Opinion

Court: District Court, C.D. California
Filed: May 28, 2026
Cited by: 0 cases
Authority: More cited than 41.5%

The opinion

1 STEVEN J. ROTHANS-State Bar No. 106579

SCOTT CARPENTER-State Bar No. 253339

2 CARPENTER, ROTHANS & DUMONT LLP

500 South Grand Avenue, 19th Floor

3 San Bernardino, CA 90071

(213) 228-0400 / (213) 228-0401 (Fax)

4 srothans@crdlaw.com / scarpenter@crdlaw.com

5 Attorneys for Defendant, City of San Bernardino, a public entity (also erroneously

sued as “San Bernardino Police Department”)

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

CENTRAL DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA

ESTATE OF DAVID ROJAS SR., an ) Case No.: 5:25-cv-02862-JGB-DTB

11 individual; DAVID ROJAS JR., an )

individual, ) STIPULATION RE: PROTECTIVE

12 ) ORDER

Plaintiffs, )

13 )

vs. )

14 ) [DISCOVERY DOCUMENT;

SAN BERNARDINO POLICE )

15 DEPARTMENT, a public entity; CITY ) REFERRED TO MAGISTRATE

OF SAN BERNARDINO, a public ) JUDGE]

16 entity; JORGE ORTIZ, an individual; )

and DOES 1-10, inclusive, )

17 )

Defendants. )

18 )

)

19 )

21 Plaintiffs, DAVID ROJAS, JR. and ESTATE OF DAVID ROJAS, SR., on

22 the one hand, and Defendant CITY OF SAN BERNARDINO, on the other, by and

23 through their respective counsel, hereby stipulate and agree as follows:

24 1. A. PURPOSES AND LIMITATIONS

25 Discovery in this action is likely to involve production of confidential,

26 proprietary or private information for which special protection from public

27 disclosure and from use for any purpose other than prosecuting this litigation may

28 be warranted.

1 Accordingly, the parties hereby stipulate to and petition the Court to enter

2 the following Stipulated Protective Order. The parties acknowledge that this Order

3 does not confer blanket protections on all disclosures or responses to discovery and

4 that the protection it affords from public disclosure and use extends only to the

5 limited information or items that are entitled to confidential treatment under the

6 applicable legal principles.

7 The parties further acknowledge, as set forth in Section 12.3, below, that this

8 Stipulated Protective Order does not automatically entitle them to file confidential

9 information under seal and that Local Civil Rule 79-5 sets forth the procedures that

10 must be followed and the standards that will be applied when a party seeks

11 permission from the Court to file material under seal. The parties agree that this

12 protective order does not waive the parties’ rights to object to discovery demands

13 or requests for documents and/or information.

14 B. GOOD CAUSE STATEMENT

15 This litigation relates to the October 28, 2023 shooting death of David

16 Rojas, Sr. by City of San Bernardino Police Department police officers. The

17 relevant evidence in this case includes, but is not limited to, body-worn camera

18 footage, police reports, witness statements, and information about individuals who

19 are not parties to this litigation. The evidence in this action may also involve

20 confidential law enforcement investigative files and records. The evidence in this

21 action also may involve private medical and/or psychological records related to

22 plaintiffs and/or decedent.

23 The Parties submit that good cause exists to enter the proposed protective

24 order to balance the parties’ concerns that the documents consist of confidential

25 and private information concerning the parties to this litigation, which is protected

26 by, among other things, the right to privacy, the official information privilege, law

27 enforcement privilege, and as protected by the California and United States

28 Constitution.

1 Accordingly, to expedite the flow of information, to facilitate the prompt

2 resolution of disputes over confidentiality of discovery materials, to adequately

3 protect information the parties are entitled to keep confidential, to ensure that the

4 parties are permitted reasonable necessary uses of such material in preparation for

5 and in the conduct of trial, to address their handling at the end of the litigation, and

6 serve the ends of justice, a protective order for such information is justified in this

matter. It is the intent of the Parties that information will not be designated as

confidential for tactical reasons and that nothing be so designated without a good

faith belief that it has been maintained in a confidential, non-public manner, and

there is good cause why it should not be part of the public record of this case.

2. DEFINITIONS

2.1 Action: Estate of David Rojas, Sr., et al. v. City of San Bernardino, et

al., case number 5:25-cv-02862-JGB-DTB.

2.2 Challenging Party: A Party or Non-Party that challenges the

designation of information or items under this Order.

2.3 “CONFIDENTIAL” Information or Items: Information (regardless

of how it is generated, stored or maintained) or tangible things that a Designating

Party believes is entitled to confidential treatment under Federal Rule of Civil

Procedure 26(c), and as specified above in the Purposes and Good Cause

Statements. This also includes (1) any information copied or extracted from the

Confidential information; (2) all copies, excerpts, summaries, abstracts or

compilations of Confidential information; and (3) any testimony, conversations, or

presentations that might reveal Confidential information.

23 2.4 Counsel: Counsel of record and House Counsel for the parties to this

24 civil litigation and their support staff.

25 2.5 Designating Party: A Party or Non-Party that designates information

26 or items that it produces in disclosures or in responses to discovery as

27 “CONFIDENTIAL.”

28 2.6 Disclosure or Discovery Material: All items or information,

1 regardless of the medium or manner in which it is generated, stored, or maintained

2 (including, among other things, testimony, transcripts, and tangible things), that are

3 produced or generated in disclosures or responses to discovery in this matter.

4 2.7 Expert: A person with specialized knowledge or experience in a

5 matter pertinent to the litigation who has been retained by a Party or its counsel to

6 serve as an expert witness or as a consultant in this Action.

2.8 Final Disposition: When this Action has been fully and completely

terminated by way of settlement, dismissal, trial and/or appeal.

2.9 House Counsel: Attorneys other than Counsel (as defined in

paragraph 2.4) and who are employees of a party to this Action.

2.10 Non-Party: Any natural person, partnership, corporation, association

or other legal entity not named as a Party to this action.

2.11 Outside Counsel of Record: Attorneys who are not employees of a

party to this Action but are retained to represent or advise a party to this Action

and have appeared in this Action on behalf of that party or are affiliated with a law

firm that has appeared on behalf of that party, and includes support staff.

2.12 Party: Any party to this Action, including all of its officers, directors,

boards, departments, divisions, employees, consultants, retained experts, and

Outside Counsel of Record (and their support staffs).

2.13 Producing Party: A Party or Non-Party that produces Disclosure or

Discovery Material in this Action.

2.14 Professional Vendors: Persons or entities that provide litigation

support services (e.g., photocopying, videotaping, translating, preparing exhibits or

23 demonstrations, and organizing, storing, or retrieving data in any form or medium)

24 and their employees and subcontractors.

25 2.15 Protected Material: Any Disclosure or Discovery Material that is

26 designated as “CONFIDENTIAL.”

27 2.16 Receiving Party: A Party that receives Disclosure or Discovery

28 Material from a Producing Party.

1 3. SCOPE

2 The protections conferred by this Stipulation and Order cover not only

3 Protected Material (as defined above), but also (1) any information copied or

4 extracted from Protected Material; (2) all copies, excerpts, abstracts, summaries, or

5 compilations of Protected Material; and (3) any deposition testimony,

6 conversations, or presentations by Parties or their Counsel that might reveal

Protected Material. However, if the receiving party has the Protected Material

from a source other than the Producing Party, that independently obtained

information is not subject to this Order unless it was marked confidential and

subject to a Protective Order itself.

Any use of Protected Material at trial shall be governed by the orders of the

trial judge. This Order does not govern the use of Protected Material at trial.

4. DURATION

Once a trial commences in this Action, information that was designated as

CONFIDENTIAL or maintained pursuant to this protective order and that is

introduced or admitted as an exhibit at trial becomes public and will be

presumptively available to all members of the public, including the press, unless

compelling reasons supported by specific factual findings to proceed otherwise are

made to the trial judge in advance of the trial. See Kamakana v. City and County of

Honolulu, 447 F.3d 1172, 1180-81 (9th Cir. 2006) (distinguishing “good cause”

showing for sealing documents produced in discovery from “compelling reasons”

standard when merits-related documents are part of court record). Accordingly, the

terms of this protective order do not extend beyond the commencement of the trial

23 as to the CONFIDENTIAL information and materials introduced or admitted as an

24 exhibit at trial.

25 5. DESIGNATING PROTECTED MATERIAL

26 5.1 Exercise of Restraint and Care in Designating Material for

27 Protection.

28 Each Party or Non-Party that designates information or items for protection

1 under this Order must take care to limit any such designation to specific material

2 that qualifies under the appropriate standards. The Designating Party must

3 designate for protection only those parts of material, documents, items or oral or

4 written communications that qualify so that other portions of the material,

5 documents, items or communications for which protection is not warranted are not

6 swept unjustifiably within the ambit of this Order.

Mass, indiscriminate or routinized designations are prohibited. Designations

that are shown to be clearly unjustified or that have been made for an improper

purpose (e.g., to unnecessarily encumber the case development process or to

impose unnecessary delay, expenses and/or burdens on other parties) may expose

the Designating Party to sanctions.

If it comes to a Designating Party’s attention that information or items that it

designated for protection do not qualify for protection, that Designating Party must

promptly notify all other Parties that it is withdrawing the inapplicable designation.

5.2 Manner and Timing of Designations. Except as otherwise

provided in this Order (see, e.g., second paragraph of section 5.2(a) below), or as

otherwise stipulated or ordered, Disclosure or Discovery Material that qualifies for

protection under this Order must be clearly so designated before the material is

disclosed or produced.

Designation in conformity with this Order requires:

(a) for information in documentary form (e.g., paper or electronic

documents, but excluding transcripts of depositions or other pretrial or trial

proceedings), that the Producing Party affix at a minimum, the legend

23 “CONFIDENTIAL” or words of a similar effect, and that includes the case name

24 and case number (hereinafter “CONFIDENTIAL legend”), to each page that

25 contains protected material. If only a portion of the material on a page qualifies for

26 protection, the Producing Party also must clearly identify the protected portion(s)

27 (e.g., by making appropriate markings in the margins). The marking of a

28 document as CONFIDENTIAL may not obscure or obliterate any part of the

1 document so marked.

2 A Party or Non-Party that makes original documents available for inspection

3 need not designate them for protection until after the inspecting Party has indicated

4 which documents it would like copied and produced. During the inspection and

5 before the designation, all of the material made available for inspection shall be

6 deemed “CONFIDENTIAL.” After the inspecting Party has identified the

documents it wants copied and produced, the Producing Party must determine

which documents, or portions thereof, qualify for protection under this Order.

Then, before producing the specified documents, the Producing Party must affix

the “CONFIDENTIAL legend” to each page that contains Protected Material. If

only a portion of the material on a page qualifies for protection, the Producing

Party also must clearly identify the protected portion(s) (e.g., by making

appropriate markings in the margins without obscuring the document so marked.)

(b) for testimony given in depositions that the Designating Party identifies

the Disclosure or Discovery Material on the record, before the close of the

deposition all protected testimony.

any other tangible items, that the Producing Party affix in a prominent place on the

exterior of the container or containers in which the information is stored the legend

“CONFIDENTIAL.” If only a portion or portions of the information warrants

protection, the Producing Party, to the extent practicable, shall identify the

protected portion(s).

5.3 Inadvertent Failures to Designate. If timely corrected, an

23 inadvertent failure to designate qualified information or items does not, standing

24 alone, waive the Designating Party’s right to secure protection under this Order for

25 such material. Upon timely correction of an inadvertent failure to designate, the

26 Receiving Party must make reasonable efforts to assure that the material is treated

27 in accordance with the provisions of this Order.

28 6. CHALLENGING CONFIDENTIALITY DESIGNATIONS

1 6.1 Timing of Challenges. Any Party or Non-Party may challenge a

2 designation of confidentiality at any time that is consistent with the Court’s

3 Scheduling Order.

4 6.2 Meet and Confer. The Challenging Party shall initiate the dispute

5 resolution process under Local Rule 37.1 et seq.

6 6.3 The burden of persuasion in any such challenge proceeding shall be

on the Designating Party. Frivolous challenges, and those made for an improper

purpose (e.g., to harass or impose unnecessary expenses and burdens on other

parties) may expose the Challenging Party to sanctions. Unless the Designating

Party has waived or withdrawn the confidentiality designation, all parties shall

continue to afford the material in question the level of protection to which it is

entitled under the Producing Party’s designation until the Court rules on the

challenge.

7. ACCESS TO AND USE OF PROTECTED MATERIAL

7.1 Basic Principles. A Receiving Party may use Protected Material that

is disclosed or produced by another Party or by a Non-Party in connection with

this Action only for prosecuting, defending or attempting to settle this Action.

Such Protected Material may be disclosed only to the categories of persons and

under the conditions described in this Order. When the Action has been

terminated, a Receiving Party must comply with the provisions of section 13 below

(FINAL DISPOSITION).

Protected Material must be stored and maintained by a Receiving Party at a

location and in a secure manner that ensures that access is limited to the persons

23 authorized under this Order.

24 7.2 Disclosure of “CONFIDENTIAL” Information or Items. Unless

25 otherwise ordered by the court or permitted in writing by the Designating Party, a

26 Receiving Party may disclose any information or item designated

27 “CONFIDENTIAL” only to:

1 (a) the Receiving Party’s Counsel of Record in this Action, as well as

2 employees of said Counsel of Record to whom it is reasonably necessary to

3 disclose the information for this Action, the parties;

4 (b) the officers, directors, and employees (including House Counsel) of

5 the Receiving Party to whom disclosure is reasonably necessary for this Action;

6 (c) Experts (as defined in this Order) of the Receiving Party to whom

disclosure is reasonably necessary for this Action and who have signed the

“Acknowledgment and Agreement to Be Bound” (Exhibit A);

(d) the court and its personnel.

(e) court reporters and their staff;

(f) professional jury or trial consultants, mock jurors, and Professional

Vendors to whom disclosure is reasonably necessary for this Action and who have

signed the “Acknowledgment and Agreement to Be Bound” (Exhibit A);

(g) the author or recipient of a document containing the information or a

custodian or other person who otherwise possessed or knew the information;

(h) during their depositions, witnesses, and attorneys for witnesses, in the

Action to whom disclosure is reasonably necessary provided: (1) the deposing

party requests that the witness sign the form attached as Exhibit “A” hereto; and

(2) they will not be permitted to keep any confidential information unless they sign

the “Acknowledgment and Agreement to Be Bound” (Exhibit “A”), unless

otherwise agreed by the Designating Party or ordered by the court. Pages of

transcribed deposition testimony or exhibits to depositions that reveal Protected

Material may be separately bound by the court reporter and may not be disclosed

23 to anyone except as permitted under this Stipulated Protective Order; and

24 (i) any mediator or settlement officer, and their supporting personnel,

25 mutually agreed upon by any of the parties engaged in settlement discussions.

26 8. PROTECTED MATERIAL SUBPOENAED OR ORDERED

27 PRODUCED IN OTHER LITIGATION

1 If a Party is served with a subpoena or a court order issued in other litigation

2 that compels disclosure of any information or items designated in this Action as

3 “CONFIDENTIAL,” that Party must:

4 (a) promptly notify in writing the Designating Party. Such notification shall

5 include a copy of the subpoena or court order;

6 (b) promptly notify in writing the party who caused the subpoena or order to

issue in the other litigation that some or all of the material covered by the subpoena

or order is subject to this Protective Order. Such notification shall include a copy

of this Stipulated Protective Order; and

by the Designating Party whose Protected Material may be affected.

If the Designating Party timely seeks a protective order in the action in

which the subpoena or order was issued, the Party served with the subpoena or

court order shall not produce any information designated in this action as

“CONFIDENTIAL” before a determination by the court from which the subpoena

or order issued, unless the Party has obtained the Designating Party’s permission.

However, if the Designating Party has not obtained from a court a delay in the

production date, or an order to quash the subpoena, then the Party that received the

subpoena may comply so as to avoid failure to meet subpoena deadlines. The

Designating Party shall bear the burden and expense of seeking protection in that

court of its confidential material – and nothing in these provisions should be

construed as authorizing or encouraging a Receiving Party in this action to disobey

a lawful directive from another court.

9. A NON-PARTY’S PROTECTED MATERIAL SOUGHT TO BE

PRODUCED IN THIS LITIGATION

(a) The terms of this Order are applicable to information produced by a Non-

Party in this Action and designated as “CONFIDENTIAL.” Such information

produced by Non-Parties in connection with this litigation is protected by the

1 remedies and relief provided by this Order. Nothing in these provisions should be

2 construed as prohibiting a Non-Party from seeking additional protections.

3 (b) In the event that a Party is required, by a valid discovery request, to

4 produce a Non-Party’s confidential information in its possession, and the Party is

5 subject to an agreement with the Non-Party not to produce the Non-Party’s

6 confidential information, then the Party shall:

(1) promptly notify in writing the Requesting Party and the Non-Party

that some or all of the information requested is subject to a

confidentiality agreement with a Non-Party;

(2) promptly provide the Non-Party with a copy of the Stipulated

Protective Order in this Action, the relevant discovery request(s), and

a reasonably specific description of the information requested; and

(3) make the information requested available for inspection by the

Non-Party, if requested.

days of receiving the notice and accompanying information, the Receiving Party

may produce the Non-Party’s confidential information responsive to the discovery

request.

If the Non-Party timely seeks a protective order, the Receiving Party shall

not produce any information in its possession or control that is subject to the

confidentiality agreement with the Non-Party before a determination by the court.

Absent a court order to the contrary, the Non-Party shall bear the burden and

expense of seeking protection in this court of its Protected Material.

23 10. UNAUTHORIZED DISCLOSURE OF PROTECTED MATERIAL

24 If a Receiving Party learns that, by inadvertence or otherwise, it has

25 disclosed Protected Material to any person or in any circumstance not authorized

26 under this Stipulated Protective Order, the Receiving Party must immediately (a)

27 notify in writing the Designating Party of the unauthorized disclosures, (b) use its

28 best efforts to retrieve all unauthorized copies of the Protected Material, (c) inform

1 the person or persons to whom unauthorized disclosures were made of all the terms

2 of this Order, and (d) request such person or persons to execute the

3 “Acknowledgment and Agreement to Be Bound” that is attached hereto as Exhibit

4 A.

5 11. INADVERTENT PRODUCTION OF PRIVILEGED OR

6 OTHERWISE PROTECTED MATERIAL

When a Producing Party gives notice to Receiving Parties that certain

inadvertently produced material is subject to a claim of privilege or other

protection, the obligations of the Receiving Parties are those set forth in Federal

Rule of Civil Procedure 26(b)(5)(B). This provision is not intended to modify

whatever procedure may be established in an e-discovery order that provides for

production without prior privilege review. Pursuant to Federal Rule of Evidence

502(d) and (e), insofar as the parties reach an agreement on the effect of disclosure

of a communication or information covered by the attorney-client privilege or

work product protection, the parties may incorporate their agreement in the

stipulated protective order submitted to the court.

12. MISCELLANEOUS

12.1 Right to Further Relief. Nothing in this Order abridges the right of

any person to seek its modification by the Court in the future.

12.2 Right to Assert Other Objections. By stipulating to the entry of this

Protective Order, no Party waives any right it otherwise would have to object to

disclosing or producing any information or item on any ground not addressed in

this Stipulated Protective Order. Similarly, no Party waives any right to object on

23 any ground to use in evidence of any of the material covered by this Protective

24 Order.

25 12.3 Filing Protected Material. A Party that seeks to file under seal any

26 Protected Material must comply with Local Civil Rule 79-5. Protected Material

27 may only be filed under seal pursuant to a court order authorizing the sealing of the

28 specific Protected Material at issue. If a Party’s request to file Protected Material

1 under seal is denied by the court, then the Receiving Party may file the information

2 in the public record unless otherwise instructed by the court.

3 13. FINAL DISPOSITION

4 After the FINAL DISPOSITION of this Action, as defined in paragraph 2.8,

5 within 60 days of a written request by the Designating Party, each Receiving Party

6 must return all Protected Material to the Producing Party. As used in this

subdivision, “all Protected Material” includes all copies, abstracts, compilations,

summaries, and any other format reproducing or capturing any of the Protected

Material. The Receiving Party must submit a written certification to the Producing

Party (and, if not the same person or entity, to the Designating Party) by the 60-day

deadline that (1) identifies (by category, where appropriate) all the Protected

Material that was returned and (2) affirms that the Receiving Party has not retained

any copies, abstracts, compilations, summaries or any other format reproducing or

capturing any of the Protected Material.

Notwithstanding this provision, Counsel are entitled to retain an archival

copy of all pleadings, discovery, motion papers, trial, deposition, and hearing

transcripts, legal memoranda, correspondence, deposition and trial exhibits, expert

reports, attorney work product, and consultant and expert work product, even if

such materials contain Protected Material. Any such archival copies that contain or

constitute Protected Material remain subject to this Protective Order as set forth in

Section 4 (DURATION).

14. VIOLATION

Any violation of this Order may be punished by appropriate measures

23 including, without limitation, contempt proceedings and/or monetary sanctions.

24 ///

25 ///

26 ///

27 ///

28 ///

1 || IT IS SO STIPULATED, THROUGH COUNSEL OF RECORD.

3 | DATED: May 27, 2026 LAW OFFICES OF CHRISTIAN CONTRERAS

Bv: Zs/ Christian Contreras

6 Christian Contreras, Esq.

7 Attornevs for Plaintiffs

DATED: May 27, 2026 LAW OFFICES OF HUMBERTO GUIZAR

11 By: Humberto Guiza

HUMBERTO GUIZAR, ESO.

12 Attorneys for Plaintiffs

14 |IDATED: May 27, 2026 CARPENTER, ROTHANS & DUMONT LLP

By: SCO arpente

17 STEVEN J. ROTHANS

SCOTT J. CARPENTER

18 ATTORNEYS FOR DEFENDANT, CITY OF

19 SAN BERNARDINO. A PUBLIC ENTITY

23 || IT IS SO ORDERED.

25 || Dated: May 28, 2026 By: Meee

HONORABLE DAVID T. BRISTOW

UNITED STATES MAGISTRATE JUDGE

-14-

1 EXHIBIT A

3 ACKNOWLEDGMENT AND AGREEMENT TO BE BOUND

5 I, ______________________________________[print or type full name],

of _________________________________ [print or type full address], declare

under penalty of perjury that I have read in its entirety and understand the

Stipulated Protective Order that was issued by the United States District Court for

the Central District of California on _____________ in the case of Estate of David

Rojas, Sr., et al. v. City of San Bernardino, et al. 5:25-cv-02862-JGB-DTB. I

agree to comply with and to be bound by all the terms of this Stipulated Protective

Order and I understand and acknowledge that failure to so comply could expose

me to sanctions and punishment in the nature of contempt. I solemnly promise that

I will not disclose in any manner any information or item that is subject to this

Stipulated Protective Order to any person or entity except in strict compliance with

the provisions of this Order.

I further agree to submit to the jurisdiction of the United States District

Court for the Central District of California for the purpose of enforcing the terms

of this Stipulated Protective Order, even if such enforcement proceedings occur

after termination of this action.

Date: ______________________________________

City and State where sworn and signed: _________________________________

22 Printed name: _______________________________

23 Signature: ________________________________

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