From yesterday's notice in Parham v. Combs from Judge Rita Lin (N.D. Cal.):
The Court requests that the parties be prepared to provide their views on the following at the hearing on Defendant Drew Desbordes' motion for sanctions, set for July 8, 2025, at 10:00 a.m., in Courtroom 15 at the San Francisco Courthouse:
Having considered the motion for sanctions and associated evidence, the Court is tentatively of the view that Plaintiffs' allegations pertaining to Desbordes now lack a factual basis. From Desbordes' phone and bank records, it appears virtually certain that he was in Georgia, not in Orinda, California, at the time of the alleged assault in March 2018.
However, when Plaintiffs added Desbordes to this lawsuit, there did appear to be a reasonable factual basis to name him. Before Plaintiffs sued Desbordes, two individuals—Jane Doe and John Doe—contacted Ms. Mitchell, offering to provide information related to the case. The individuals informed Ms. Mitchell that Desbordes was present at the time of the assault. To confirm this fact, Ms. Mitchell presented Plaintiff Parham with a "photo lineup," during which Parham identified Desbordes as one of the individuals who participated in the alleged assault. Parham did not know the other two individuals or communicate with them prior to her identification.
