SMITH v. BROWN

Filing 5

ORDER granting re 3 MOTION filed by ERIC SMITH. ORDER granting 2 MOTION for Leave to Proceed in forma pauperis filed by ERIC SMITH. Judgment dismissing the action without prejudice shall now issue. Copy to petitioner via US Mail. Signed by Judge Jane Magnus-Stinson on 3/5/2012.(RSF)

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF INDIANA
ERIC SMITH,
Petitioner,
vs.
SUPERINTENDENT BROWN,
Respondent.

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2:12-CV-46-JMS-WGH

Entry and Order Directing Dismissal of Action
Eric Smith is serving the executed sentence imposed by an Indiana state
court following his conviction for arson. See Smith v. State, 779 N.E.2d 978 (Ind. Ct.
App. Nov.19, 2002), trans. denied. In this action seeking a writ of habeas corpus,
Smith challenges the validity of a prison disciplinary proceeding.
Because of his abusive litigation in federal courts, Smith has been sanctioned
through the issuance of a restricted filer order. The order in Smith=s case was issued
by the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals in No. 09-2444 on June 10, 2009. The text
of the restrictive filer Order is the following:
Smith is fined $500. Until he pays that sum in full to the clerk of this
court, he is barred from filing further civil suits in the courts of this
circuit, in accordance with Support Systems International v. Mack, 345
F.3d 185 (7th Cir. 1995).
This court is fully bound, as are the litigants before it, by the orders of a higher
court, and "[i]n a hierarchical system, decisions of a superior court are authoritative
on inferior courts." Reiser v. Residential Funding Corp., 380 F.3d 1027, 1029 (7th
Cir. 2004). "[D]istrict judges must follow the decisions of this court whether or not
they agree." Id.
Smith violated the Court of Appeals= Order in No. 09-2444 by submitting this
action. He cannot obtain the relief he seeks, which is evident from the face of his
petition for writ of habeas corpus. The action is therefore dismissed pursuant to
Rule 4 of the Rules Governing Section 2254 Proceedings in the United States District
Courts.

Smith’s request to proceed in forma pauperis [2] is granted. In addition, his
motion for file-stamped copy of petition [3] is granted and a copy of the requested
material shall be included with the distribution of this Entry.
Judgment dismissing the action without prejudice shall now issue.
IT IS SO ORDERED.

03/05/2012
Date: __________________
_______________________________
Hon. Jane Magnus-Stinson, Judge
United States District Court
Southern District of Indiana

Note to Clerk: Processing this document requires actions in addition to docketing and distribution.