Alionso Rodriguez Vargas v. United States Department of Homeland Security

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

CENTRAL DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA

ALIONSO RODRIGUEZ VARGAS, Case No. 2:24-cv-10797-SB-SSC

Plaintiff,

v. ORDER OF DISMISSAL

UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT

OF HOMELAND SECURITY et al.,

Defendants.

After Plaintiff failed to file proof of service within the 90-day deadline under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 4(m), the Court issued an order to show cause (OSC) why this action should not be dismissed for lack of prosecution, requiring Plaintiff to either show (1) that Defendants were served before the deadline or (2) good cause to extend the time for service. Dkt. No. 7. Plaintiff’s response does neither. Instead, he states that he failed to serve Defendants—or even request the issuance of a summons—because he was not certain that he wished to pursue this action given “the change in presidential administrations” and because his counsel’s attention was preoccupied with “an unexpected personnel issue at [his] firm.” Dkt. No. 9. Neither Plaintiff’s deliberate choice to hold a case in abeyance due to political shifts nor his counsel’s vague personnel issue provides an adequate basis for finding good cause. In re…