Hall v. City and County of Honolulu

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
DISTRICT OF HAWAII
ROBIN HALL,
Plaintiff,
vs.
CITY AND COUNTY OF HONOLULU,
CHRISTOPHER KOANUI, LEONARD
LETOTO, DEBRA MAIOHO-POHINA,
DOE OFFICER 1, 	DOE OFFICER 2,
JOHN LEO CASTILLO,
Defendants.
CIV. NO. 21-00248 LEK-KJM
ORDER DISMISSING, WITHOUT PREJUDICE, PLAINTIFF’S
EQUAL PROTECTION CLAIM AGAINST DEFENDANT DEBRA MAIOHO-POHINA
On April 26, 2022, the Order Granting in Part and
Denying in Part Defendant City and County of Honolulu’s and
Defendant Debra Maioho-Pohina’s Motions to Dismiss was issued
(“4/26/22 Order”). 	[Dkt. no. 67. 1 ] 	In the 4/26/22 Order, this
Court, inter alia, denied Defendant Debra Maioho-Pohina’s
(“Maioho-Pohina”) motion to dismiss to the extent that Maioho-
Pohina sought the dismissal of Plaintiff Robin Hall’s (“Hall”)
equal protection claim against her on the basis of qualified
immunity. 	See 4/26/22 Order, 2022 WL 1229965, at *9; see also
Second Amended Complaint for Declaratory and Injunctive Relief
and Damages, filed 10/28/21 (dkt. no. 36) (“Second Amended
1 The 4/26/22 Order is also available at 2022 WL 1229965.
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Complaint”), at ¶¶ 184-89 (Hall’s equal protection claim
(“Claim 5”)). 	Maioho-Pohina took an interlocutory appeal from
that portion of the 4/26/22 Order. 	See Maioho-Pohina’s notice
of appeal, filed 5/6/22 (dkt. no. 71); Ninth Circuit Memorandum,
filed 5/3/23 (dkt. no. 97), at 2 n.1 (noting that the appeal
only involved the portion of the order denying Maioho-Pohina’s
motion to dismiss Hall’s equal protection claim). 2
While Maioho-Pohina’s interlocutory appeal was
pending, Hall sought leave to amend her complaint. 	See Motion
for Leave to File Third Amended Complaint, filed 5/26/22 (dkt.
no. 78) (“Motion for Leave”). 	The magistrate judge did not rule
on the Motion for Leave because this Court stayed the case,
pending the resolution of Maioho-Pohina’s interlocutory appeal.
See Minute Order - EO: Order Granting the City Defendants’
Motion for a Stay of All Proceedings, filed 8/1/22 (dkt. no. 92)
(“8/1/22 EO”). 	The case was later closed administratively,
pending the outcome of the appeal. 	See Minute Order - EO: Court
Order Administratively Closing Case, filed 11/15/22 (dkt.
no. 96).
The Ninth Circuit reversed the portion of the 4/26/22
Order that dismissed Hall’s equal protection claim against
Maioho-Pohina, and remanded the case with instructions to
2 The Ninth Circuit Memorandum is also available at 2023 WL
3220909.
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dismiss the claim. 	Ninth Circuit Memorandum, 2023 WL 3220909,
at *3. 	However, the Ninth Circuit took no position on either
Hall’s Motion for Leave or the issue of whether Hall’s proposed
third amended complaint was legally sufficient. 	See id. 	The
Ninth Circuit issued its Mandate on May 25, 2023. 	[Dkt.
no. 98.] 	Pursuant to this Court’s instructions in the 8/1/22
EO, the case was reopened and the stay of the instant case was
automatically lifted after the Mandate was issued. 	See 8/1/22
EO at PageID.1343.
In light of the Ninth Circuit Memorandum, the portion
of Hall’s Claim 5 alleging an equal protection claim against
Maioho-Pohina is DISMISSED WITHOUT PREJUDICE. 	Neither the other
portions of the 4/26/22 Order nor Hall’s pending Motion for
Leave is affected by this Order.
Defendant City and County of Honolulu, Maioho-Pohina,
and Defendant John Leo Castillo (collectively “City Defendants”)
are to contact the magistrate judge’s courtroom manager within
seven days after the date of the Mandate to request the
scheduling of a trial re-setting conference. 	See id.
IT IS SO ORDERED.
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DATED AT HONOLULU, HAWAII, May 30, 2023.
ROBIN HALL VS. CITY AND COUNTY OF HONOLULU, ET AL; CV 21-00248
LEK-KJM; ORDER DISMISSING, WITHOUT PREJUDICE, PLAINTIFF’S EQUAL
PROTECTIVE CLAIM AGAINST DEFENDANT DEBRA MAIOHO-POHINA
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