Taysom v. Bannock County et al

Filing 11

MEMORANDUM DECISION AND ORDER granting 3 Motion for Waiver of Bond Pursuant to I.C. § 31-3220. Signed by Judge B. Lynn Winmill. (caused to be mailed to non Registered Participants at the addresses listed on the Notice of Electronic Filing (NEF) by cjm)

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
FOR THE DISTRICT OF IDAHO

MARCIE K. TAYSOM,
Case No. 1:12-cv-00020-BLW
Plaintiff,
MEMORANDUM DECISION AND
ORDER

v.
BANNOCK COUNTY, an Idaho
political subdivision; SHERIFF LOREN
NIELSEN, in his official and individual
capacity; JACOB MICHAELSON, in his
official and individual capacity; KEVIN
FONNESBECK, in his official and
individual capacity; ELLIE PETERSON,
in her official and individual capacity,
Defendants.

INTRODUCTION
The Court has before it Plaintiff Marcie K. Taysom’s Request for Waiver of Bond
Pursuant to I.C. § 31-3220 (Dkt. 3). The Court has reviewed the record and determined
that oral argument will not aid the decisional process. The Motion is therefore at issue.
For the reasons set forth below, the Court will grant the Motion.
ANALYSIS
I.C. § 6–610(2) requires a plaintiff to post bond before it initiates suit against a law
enforcement officer. A court, however, may waive costs, fees and security for indigents.

MEMORANDUM DECISION AND ORDER - 1

I.C. § 31-3220. If a party files an affidavit stating that she is indigent and unable to pay
the costs, fees and security associated with her case, the court can waive costs, fees and
security if it finds, after informal inquiry, that the party is indigent. See Idaho Code § 313220(2).
On January 17, 2012, simultaneous with the filing of the Complaint, Plaintiff
Marcie K. Taysom filed a Request for Waiver of Bond Pursuant to Idaho Code § 3132201 and an affidavit claiming she is indigent. She includes in her affidavit her full
legal name, her income, her spouse’s income, the real and personal property she owns,
her cash and checking accounts, her dependents, her debts, her monthly expenses, the
nature of the action, and the basis for redress as required by Idaho Code § 31-3220A.
Taysom states her income is $2000 a month from unemployment benefits, which will end
February 18, 2012, and her expenses are $2000. She further states that she owns no real
property, has no spouse, she has two dependents, and she has $60,000 in student debt.
Her affidavit suggests she meets the standard for indigence. The Court will therefore
grant her motion to waive the bond.
ORDER
IT IS ORDERED that Plaintiff Marcie K. Taysom’s Request for Waiver of Bond
Pursuant to I.C. § 31-3220 (Dkt. 3) is GRANTED.

1

After filing the Request for Waiver, the Docketing Clerk issued a Corrective Entry instructing Taysom
to re-file the Request as a Motion. Because of this technical error, the docket shows that Taysom did not
file the Motion to Waive the Bond until the day after the Complaint was filed even though the Request for
Waiver was filed at the same time as the Complaint. To correct this clerical error, the Court deems the
Motion (Dkt. 3) as filed nunc pro tunc on January 17, 2012.

MEMORANDUM DECISION AND ORDER - 2

DATED: February 7, 2012

_________________________
B. Lynn Winmill
Chief Judge
United States District Court

MEMORANDUM DECISION AND ORDER - 3