United States District Court Middle District of Florida Jacksonville Division

MA’ALUUM ABDULLAH,

Plaintiff,

v. NO. 3:25-cv-131-WWB-PDB

SHERIFF T.K. WATERS ET AL.,

Defendants. ________________________________________________________________________

Notice to Plaintiff Because you are proceeding without the benefit of a lawyer, to ensure you are aware of the rules you must follow, the Court provides this notice to you. 1. Complying with Rules As an initial matter, you should know that the rules apply to all parties regardless of whether they have a lawyer. See Moon v. Newsome,

(11th Cir. 1989). The rules include the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure (Fed. R. Civ. P.) and the Local Rules of the United States District Court for the Middle District of Florida (Local Rules). You can find the Local Rules on the Court’s website, www.flmd.uscourts.gov, or in the clerk’s office, 300 North Hogan Street, Jacksonville, Florida 32202. The Court highlights some of the commonly applicable rules below. Because other rules also apply, however, you should not rely on this notice as limiting the duties that you have in this case. 2. Filing Documents with the Court

All documents that you file with the Court must be in the form of a pleading, a motion, a response, or a notice. A pleading is the complaint and any amended complaint, as well as the answer to the complaint and any amended answer to the complaint. A motion is any document in which you ask the Court for something. A response is any document responding to a motion by another party or an order directing a response to a matter. A notice is any document in which you provide pertinent information without asking the Court for something. All documents that you file with the Court must be in separate documents (except for motions and memoranda of law; those must be together in one document). And all documents that you file with the Court must include: a. a caption at the top of the first page that has the name of the Court (United States District Court, Middle District of Florida, Jacksonville Division), the names of the parties, and the case number;

b. a title that describes the document, starting with your party designation and, if the document is an unopposed motion, that includes the word “unopposed” (for example, “Plaintiff’s Unopposed Motion for Extension of Time to Respond to Defendants’ Summary-Judgment Motion”);

c. within any motion (not as a separate document), a legal memorandum with citations to authority that supports your request;

d. a certificate at the end of most types of motions, under the heading “Local Rule 3.01(g) Certification,” (i) stating that you have conferred with the defendants in a good-faith effort to try to resolve the matter before filing the motion; and (ii) explaining whether the defendants agree on the relief that you are requesting in the motion;

e. your full name and your original signature; f. a certificate of service certifying that you sent the document to the defendants and specifying the date that you sent the document, how you sent the document (for example, by United States Mail, Federal Express, or hand delivery), and the address to which you sent the document. For more information on filing documents with the Court, please see Rules 5 through 11, Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, and the Local Rules. 3. Responding to Motions You must timely respond to any motion filed by the defendants unless you have no opposition to the relief requested in the motion. If you fail to respond to a motion, the Court may assume that you do not oppose the relief requested in the motion. Under Local Rule 3.01(c), you must file any response within 14 days after it is served or 21 days if responding to a motion to dismiss, for judgment on the pleadings, for summary judgment, to exclude or limit expert testimony, to certify a class, for a new trial, or to alter or amend the judgment. If you miss a filing deadline, you must file a motion asking the Court to allow you to file your response late. 4. Directly Corresponding with the Court Prohibited Under Local Rule 3.01(k), you may not directly correspond with the Court (or any individual judge) in the form of letters or similar documents. Instead, everything that you submit for the Court’s consideration must be filed through the clerk’s office. The Court will not respond to anything that is not filed through the clerk’s office and will return it to you. 5. Legal Resources

The Court’s website (www.flmd.uscourts.gov) offers resources for unrepresented litigants, including a Guide for Proceeding Without a Lawyer. You may also get a copy of the guide at the clerk’s office. In addition, the Jacksonville Federal Court Bar Association operates a Legal Information Program through which unrepresented litigants may obtain information from a lawyer on a limited basis for free. To participate, you may contact the clerk’s office at (904) 549-1900, and the clerk will provide your name and phone number to Jacksonville Area Legal Aid for a lawyer to call you.

Entered in Jacksonville, Florida, on February 7, 2025.

PATRICIA D. BARKSDALE United States Magistrate Judge

C: Ma’aluum Abdullah General Delivery Jacksonville, Florida 32277