Hastings v. City Fort Myers et al, No. 2:2017cv00507 - Document 37 (M.D. Fla. 2018)

Court Description: OPINION AND ORDER denying without prejudice re: 27 MOTION to Dismiss. Defendants Dennis Eads, Emily Destefanis, and Justin Trask may file an Amended Motion to Dismiss on or before July 11, 2018. Signed by Judge Sheri Polster Chappell on 6/27/2018. (SLU)

Download PDF

Hastings v. City Fort Myers et al Doc. 37 UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT MIDDLE DISTRICT OF FLORIDA FORT MYERS DIVISION DAVID SCOTT HASTINGS, Plaintiff, v. Case No: 2:17-cv-507-FtM-38CM CITY FORT MYERS, DOUGLAS BAKER, STEPHEN RUSSELL, DENNIS EADS, MIKE SCOTT, EMILY DESTEPHANIS, JUSTIN TRASK, RICHARD ERRETT and STEPHANIE RUSSELL, Defendants. / OPINION AND ORDER1 This matter comes before the Court on Defendants Dennis Eads, Emily Destefanis, and Justin Trask's (FMPD Defendants) Motion to Dismiss (Doc. 27) filed on October 26, 2017. The Plaintiff filed a Response in Opposition to multiple motions to dismiss (Doc. 33) on January 9, 2018. FMPD Defendants’ Motion states: The undersigned respectfully requests the Court to allow the aforementioned Defendants to adopt the Motion to Dismiss filed on behalf of Defendant, State Attorney Stephen Russell, and the Assistant State Attorney, Stephanie Russell, as to their Memorandum of Law concerning the factual background 1 Disclaimer: Documents filed in CM/ECF may contain hyperlinks to other documents or websites. These hyperlinks are provided only for users’ convenience. Users are cautioned that hyperlinked documents in CM/ECF are subject to PACER fees. By allowing hyperlinks to other websites, this Court does not endorse, recommend, approve, or guarantee any third parties or the services or products they provide on their websites. Likewise, the Court has no agreements with any of these third parties or their websites. The Court accepts no responsibility for the availability or functionality of any hyperlink. Thus, the fact that a hyperlink ceases to work or directs the user to some other site does not affect the opinion of the Court. Dockets.Justia.com sections entitled “Standard for Motion to Dismiss” and “Failure to State a Cause of Action” and the Attorney General’s Motion to Dismiss with respect to the absolute qualified immunity of the officers. (Doc. 27 at ¶ 1). The Defendants then discuss the FMPD Defendants’ case based on the arguments made in those briefings without reference to any case law or context, and conclude the case should be dismissed. In filing motions before this Court, Defendants are reminded that they cannot state empty legal conclusions nor expect the Court to fill in the missing analysis and authority that may support their conclusions. Rule 3.01(a) of the Middle District of Florida Local Rules states, [i]n a motion or other application for an order, the movant shall include a concise statement of the precise relief requested, a statement of the basis for the request, and a memorandum of legal authority in support of the request, all of which the movant shall include in a single document not more than twenty-five (25) pages. M.D. Fla. Local Rule 3.01(a) (emphasis added). The Court is not obligated to ferret through Co-Defendants’ other filings to decipher the arguments FMPD Defendants want it to consider on a particular point. See Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc. v. Bivins, No. 2:14-CV-147-FTM-38, 2014 WL 7273913, at *3–4 (M.D. Fla. Dec. 19, 2014) Like “[t]he Seventh Circuit memorably said . . . judges ‘are not like pigs, hunting for truffles buried in briefs.’” Chavez v. Sec'y Fla. Dep't of Corr., 647 F.3d 1057, 1061 (11th Cir.2011) (quoting United States v. Dunkel, 927 F.2d 955, 956 (7th Cir.1991)); Adler v. Wal–Mart Stores, Inc., 144 F.3d 664, 672 (10th Cir.1998) (“[D]istrict courts . . . have a limited and neutral role in the adversarial process, and [ought to be] wary of becoming advocates who comb the record . . . and make a party's case for [him].”). 2 With these principles in mind, the Court finds that the FMPD Defendants’ Motion violates the Local Rule, and is therefore due to be denied. But the Court would prefer to rule on the merits, and will allow FMPD Defendants to file an amended motion to dismiss that complies with the foregoing standards. Accordingly, it is now ORDERED: Defendants Dennis Eads, Emily Destefanis, and Justin Trask's (FMPD Defendants) Motion to Dismiss (Doc. 27) is DENIED without prejudice. Defendants may file an Amended Motion to Dismiss on or before July 11, 2018. DONE and ORDERED in Fort Myers, Florida this 27th day of June, 2018. Copies: All Parties of Record SA: FTMP-2 3 FMPD

Some case metadata and case summaries were written with the help of AI, which can produce inaccuracies. You should read the full case before relying on it for legal research purposes.

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.