Barajas Centeno v. City of Carlsbad

I. BACKGROUND

23 The underlying case is a § 1983 and Monell civil rights action alleging that 24 Defendants the City of Carlsbad (“the City”) and Officer Jordan Walker (“Walker”) 25 (collectively, “Defendants”) deprived Plaintiff Jose Luis Barajas Centeno (“Plaintiff”) of 26 his civil rights through alleged unlawful and excessive use of force during Plaintiff’s 27 arrest and detention. ECF No. 1-2 at 2-3. On July 22, 2020, Defendants noticed Plaintiff’s deposition. ECF No. 187 at 2. Plaintiff’s counsel, Genaro Lara (“Lara”) requested that the City provide hearing aid equipment at the deposition. ECF No. 193 at 2. Counsel for the City, Daniel Modafferi (“Modafferi”) informed Lara that the City was not obligated to provide these hearing aids under the ADA, and did not provide any at the deposition. Id. On May 7, 2021, Plaintiff filed a separate civil action in this District alleging that Modafferi’s failure to provide hearing aid equipment for Plaintiff’s counsel at the deposition constituted a violation of Plaintiff’s rights under the ADA. See Centeno v. City of Carlsbad, no. 3:21-cv-01022-L-DEB, 2021 WL 4974852, at *1 (S.D. Cal. Oct. 26, 2021).…