Phinney v. Carson
Filing
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OPINION MEMORANDUM AND ORDER - IT IS HEREBY ORDERED that plaintiffs motion to proceed in forma pauperis [ECF No. 2 ] is GRANTED. IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that the plaintiff must pay an initial filing fee of $1.00 within twenty-one (21) days of t he date of this Order. Plaintiff is instructed to make his remittance payable to Clerk, United States District Court, and to include upon it: (1) his name; (2) his prison registration number; (3) the case number; and (4) that the remittance is for an original proceeding. IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that the Clerk is directed to send plaintiff a prisoner civil rights complaint form. IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that plaintiff must file an amended complaint within twenty-one (21) days of the date of this Order. IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that if plaintiff fails to comply with this Order or the Federal Rules, the Court will dismiss this action without further proceedings. Signed by District Judge Henry Edward Autrey on 4/28/16. (KJS)
UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
EASTERN DISTRICT OF MISSOURI
EASTERN DIVISION
JAMES EDWIN PHINNEY, IV,
Plaintiff,
v.
JEFFERY CARSON, et al.,
Defendants.
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No. 4:16CV579 HEA
OPINION, MEMORANDUM AND ORDER
Plaintiff, a prisoner, seeks leave to proceed in forma pauperis in this civil action under 42
U.S.C. § 1983. Having reviewed plaintiff’s financial information, the Court assesses a partial
initial filing fee of $1.00. See 28 U.S.C. § 1915(b). Additionally, the Court will require plaintiff
to file an amended complaint.
Standard of Review
Under 28 U.S.C. § 1915(e), the Court is required to dismiss a complaint filed in forma
pauperis if it is frivolous, malicious, or fails to state a claim upon which relief can be granted.
To state a claim for relief under § 1983, a complaint must plead more than “legal conclusions”
and “[t]hreadbare recitals of the elements of a cause of action [that are] supported by mere
conclusory statements.” Ashcroft v. Iqbal, 556 U.S. 662, 678 (2009).
A plaintiff must
demonstrate a plausible claim for relief, which is more than a “mere possibility of misconduct.”
Id. at 679. “A claim has facial plausibility when the plaintiff pleads factual content that allows
the court to draw the reasonable inference that the defendant is liable for the misconduct
alleged.” Id. at 678. Determining whether a complaint states a plausible claim for relief [is] a
context-specific task that requires the reviewing court to draw on its judicial experience and
common sense. Id. at 679.
The Complaint
The complaint is 213 pages long and contains 332 pages of exhibits. It is unintelligible.
Many of the allegations are obviously delusional. And the vast majority of the allegations do not
pertain to plaintiff or any of the defendants.
Additionally, plaintiff names more than 150 defendants. Most of the claims against the
different defendants appear to be unrelated.
Discussion
Rule 8(a) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure requires that a plaintiff give a “short
and plain statement” of the facts giving rise to relief. Rule 8(d) requires that pleadings be
“simple, concise, and direct.”
Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 20(a)(2) provides: “Persons . . . may be joined in one
action as defendants if: (A) any right to relief is asserted against them jointly, severally, or in the
alternative with respect to or arising out of the same transaction, occurrence, or series of
transactions or occurrences; and (B) any question of law or fact common to all defendants will
arise in the action.” In other words, “Claim A against Defendant 1 should not be joined with
unrelated Claim B against Defendant 2.” George v. Smith, 507 F.3d 605, 607 (7th Cir. 2007).
The complaint does not comply with Rule 8 or 20. As a result, plaintiff must submit an
amended complaint that contains only a short and plain statement of the facts plaintiff believes
entitle him to relief. It must be simple, concise, and direct. He must allege how each defendant
individually violated his rights. And he must include only defendants properly joined under Rule
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20. If plaintiff fails to comply with the Federal Rules in his amended pleading, the Court will
dismiss this action without prejudice. See Fed. R. Civ. P. 41(b).
Accordingly,
IT IS HEREBY ORDERED that plaintiff’s motion to proceed in forma pauperis [ECF
No. 2] is GRANTED.
IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that the plaintiff must pay an initial filing fee of $1.00
within twenty-one (21) days of the date of this Order. Plaintiff is instructed to make his
remittance payable to “Clerk, United States District Court,” and to include upon it: (1) his name;
(2) his prison registration number; (3) the case number; and (4) that the remittance is for an
original proceeding.
IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that the Clerk is directed to send plaintiff a prisoner civil
rights complaint form.
IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that plaintiff must file an amended complaint within
twenty-one (21) days of the date of this Order.
IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that if plaintiff fails to comply with this Order or the
Federal Rules, the Court will dismiss this action without further proceedings.
Dated this 28th day of April, 2016.
HENRY EDWARD AUTREY
UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE
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