MEMORANDUM & ORDER

J. PHIL GILBERT, District Judge.

This matter comes before the Court on the City of Alton's and Michael Morelli's motions to consolidate the case Crowder v. City of Alton, et al., Case No. 17-cv-896-JPG-SCW with Carter v. City of Alton, et al., Case No. 17-cv-897-JPG-SCW. (Case No. 17-cv-896-JPG-SCW, Doc. 17; Case No. 17-cv-897-JPG-SCW, Doc. 16.) Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 42(a) gives the Court the discretion to consolidate cases that involve a common question of law or fact. It is an abuse of discretion, however, to consolidate cases that—even though they involve claims of the same nature—involve "different allegations and time frames." See King v. General Elec. Co., 960 F.2d 617, 626 (7th Cir. 1992). Moreover, consolidation under Rule 42(a) does not merge two actions into one case. Cella v. Togum Constructeur Ensembleier en Industrie Alimentaire, 173 F.3d 909, 912 (3d Cir. 1999) (citing Johnson v. Manhattan R. Co., 289 U.S. 479, 496-97 (1933)). On the contrary, each consolidated case retains its separate identity and must have its own independent jurisdictional basis. Cella, 173 F.3d at 913.

Since both of these cases involve the same defendants, the same issues of fact and law, and virtually identical complaints, the Court GRANTS the defendants' motions to consolidate. (Case No. 17-cv-896-JPG-SCW, Doc. 17; Case No. 17-cv-897-JPG-SCW, Doc. 16.) Accordingly, for the purposes of discovery and trial, the Court hereby CONSOLIDATES Crowder v. City of Alton, et al., Case No. 17-cv-896-JPG-SCW with Carter v. City of Alton, et al., Case No. 17-cv-897-JPG-SCW. All future filings shall contain the caption in this order and shall be filed only in Crowder v. City of Alton, et al., Case No. 17-cv-896-JPG-SCW. The Court will strike any filings in Case No. 17-cv-897-JPG-SCW subsequent to this order.

The Clerk of Court is DIRECTED to CONSOLIDATE these cases and file a copy of this order in each case.

IT IS SO ORDERED.