Higgins v. Federal Veteran Hospital Police, et al

Filing 14

MEMORANDUM and ORDER that the Motion for Miscellaneous Relief 10 , the Motion (apparently asking the Court to rule that false evidence was used in a mental health proceeding) 11 , and the Motion for Order for Release 12 are denied. The Motion f or Appointment of Counsel 13 is held in abeyance. The Clerk shall mail a copy of the official habeas form to the petitioner at the address he has given in this case. The Clerk shall also mail a copy to petitioner at the following address: Joseph W. Higgins, 0464122, SPR-LINC REG CTR, Lincoln Regional Center, P.O. Box 94949, Lincoln, NE 68509. The petitioner is given until November 18, 2016, to file an amended petition using the official form. If petitioner fails to file an amended petition or files an inadequate amended petition, this case may be dismissed without prejudice and without further notice. Ordered by Senior Judge Richard G. Kopf. (Copies mailed as directed)(MLF, )

IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
FOR THE DISTRICT OF NEBRASKA
JOSEPH W. HIGGINS,
Petitioner,
V.
FEDERAL VETERAN HOSPITAL
POLICE, VETERAN HOSPITAL
MENTAL HEALTH, DISTRICT
COURT OF DOUGLAS COUNTY,
LINCOLN REGIONAL CENTER,
MARY DOVORLH, Public
Defender, and MARK FOXELL,
Douglas County Cor-Rection,
Respondents.

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8:16CV408

MEMORANDUM AND ORDER

The habeas corpus petition filed in this case fails to comply with Rule 2(c) and
Rule 2(d) of the Rules Governing Habeas Corpus Cases.
Rule 2(c) states:
(c) Form. The petition must:
(1) specify all the grounds for relief available to the petitioner;
(2) state the facts supporting each ground;
(3) state the relief requested;
(4) be printed, typewritten, or legibly handwritten; and
(5) be signed under penalty of perjury by the petitioner or by a person
authorized to sign it for the petitioner under 28 U.S.C. § 2242.
Rule 2(d) states: “Standard Form. The petition must substantially follow either
the form appended to these rules or a form prescribed by a local district-court rule.
The clerk must make forms available to petitioners without charge.”

In addition to being incomprehensible, the statements contained in the petition
and associated documents are frequently fanciful in nature. In short, the petition is
subject to dismissal without prejudice. See, e.g., Adams v. Armontrout, 897 F.2d 332,
332 (8th Cir. 1990).
Out of an abundance of caution, I will allow the petitioner1 an opportunity to
amend. He should note that if he fails to file an amended petition or if the amended
petitions fails to comply with Rule 2, this case will be dismissed without prejudice.
IT IS ORDERED that:
1.
The Motion for Miscellaneous Relief (filing no. 10), the Motion
(apparently asking the Court to rule that false evidence was used in a mental health
proceeding) (filing no. 11), and the Motion for Order for Release (filing no. 12) are
denied.
2.
abeyance.

The Motion for Appointment of Counsel (filing no. 13) is held in

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This is not the first time Petitioner has filed documents that made little or no
sense or were so obviously lacking in merit that dismissal was warranted. See In Re:
Joseph Higgins, 8:15-cv-00103. The petitioner has also been a defendant in at least
two Central Violation Bureau cases. See Joseph W. Higgins, 8:14-cb-00007-TDT
(disposition unknown). Also, in 8:15-cb-00009-TDT-3 it appears that petitioner was
charged with creating a disturbance at the VA Medical Center in Omaha. Judge
Thalken appointed counsel and after that the government dismissed the case. Finally,
the petitioner has brought another habeas case that is pending under number
8:16-cv-00433-RGK-PRSE and which shows his address to be the Lincoln Regional
Center. The Lincoln Regional Center is Nebraska’s primary mental health facility.
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3.
The Clerk shall mail a copy of the official habeas form to the petitioner
at the address he has given in this case. The Clerk shall also mail a copy to petitioner
at the following address:
Joseph W. Higgins
0464122
SPR-LINC REG CTR, Lincoln Regional Center
P.O. Box 94949
Lincoln, NE 68509
4.
The petitioner is given until November 18, 2016, to file an amended
petition using the official form. If petitioner fails to file an amended petition or files
an inadequate amended petition, this case may be dismissed without prejudice and
without further notice.
DATED this 18th day of October, 2016.
BY THE COURT:
s/ Richard G. Kopf
Senior United States District Judge

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