). However, the Court will grant requests for subpoenas commanding the production of documents, electronically stored information, or tangible things from non-parties only if these items are not equally available to Plaintiff and not obtainable from Defendant through a request for production. See Fed. R. Civ. P. 34. As stated in the Court's First Informational Order, discovery requests on a defendant, such as a request for production of documents, must be served directly on the attorney for the defendant. (Doc. 3 at 4.)
In his subpoena, Plaintiff requests documents from Defendant. Plaintiff has not demonstrated that he made a request to Defendant for production of the documents, that the documents are in the possession of a non-party, or that Plaintiff is entitled to the documents. Accordingly, Plaintiff's request to have the subpoena served on Defendant by the U.S. Marshal, to the extent Plaintiff makes such request, is DENIED.
IT IS SO ORDERED.