# Opinion

> District Court, C.D. California · July 30, 2026

URL: https://www.frixlaw.com/law-library/cases/11425710

## Case

- **Full name:** Daimon McGuire v. City of Los Angeles; Sgt. Ramirez; Officer Bustamante; Officer Oddo; Officer Carrillo
- **Court:** District Court, C.D. California
- **Decided:** July 30, 2026
- **Opinion:** 100trialcourt
- **Cited by:** 0 later opinions in the Frix Law Library

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## Opinion text

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UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
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CENTRAL DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA
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DAIMON MCGUIRE, CASE NO. 2:25-cv-08523-DSF-KES
12 Hon. Dale S. Fischer, Ctrm. 7D
Hon. Karen E. Scott, Ctrm. 6D(Roybal)
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Plaintiffs,
14 STIPULATED PROTECTIVE
v. ORDER
15 CITY OF LOS ANGELES;
16 SGT. RAMIREZ (#39348);
OFFICER BUSTAMANTE (#39534);
17 OFFICER ODDO (#44162)
OFFICER CARRILLO (#43722)
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Defendants.
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1. A. PURPOSES AND LIMITATIONS
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Discovery in this action is likely to involve production of confidential,
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proprietary, or private information for which special protection from public disclosure
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and from use for any purpose other than prosecuting this litigation may be warranted.
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Accordingly, the parties hereby stipulate to and petition the Court to enter the following
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Stipulated Protective Order. The parties acknowledge that this Order does not confer
1 affords from public disclosure and use extends only to the limited information or items
2 that are entitled to confidential treatment under the applicable legal principles. The
3 parties further acknowledge, as set forth in Section 12.3, below, that this Stipulated
4 Protective Order does not entitle them to file confidential information under seal; Civil
5 Local Rule 79-5 sets forth the procedures that must be followed and the standards that
6 will be applied when a party seeks permission from the court to file material under seal.
7 B. GOOD CAUSE STATEMENT
8 This action involves employees of the City of Los Angeles (the “City”) which
9 include members of the City’s Los Angeles Police Department (“LAPD”). The nature
10 of the incident that gives rise to Plaintiff’s suit and Plaintiff’s claims and allegations,
11 will result in discovery production that may include: police reports and evidence;
12 investigation reports and evidence; potentially peace officer personnel materials;
13 information implicating the privacy rights of third parties (i.e., bystander witnesses,
14 emergency personnel information); and other private and confidential materials for
15 which require special protection from public disclosure.
16 Plaintiff may also seek official information contained in the personnel files of the
17 police and/or sworn officers involved in the subject incident, which are maintained as
18 strictly confidential and which Defendants believe need special protection from public
19 disclosure and from use for any purpose other than prosecuting this litigation.
20 Defendants assert that the confidentiality of the materials and information sought
21 by Plaintiff is recognized by California and federal law, as evidenced inter alia by
22 California Penal Code section 832.7 and Kerr v. United States Dist. Ct. for N.D. Cal.,
23 511 F.2d 192, 198 (9th Cir. 1975), aff'd, 426 U.S. 394 (1976). Defendants have not
24 publicly released the materials and information referenced above except under
25 protective order or pursuant to a court order, if at all. The personnel materials and
26 information are of the type that has been used to initiate disciplinary action against the
27 City’s respective employees, and has been used as evidence in disciplinary proceedings,
1 Defendants contend that absent a protective order delineating the responsibilities
2 of nondisclosure on the part of the parties hereto, there is a specific risk of unnecessary
3 and undue disclosure Plaintiff or anyone he involves or employs to be involved in this
4 case, as well as the corollary risk of embarrassment, harassment and professional and
5 legal harm on the part of the City’s employees referenced in the materials and
6 information.
7 Defendants also contend that the unfettered disclosure of the materials and
8 information, absent a protective order, would allow the media to share this information
9 with potential jurors in the area, impacting the rights of Defendants herein to receive a
10 fair trial.
11 Accordingly, to expedite the flow of information, to facilitate the prompt
12 resolution of disputes over confidentiality of discovery materials, to adequately protect
13 information the parties are entitled to keep confidential, to ensure that the parties are
14 permitted reasonable necessary uses of such material in preparation for and in the
15 conduct of trial, to address their handling at the end of the litigation, and serve the ends
16 of justice, a protective order for such information is justified in this matter. It is the
17 intent of the parties that information will not be designated as confidential for tactical
18 reasons and that nothing be so designated without a good faith belief that it has been
19 maintained in a confidential, non-public manner, and there is good cause why it should
20 not be part of the public record of this case.
21 Plaintiff and Defendants agree that there is good cause for this Stipulated
22 Protective Order.
23 2. DEFINITIONS
24 2.1 Action: McGuire v. City of Los Angeles, et al., Case no. 2:25-cv-03649-DSF-
25 KES.
26 2.2 Challenging Party: a Party or Non-Party that challenges the designation of
27 information or items under this Order.
1 2.3 “CONFIDENTIAL” Information or Items: information (regardless of how it
2 is generated, stored or maintained) or tangible things that qualify for protection under
3 Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 26(c), and as specified above in the Good Cause
4 Statement.
5 2.4 Counsel: Outside Counsel of Record and House Counsel (as well as their
6 support staff).
7 2.5 Designating Party: a Party or Non-Party that designates information or items
8 that it produces in disclosures or in responses to discovery as “CONFIDENTIAL.”
9 2.6 Disclosure or Discovery Material: all items or information, regardless of the
10 medium or manner in which it is generated, stored, or maintained (including, among
11 other things, testimony, transcripts, and tangible things), that are produced or generated
12 in disclosures or responses to discovery in this matter.
13 2.7 Expert: a person with specialized knowledge or experience in a matter
14 pertinent to the litigation who has been retained by a Party or its counsel to serve as an
15 expert witness or as a consultant in this Action.
16 2.8 House Counsel: attorneys who are employees of a party to this Action. House
17 Counsel does not include Outside Counsel of Record or any other outside counsel.
18 2.9 Non-Party: any natural person, partnership, corporation, association, or other
19 legal entity not named as a Party to this action.
20 2.10 Outside Counsel of Record: attorneys who are not employees of a party to
21 this Action but are retained to represent or advise a party to this Action and have
22 appeared in this Action on behalf of that party or are affiliated with a law firm which
23 has appeared on behalf of that party, and includes support staff.
24 2.11 Party: any party to this Action, including all of its officers, directors,
25 employees, consultants, retained experts, and Outside Counsel of Record (and their
26 support staffs).
27 2.12 Producing Party: a Party or Non-Party that produces Disclosure or
1 2.13 Professional Vendors: persons or entities that provide litigation support
2 services (e.g., photocopying, videotaping, translating, preparing exhibits or
3 demonstrations, and organizing, storing, or retrieving data in any form or medium) and
4 their employees and subcontractors.
5 2.14 Protected Material: any Disclosure or Discovery Material that is designated
6 as “CONFIDENTIAL.”
7 2.15 Receiving Party: a Party that receives Disclosure or Discovery Material
8 from a Producing Party.
9 3. SCOPE
10 The protections conferred by this Stipulation and Order cover not only Protected
11 Material (as defined above), but also (1) any information copied or extracted from
12 Protected Material; (2) all copies, excerpts, summaries, or compilations of Protected
13 Material; and (3) any testimony, conversations, or presentations by Parties or their
14 Counsel that might reveal Protected Material.
15 Any use of Protected Material at trial shall be governed by the orders of the trial
16 judge. This Order does not govern the use of Protected Material at trial.
17 4. DURATION
18 Even after final disposition of this litigation, the confidentiality obligations
19 imposed by this Order shall remain in effect until a Designating Party agrees otherwise
20 in writing or a court order otherwise directs. Final disposition shall be deemed to be the
21 later of (1) dismissal of all claims and defenses in this Action, with or without
22 prejudice; and (2) final judgment herein after the completion and exhaustion of all
23 appeals, rehearings, remands, trials, or reviews of this Action, including the time limits
24 for filing any motions or applications for extension of time pursuant to applicable law.
25 5. DESIGNATING PROTECTED MATERIAL
26 5.1 Exercise of Restraint and Care in Designating Material for Protection. Each
27 Party or Non-Party that designates information or items for protection under this Order
1 appropriate standards. The Designating Party must designate for protection only those
2 parts of material, documents, items, or oral or written communications that qualify so
3 that other portions of the material, documents items, or communications for which
4 protection is not warranted are not swept unjustifiably within the ambit of this Order.
5 Mass, indiscriminate, or routinized designations are prohibited. Designations that
6 are shown to be clearly unjustified or that have been made for an improper purpose
7 (e.g., to unnecessarily encumber the case development process or to impose
8 unnecessary expenses and burdens on other parties) may expose the Designating Party
9 to sanctions.
10 If it comes to a Designating Party’s attention that information or items that it
11 designated for protection do not qualify for protection, that Designating Party must
12 promptly notify all other Parties that it is withdrawing the inapplicable designation.
13 5.2 Manner and Timing of Designations. Except as otherwise provided in this
14 Order (see, e.g., second paragraph of section 5.2(a) below), or as otherwise stipulated or
15 ordered, Disclosure or Discovery Material that qualifies for protection under this Order
16 must be clearly so designated before the material is disclosed or produced.
17 Designation in conformity with this Order requires:
18 (a) for information in documentary form (e.g., paper or electronic documents, but
19 excluding transcripts of depositions or other pretrial or trial proceedings), that the
20 Producing Party affix at a minimum, the legend “CONFIDENTIAL” (hereinafter
21 “CONFIDENTIAL legend”), to each page that contains protected material. If only a
22 portion or portions of the material on a page qualifies for protection, the Producing
23 Party also must clearly identify the protected portion(s) (e.g., by making appropriate
24 markings in the margins).
25 A Party or Non-Party that makes original documents available for inspection
26 need not designate them for protection until after the inspecting Party has indicated
27 which documents it would like copied and produced. During the inspection and before
1 “CONFIDENTIAL.” After the inspecting Party has identified the documents it wants
2 copied and produced, the Producing Party must determine which documents, or portions
3 thereof, qualify for protection under this Order. Then, before producing the specified
4 documents, the Producing Party must affix the “CONFIDENTIAL legend” to each page
5 that contains Protected Material. If only a portion or portions of the material on a page
6 qualifies for protection, the Producing Party also must clearly identify the protected
7 portion(s) (e.g., by making appropriate markings in the margins).
8 (b) for testimony given in depositions that the Designating Party identify the
9 Disclosure or Discovery Material on the record, before the close of the deposition all
10 protected testimony.
11 (c) for information produced in some form other than documentary and for any
12 other tangible items, that the Producing Party affix in a prominent place on the exterior
13 of the container or containers in which the information is stored the legend
14 “CONFIDENTIAL.” If only a portion or portions of the information warrants
15 protection, the Producing Party, to the extent practicable, shall identify the protected
16 portion(s).
17 5.3 Inadvertent Failures to Designate. If timely corrected, an inadvertent failure
18 to designate qualified information or items does not, standing alone, waive the
19 Designating Party’s right to secure protection under this Order for such material. Upon
20 timely correction of a designation, the Receiving Party must make reasonable efforts to
21 assure that the material is treated in accordance with the provisions of this Order.
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23 6. CHALLENGING CONFIDENTIALITY DESIGNATIONS
24 6.1 Timing of Challenges. Any Party or Non-Party may challenge a designation
25 of confidentiality at any time that is consistent with the Court’s Scheduling Order.
26 6.2 Meet and Confer. The Challenging Party shall initiate the dispute resolution
27 process under Local Rule 37.1 et seq. or follow the procedures for informal, telephonic
1 6.3 The burden of persuasion in any such challenge proceeding shall be on the
2 Designating Party. Frivolous challenges, and those made for an improper purpose (e.g.,
3 to harass or impose unnecessary expenses and burdens on other parties) may expose the
4 Challenging Party to sanctions. Unless the Designating Party has waived or withdrawn
5 the confidentiality designation, all parties shall continue to afford the material in
6 question the level of protection to which it is entitled under the Producing Party’s
7 designation until the Court rules on the challenge.
8 7. ACCESS TO AND USE OF PROTECTED MATERIAL
9 7.1 Basic Principles. A Receiving Party may use Protected Material that is
10 disclosed or produced by another Party or by a Non-Party in connection with this
11 Action only for prosecuting, defending, or attempting to settle this Action. Such
12 Protected Material may be disclosed only to the categories of persons and under the
13 conditions described in this Order. When the Action has been terminated, a Receiving
14 Party must comply with the provisions of section 13 below (FINAL DISPOSITION).
15 Protected Material must be stored and maintained by a Receiving Party at a
16 location and in a secure manner that ensures that access is limited to the persons
17 authorized under this Order.
18 7.2 Disclosure of “CONFIDENTIAL” Information or Items. Unless otherwise
19 ordered by the court or permitted in writing by the Designating Party, a Receiving Party
20 may disclose any information or item designated “CONFIDENTIAL” only to:
21 (a)the Receiving Party’s Outside Counsel of Record in this Action, as well as
22 employees of said Outside Counsel of Record to whom it is reasonably necessary to
23 disclose the information for this Action;
24 (b)the officers, directors, and employees (including House Counsel) of the
25 Receiving Party to whom disclosure is reasonably necessary for this Action;
26 (c)Experts (as defined in this Order) of the Receiving Party to whom disclosure is
27 reasonably necessary for this Action and who have signed the “Acknowledgment and
1 (d)the court and its personnel;
2 (e)court reporters and their staff;
3 (f)professional jury or trial consultants, mock jurors, and Professional Vendors to
4 whom disclosure is reasonably necessary for this Action and who have signed the
5 “Acknowledgment and Agreement to Be Bound” (Exhibit A);
6 (g)the author or recipient of a document containing the information or a custodian
7 or other person who otherwise possessed or knew the information;
8 (h)during their depositions, witnesses, and attorneys for witnesses, in the Action
9 to whom disclosure is reasonably necessary provided: (1) the deposing party requests
10 that the witness sign the form attached as Exhibit A hereto; and (2) they will not be
11 permitted to keep any confidential information unless they sign the “Acknowledgment
12 and Agreement to Be Bound” (Exhibit A), unless otherwise agreed by the Designating
13 Party or ordered by the court. Pages of transcribed deposition testimony or exhibits to
14 depositions that reveal Protected Material may be separately bound by the court reporter
15 and may not be disclosed to anyone except as permitted under this Stipulated Protective
16 Order; and
17 (i) any mediator or settlement officer, and their supporting personnel, mutually
18 agreed upon by any of the parties engaged in settlement discussions.
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20 8. PROTECTED MATERIAL SUBPOENAED OR ORDERED PRODUCED IN
21 OTHER LITIGATION
22 If a Party is served with a subpoena or a court order issued in other litigation that
23 compels disclosure of any information or items designated in this Action as
24 “CONFIDENTIAL,” that Party must:
25 (a) promptly notify in writing the Designating Party. Such notification shall
26 include a copy of the subpoena or court order;
27 (b) promptly notify in writing the party who caused the subpoena or order to
1 order is subject to this Protective Order. Such notification shall include a copy of this
2 Stipulated Protective Order; and
3 (c) cooperate with respect to all reasonable procedures sought to be pursued by
4 the Designating Party whose Protected Material may be affected.
5 If the Designating Party timely seeks a protective order, the Party served with the
6 subpoena or court order shall not produce any information designated in this action as
7 “CONFIDENTIAL” before a determination by the court from which the subpoena or
8 order issued, unless the Party has obtained the Designating Party’s permission. The
9 Designating Party shall bear the burden and expense of seeking protection in that court
10 of its confidential material and nothing in these provisions should be construed as
11 authorizing or encouraging a Receiving Party in this Action to disobey a lawful
12 directive from another court.
13 9. A NON-PARTY’S PROTECTED MATERIAL SOUGHT TO BEPRODUCED
14 IN THIS LITIGATION
15 (a) The terms of this Order are applicable to information produced by a Non-
16 Party in this Action and designated as “CONFIDENTIAL.” Such information produced
17 by Non-Parties in connection with this litigation is protected by the remedies and relief
18 provided by this Order. Nothing in these provisions should be construed as prohibiting a
19 Non-Party from seeking additional protections.
20 (b) In the event that a Party is required, by a valid discovery request, to produce a
21 Non-Party’s confidential information in its possession, and the Party is subject to an
22 agreement with the Non-Party not to produce the Non-Party’s confidential information,
23 then the Party shall:
24 (1) promptly notify in writing the Requesting Party and the Non-Party that
25 some or all of the information requested is subject to a confidentiality agreement with a
26 Non-Party;
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1 (2) promptly provide the Non-Party with a copy of the Stipulated Protective
2 Order in this Action, the relevant discovery request(s), and a reasonably specific
3 description of the information requested; and
4 (3) make the information requested available for inspection by the Non-Party,
5 if requested.
6 (c) If the Non-Party fails to seek a protective order from this court within 14 days
7 of receiving the notice and accompanying information, the Receiving Party may
8 produce the Non-Party’s confidential information responsive to the discovery request. If
9 the Non-Party timely seeks a protective order, the Receiving Party shall not produce
10 any information in its possession or control that is subject to the confidentiality
11 agreement with the Non-Party before a determination by the court. Absent a court order
12 to the contrary, the Non-Party shall bear the burden and expense of seeking protection
13 in this court of its Protected Material.
14 10. UNAUTHORIZED DISCLOSURE OF PROTECTED MATERIAL
15 If a Receiving Party learns that, by inadvertence or otherwise, it has disclosed
16 Protected Material to any person or in any circumstance not authorized under this
17 Stipulated Protective Order, the Receiving Party must immediately (a) notify in writing
18 the Designating Party of the unauthorized disclosures, (b) use its best efforts to retrieve
19 all unauthorized copies of the Protected Material, (c) inform the person or persons to
20 whom unauthorized disclosures were made of all the terms of this Order, and (d)
21 request such person or persons to execute the “Acknowledgment and Agreement to Be
22 Bound” that is attached hereto as Exhibit A.
23 11. INADVERTENT PRODUCTION OF PRIVILEGED OR OTHERWISE
24 PROTECTED MATERIAL
25 When a Producing Party gives notice to Receiving Parties that certain
26 inadvertently produced material is subject to a claim of privilege or other protection, the
27 obligations of the Receiving Parties are those set forth in Federal Rule of Civil
1 may be established in an e-discovery order that provides for production without prior
2 privilege review. Pursuant to Federal Rule of Evidence 502(d) and (e), insofar as the
3 parties reach an agreement on the effect of disclosure of a communication or
4 information covered by the attorney-client privilege or work product protection, the
5 parties may incorporate their agreement in the stipulated protective order submitted to
6 the Court.
7 12. MISCELLANEOUS
8 12.1 Right to Further Relief. Nothing in this Order abridges the right of any
9 person to seek its modification by the Court in the future.
10 12.2 Right to Assert Other Objections. By stipulating to the entry of this
11 Protective Order no Party waives any right it otherwise would have to object to
12 disclosing or producing any information or item on any ground not addressed in this
13 Stipulated Protective Order. Similarly, no Party waives any right to object on any
14 ground to use in evidence of any of the material covered by this Protective Order.
15 12.3 Filing Protected Material. A Party that seeks to file under seal any Protected
16 Material must comply with Civil Local Rule 79-5. Protected Material may only be filed
17 under seal pursuant to a court order authorizing the sealing of the specific Protected
18 Material at issue. If a Party's request to file Protected Material under seal is denied by
19 the court, then the Receiving Party may file the information in the public record unless
20 otherwise instructed by the court.
21 13. FINAL DISPOSITION
22 After the final disposition of this Action, as defined in paragraph 4, within 60
23 days of a written request by the Designating Party, each Receiving Party must return all
24 Protected Material to the Producing Party or destroy such material. As used in this
25 subdivision, “all Protected Material” includes all copies, abstracts, compilations,
26 summaries, and any other format reproducing or capturing any of the Protected
27 Material. Whether the Protected Material is returned or destroyed, the Receiving Party
1 entity, to the Designating Party) by the 60 day deadline that (1) identifies (by
2 ||category, where appropriate) all the Protected Material that was returned or destroyed
3 (2)affirms that the Receiving Party has not retained any copies, abstracts,
4 ||compilations, summaries or any other format reproducing or capturing any of the
5 Protected Material. Notwithstanding this provision, Counsel are entitled to retain an
6 || archival copy of all pleadings, motion papers, trial, deposition, and hearing transcripts,
7 || legal memoranda, correspondence, deposition and trial exhibits, expert reports, attorney
8 || work product, and consultant and expert work product, even if such materials contain
9 Protected Material. Any such archival copies that contain or constitute Protected
10 || Material remain subject to this Protective Order as set forth in Section 4 (DURATION).
11 Any violation of this Order may be punished by any and all appropriate measures
12 including, without limitation, contempt proceedings and/or monetary sanctions.
13 |} ITIS SO STIPULATED,
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15 || DATED 07/28/2026
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17 ||_Daimon McGuire
18 || DAIMON MCGUIRE, Pro-Se Plaintiff
19
20 || DATED: 97/28/2026
21
Cun Choe
23 || ERIN CHOI, Attorneys for Defendants, CITY OF LOS ANGELES, SGT. RAMIREZ,
24 |} OFFICER BUSTAMANTE, OFFICER ODDO, and OFFICER CARRILLO
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26 ||FOR GOOD CAUSE SHOWN, IT IS SO ORDERED.
27 ||DATED: July 30, 2026 in ( Scott
HON. KAREN E. SCOTT
28 United States Magistrate Judge

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1 EXHIBIT A
ACKNOWLEDGMENT AND AGREEMENT TO BE BOUND
2

3 I, _D_a_im__o_n_ m_c_g_u_ir_e_________________________________ [print or type full name], of

4 [print or type full address], declare under penalty of perjury that
418 w 51st st
5 I have read in its entirety and understand the Stipulated Protective Order that was issued
6 by the United States District Court for the Central District of California on
7 [date]_0_7_/2_8_/2_0_2_6____ in the case of McGuire v. City of Los Angeles, et al., Case no2:25-
8 cv-03649-DSF-KES I agree to comply with and to be bound by all the terms of this
9 Stipulated Protective Order and I understand and acknowledge that failure to so
10 comply could expose me to sanctions and punishment in the nature of contempt. I
11 solemnly promise that I will not disclose in any manner any information or item that is
12 subject to this Stipulated Protective Order to any person or entity except in strict
13 compliance with the provisions of this Order.
14 I further agree to submit to the jurisdiction of the United States District Court for the
15 Central District of California for the purpose of enforcing the terms of this Stipulated
16 Protective Order, even if such enforcement proceedings occur after termination of this
17 action. I hereby appoint _D_a_i_m_o_n_ M_c_G_u_i_re________________________________ [print or
18 type full name] of _________________________________________ [print or type full
418 w 51 st st los angeles ca 90037
19 address and telephone number] as my California agent for service of process in
20 connection with this action or any proceedings related to enforcement of this Stipulated
21 Protective Order.
22 Date: 07/28/2 026
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City and State where sworn and signed: L os a ngeles californ ia
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Printed name: Daim on mcg uire
25

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27 Signature: D aimon M cGuire

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Source: Frix Law Library, https://www.frixlaw.com/law-library/cases/11425710. Public record. Not legal advice.