Wells v. Allen

Filing 3

ORDER dismissing Plaintiff's petition without prejudice and denying as moot the 1 motion for leave to proceed in forma pauperis. This Court does not have jurisdiction over the petition. Signed by Judge Susan Webber Wright on 9/24/2012. (thd)

IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
EASTERN DISTRICT OF ARKANSAS
JONESBORO DIVISION
WILLIE WELLS, III
V.

PLAINTIFF
CASE NO.: 3:12CV00221 SWW/BD

MIKE ALLEN

DEFENDANT
ORDER

Petitioner Willie Wells, III, a pretrial detainee at the Crittenden County Detention
Facility, filed this pro se petition for writ of habeas corpus under 28 U.S.C. § 2254
(docket entry #1), along with a motion to proceed in forma pauperis (#2). In the petition,
Mr. Wells claims that he is being held on excessive bond in violation of his equal
protection and due process rights.
Upon the filing of a habeas petition, a federal court is required to examine the
petition together with any exhibits and dismiss the petition if the petitioner is not entitled
to relief. Rule 4 of the Rules Governing Section 2254 Cases.
Under 28 U.S.C. § 2254, this Court may entertain a habeas corpus petition from a
person “in custody pursuant to the judgment of a State court” and only after the person
has exhausted the remedies available to him in the courts of the State. 28 U.S.C.
§§ 2254(a) and 2254(b)(1).
According to the facts alleged in the petition, Mr. Wells is a pretrial detainee and is
not in custody pursuant to a judgment of a State court. Consequently, this Court does not
have jurisdiction over Mr. Wells’s petition.

Mr. Wells’s petition is dismissed, without prejudice, under Rule 4 of the Rules
Governing Section 2254 Cases, and the motion for leave to proceed in forma pauperis is
denied as moot.
DATED this 24TH day of September, 2012.

/s/Susan Webber Wright
UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE

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