1 UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT 2 DISTRICT OF NEVADA

3 GERALD K. ALLEN, Case No. 2:25-cv-01298-CDS-DJA

4 Plaintiff ORDER

5 v.

6 BEJAR, et al.,

7 Defendants 8

9 I. DISCUSSION 10 Plaintiff, who is an inmate in the custody of the Nevada Department of Corrections, 11 initiated this case without a complaint. (ECF No. 1). On July 19, 2025, the Court ordered 12 Plaintiff to file a complaint. (ECF No. 4). That same day, Plaintiff filed a complaint. (ECF 13 No. 3). It appears that Plaintiff prepared and filed his complaint before the Court issued 14 its order, but the Court did not receive the complaint until after the order was signed. 15 Plaintiff, perhaps believing that the Court was directing him to file a second 16 complaint, has filed another document that contains both a second complaint and a copy 17 of his initial complaint. (ECF No. 5). Both documents are titled original complaint. (Id.) It 18 is not clear which of these complaints Plaintiff wants to proceed under. Plaintiff can only 19 have one operative complaint. The Court will not piecemeal Plaintiff’s complaint together 20 from multiple filings. Plaintiff’s operative complaint must contain all claims, defendants, 21 and factual allegations that Plaintiff wishes to pursue in this lawsuit. 22 The Court gives Plaintiff leave to either file a notice indicating which complaint he 23 wishes the Court to consider, or, in the alternative, file a single, complete, first amended 24 complaint, including all the claims that Plaintiff wishes to bring in this case, on or before 25 November 1, 2025. If Plaintiff does not file either a notice indicating which complaint he 26 wants the Court to consider, or a single, complete, first amended complaint, the Court will 27 screen Plaintiff’s initial complaint (ECF No. 3) and will not consider the second complaint 28 that Plaintiff filed at ECF No. 5. 1 If Plaintiff chooses to file a first amended complaint, he is advised that an amended 2 complaint supersedes (replaces) any previously filed complaints, and, thus, the amended 3 complaint must be complete in itself. See Hal Roach Studios, Inc. v. Richard Feiner & 4 Co., Inc.,

(9th Cir. 1989) (holding that “[t]he fact that a party was 5 named in the original complaint is irrelevant; an amended pleading supersedes the 6 original”); see also Lacey v. Maricopa Cnty.,

(9th Cir. 2012) (holding 7 that for claims dismissed with prejudice, a plaintiff is not required to reallege such claims 8 in a subsequent amended complaint to preserve them for appeal). 9 Plaintiff’s first amended complaint must contain all claims, defendants, and factual 10 allegations that Plaintiff wishes to pursue in this lawsuit.1 Moreover, Plaintiff must file the 11 first amended complaint on this Court’s approved prisoner civil rights form, and it must be 12 entitled “First Amended Complaint.” 13 II. CONCLUSION 14 For the foregoing reasons, IT IS ORDERED that Plaintiff is granted leave to file a 15 notice indicating which complaint he wants the Court to consider by November 1, 2025. 16 In the alternative, Plaintiff may file a single, complete, first amended complaint. If Plaintiff 17 chooses to file a first amended complaint, Plaintiff will file the first amended complaint on 18 or before November 1, 2025. 19 IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that the Clerk of the Court will send to Plaintiff the 20 approved form for filing a § 1983 complaint, instructions for the same, and a courtesy 21 copy of both of his complaints (ECF Nos. 3, 5). If Plaintiff chooses to file a first amended 22 complaint, he must use the approved form and he will write the words “First Amended” 23 above the words “Civil Rights Complaint” in the caption. 24 25 1 The Court notes that Plaintiff included exhibits with both his initial complaint and his second complaint. As explained in the Court’s instructions for inmates filing civil rights 26 complaints, “it is not necessary to attach exhibits or affidavits to the complaint or any 27 amended complaint. Rather, the complaint or any amended complaint must sufficiently state the facts and claims without reference to exhibits or affidavits. Failure to state the 28 facts and claims within the body of the complaint or amended complaint, without reference to any attached exhibits or affidavits, may result in dismissal.” (ECF No. 4-1 at 2). 1 IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that, if Plaintiff does not timely file either a notice 2 indicating which complaint he wants the Court to consider, or a first amended complaint, 3 the Court will screen Plaintiff’s initial complaint (ECF No. 3) and will not consider the 4 second complaint filed at ECF No. 5. 5 6 DATED THIS 2nd day of October 2025. 7

8 UNITED STATES MAGISTRATE JUDGE 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28