F I L E D
United States Court of Appeals
Tenth Circuit
UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS
January 26, 2006
FOR THE TENTH CIRCUIT Elisabeth A. Shumaker
Clerk of Court
JOSEPH A. ELLSWORTH,
Plaintiff-Appellant,
v. No. 05-7047
(D.C. No. CIV-01-607-S)
GARY GIBSON, Warden O.S.P. in his (E.D. Okla.)
Official Capacity and in his individual
capacity; DODD, Correctional Officer
O.S.P. in his Official Capacity and in
his individual capacity; PRUITT, Unit
Manager of "I" and "G" Units at
O.S.P. in his Official Capacity and in
his individual capacity; J
STANSIFIRD, O.S.P. Deputy Warden
in his Official Capacity and in his
individual capacity; T LINDSEY, "I"
Unit Case Manager in his Official
Capacity and in his individual
capacity; SPEARS, "I" Unit Case
Manager in his Official Capacity and
in his individual capacity; M RIDDLE,
"I" Unit Case Manager in his Official
Capacity and in his individual
capacity; MORGAN, Night Shift
Correctional Officer in his Official
Capacity and in his individual
capacity; MOODY, Day Shift
Correctional Officer in his Official
Capacity and in his individual
capacity; SHERWOOD, Night Shift
Correctional Officer in his Official
Capacity and in his individual
capacity; SHERRILL, Disciplinary
Hearing Officer in his Official
Capacity and in his individual
capacity; D WORTHAM,
Former "I" Unit Case Manager in his
Official Capacity and in his individual
capacity; STEWART, O.S.P. Physician
in his Official Capacity and in his
individual capacity,
Defendants-Appellees.
ORDER AND JUDGMENT *
Before KELLY, PORFILIO, and BRORBY, Circuit Judges.
After examining the briefs and appellate record, this panel has determined
unanimously that oral argument would not materially assist the determination of
this appeal. See Fed. R. App. P. 34(a)(2); 10th Cir. R. 34.1(G). The case is
therefore ordered submitted without oral argument.
Mr. Ellsworth, an Oklahoma state prisoner proceeding pro se, sued
defendants (officials and employees of the Oklahoma State Penitentiary) under
42 U.S.C. § 1983, alleging various violations of his rights under the United States
Constitution. The district court dismissed the action because of Mr. Ellsworth’s
*
This order and judgment is not binding precedent, except under the
doctrines of law of the case, res judicata, and collateral estoppel. The court
generally disfavors the citation of orders and judgments; nevertheless, an order
and judgment may be cited under the terms and conditions of 10th Cir. R. 36.3.
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failure to comply with both the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure and a court
order. Mr. Ellsworth appeals this decision. We affirm the judgment of the
district court.
The district court’s ruling of March 24, 2005, details the chronology of
Mr. Ellsworth’s failure to cooperate in discovery and comply with a court order.
Defendants served Mr. Ellsworth with a set of interrogatories on May 13, 2003,
asking him to state his case in his own words. When Mr. Ellsworth did not
respond, defendants mailed two letters to him requesting his responses. Later
defendants filed two motions to compel. On March 17, 2004, the district court
granted the motions to compel and ordered Mr. Ellsworth to produce his
responses by April 19, 2004. Sometime in December of 2004, Mr. Ellsworth
provided unresponsive answers, generally stating that he could not answer
because one of the defendants had destroyed his documentary evidence.
Defendants then filed a motion to dismiss pursuant to Fed. R. Civ. P. 37(b)(2)(C).
Mr. Ellsworth did not respond to the dismissal motion, but he did file a
response to the court’s show-cause order. He asserted that defendants had made it
difficult to respond to discovery by stealing his evidence and placing him in
solitary confinement on a fabricated charge. The district court granted
defendants’ motion to dismiss.
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“[W]e review the district court’s decision to dismiss for discovery
violations under an abuse of discretion standard.” Ehrenhaus v. Reynolds,
965 F.2d 916, 920 (10th Cir. 1992). Because “dismissal represents an extreme
sanction appropriate only in cases of willful misconduct,” however, the district
court must ensure that dismissal is a just sanction for the offending party’s
actions. Id. Thus, in addition to considering the culpability of the offending
party, a court should consider:
(1) the degree of actual prejudice to the defendant; (2) the amount of
interference with the judicial process; (3) the culpability of the
litigant; (4) whether the court warned the party in advance that
dismissal of the action would be a likely sanction for noncompliance;
and (5) the efficacy of lesser sanctions.
Id. at 921 (quotation and citations omitted). If “a party appears pro se, the court
should carefully assess whether it might appropriately impose some sanction other
than dismissal, so that the party does not unknowingly lose its right of access to
the courts because of a technical violation.” Id. at 920 n.3
The district court analyzed the actions of Mr. Ellsworth under the five
relevant factors. It determined that: (1) Mr. Ellsworth’s failure to provide
particularized information meant that defendants were unable to proceed with
their defense; (2) his behavior stalled the judicial process; (3) his motives were
questionable; (4) defendants’ motion to dismiss and the court’s show-cause order
provided Mr. Ellsworth with knowledge of the possibility of dismissal; and (5) the
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aggravating factors outweighed the judicial system’s predisposition to resolve a
case on its merits. The court also noted that Mr. Ellsworth’s allegations of
document destruction were of little import. Defendants did not request
documentation from Mr. Ellsworth, they simply asked him to explain the factual
basis of his case. Upon consideration, the court concluded that no lesser sanction
would serve the interest of justice. The court therefore granted defendants’
motion to dismiss.
On appeal, Mr. Ellsworth narrates his difficulties in litigating from a
disciplinary unit, claims that defendants failed to respond to his own discovery
requests, and asserts that defendants’ motion cannot constitute forewarning of
dismissal. 1 After reviewing the record, we conclude that Mr. Ellsworth’s
arguments have no merit and that the district court was well within its discretion
1
We note that Mr. Ellsworth failed to attach a copy of the court’s dismissal
order to his opening brief, as required by 10th Cir. R. 28.2(A)(1). We remind
counsel for defendants that if an appellant’s brief omits a required ruling, then
appellees are to include it in their response brief. See 10th Cir. R. 28.2(B).
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in dismissing the action. The judgment of the district court is AFFIRMED.
Mr. Ellsworth is reminded that he must continue to make partial payments until
his filing fee is paid in full.
Entered for the Court
Wade Brorby
Circuit Judge
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