PLAINTIFF'S MOTION TO RECUSE

ABORTION INDUSTRY IN MELBOURNE, FLORIDA
LAWSUITS
RANEY V MELBOURNE
DOCKET / CHRONOLOGICAL FILE
PLAINTIFF'S MOTION TO RECUSE

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
MIDDLE DISTRICT OF FLORIDA
ORLANDO DIVISION
CASE NO.: 99-416-CIV-ORL-19B

MEREDITH T. RANEY, JR.,
Plaintiff,
v.
CITY OF MELBOURNE, FLORIDA
Defendant.

PLAINTIFF'S MOTION TO RECUSE

The Plaintiff, Meredith T. Raney, Jr., by and through his undersigned attorney, and pursuant to 28 U.S.C. §455, hereby moves that the presiding District Judge disqualify herself for the following reasons:

1. Plaintiff, Meredith T. Raney, Jr., has appealed that order of this Court granting Defendant's Motion To Dismiss and denying Plaintiff's Motion To Strike Insufficient Defenses, dated March 8, 2000, to the United States Court of Appeals, Eleventh Circuit.

2. A motion filed with the United States Court of Appeals by Meredith T. Raney, Jr. seeks to restrict the record on appeal of this case to those items listed in the official docket maintained by the Clerk of the U.S. District Court, Middle District of Florida.

3. The reason for filing this motion was the reference by the District Judge to a document called "Defendant's Memorandum Of Law In Opposition To Plaintiff's Motion To Strike" in the aforesaid order of March 8, 2000, which document had not been served on Plaintiff nor was it entered on the official docket maintained in this case.

4. The United States Court of Appeals filed an order on May 10, 2000 remanding this case on a limited basis to the Clerk of the U.S. District Court, Middle District of Florida, so that said Clerk could investigate whether the official docket was correct.

5. Further, the United States Court of Appeals ordered that in the event that the official docket was determined by the Clerk to be correct, then an evidentiary hearing should be held by the District Court on the allegations contained in the motion to limit the record on appeal and its findings reported to the United States Court of Appeals.

6. No results of any investigation pursuant to the mandate of the U.S. Court of Appeals have been published by the Clerk of the District Court.

7. The U.S. District Judge has entered an order dated May 19, 2000 stating that the docket is correct.

8. Additionally, the District Court Order of May 19, 2000 requires that an evidentiary hearing is dependent on the request of counsel for one or both of the parties, whereas the United States Court of Appeals had mandated that the evidentiary hearing should take place in the event that the Clerk determined the docket to be correct.

9. In keeping with the express Order of the U.S. Court of Appeals and in compliance with the later requirement of the District Judge, the undersigned attorney has, by a separate document, notified the U.S. District Court that he has elected to have an evidentiary hearing in this matter.

10. The U.S. District Judge has demonstrated personal knowledge of disputed facts and so should disqualify herself in accord with 28 U.S.C. §455(b)(1); also, this evidentiary hearing is a proceeding in which her impartiality might reasonably be questioned, and so she should disqualify herself on account of 28 U.S.C. §455(a).

WHEREFORE, Plaintiff, Meredith T. Raney, Jr., by and through his undersigned attorney, moves that the U.S. District Judge in this case disqualify herself from presiding over the evidentiary hearing ordered by the Eleventh Circuit.

Respectfully submitted,
Christopher F. Sapp (signed)
Post Office Box 1012
Lehigh Acres, Florida 33970
(941) 368-3922
Florida Bar No.: 0097823
Attorney for Plaintiff

CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE

I HEREBY CERTIFY that a true and correct copy of the foregoing has been furnished by U.S. Mail to Lamar Oxford, Esquire, Post Office Box 2928, Orlando, Florida 32802 this 26thday of May, 2000.

Christopher F. Sapp (signed)
Attorney