Johnson v. Farmington Correctional Center et al

Filing 4

MEMORANDUM AND ORDER: IT IS HEREBY ORDERED that plaintiff shall submit a certified copy of his prison account statement within thirty (30) days of the date of this Order. IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that the Clerk shall send plaintiff a Prisoner Civil Righ ts Complaint form. IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that plaintiff shall submit an amended complaint using the Court-provided form no later than thirty (30) days from the date of this Order. The amended complaint must comply with the requirements of Rules 8 and 10 of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure. IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that plaintiff's motion for temporary restraining order [ECF No. 3] is DENIED without prejudice. IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that if plaintiff fails to comply with this Order, this action will be dismissed ( Amended/Supplemental Pleadings due by 5/28/2013., Response to Court due by 5/28/2013.) Signed by District Judge Stephen N. Limbaugh, Jr on 4/26/2013. (prisoner civil rights forms forwarded to Mr. Johnson)(JMC)

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
EASTERN DISTRICT OF MISSOURI
EASTERN DIVISION
CHARLES JOHNSON,
Plaintiff,
v.
FARMINGTON CORRECTIONAL
CENTER, et al.,
Defendants.

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No. 4:13CV789 SNLJ

MEMORANDUM AND ORDER
This matter is before the Court on plaintiff’s submission of a civil complaint,
motion for leave to proceed in forma pauperis, and motion for temporary restraining
order.
Under 28 U.S.C. § 1915(a)(2), a prisoner seeking leave to proceed in forma
pauperis must submit a certified copy of his prison account statement for the sixmonth period preceding the filing of the complaint. Plaintiff has not submitted a
prison account statement. Therefore, the Court will order him to do so.
The complaint has not been drafted on the Court-provided form. Additionally,
the complaint is unnecessarily lengthy and rambling. Rule 8(a) of the Federal Rules
of Civil Procedure requires that a complaint contain (1) “a short and plain statement
of the grounds for the court’s jurisdiction,” (2) “a short and plain statement of the

claim showing that the pleader is entitled to relief,” and (3) “a demand for the relief
sought.” Because the complaint is overly long and discursive, it does not comply
with Rule 8(a), and it is dismissible as a result. See Micklus v. Greer, 705 F.2d 314,
317 n. 3 (8th Cir. 1983). As a result, the Court will require plaintiff to file an
amended complaint on the Court-provided form that complies with Rule 8.
The Court has reviewed plaintiff’s motion for temporary restraining order and
finds that plaintiff is not entitled to injunctive relief at this time. Plaintiff complains
that he is not allowed to continue his employment as a law clerk and that some legal
materials have been taken from him. A prisoner has “no constitutional right to a
particular prison job.” Lomholt v. Holder, 287 F.3d 683, 684 (8th Cir. 2002). “To
state a claim [for denial of meaningful access to the courts], inmates must assert that
they suffered an actual injury to pending or contemplated legal claims.” Myers v.
Hundley, 101 F.3d 542, 544 (8th Cir. 1996).

Plaintiff has not alleged facts

demonstrating that he has suffered an actual injury to an existing legal claim. As a
result, plaintiff has not demonstrated that he is likely to succeed on the merits
regarding the claims raised in the motion. Consequently, the Court will deny the
motion without prejudice.
Accordingly,

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IT IS HEREBY ORDERED that plaintiff shall submit a certified copy of his
prison account statement within thirty (30) days of the date of this Order.
IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that the Clerk shall send plaintiff a Prisoner
Civil Rights Complaint form.
IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that plaintiff shall submit an amended
complaint using the Court-provided form no later than thirty (30) days from the date
of this Order. The amended complaint must comply with the requirements of Rules
8 and 10 of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure.
IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that plaintiff’s motion for temporary restraining
order [ECF No. 3] is DENIED without prejudice.
IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that if plaintiff fails to comply with this Order,
this action will be dismissed.
Dated this 26th day of April, 2013.

STEPHEN N. LIMBAUGH, JR.
UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE

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