WEST v. MATTHEWS

Filing 4

MEMORANDUM AND ORDER: It is ORDERED that Plaintiff's application to proceed informa pauperis is hereby DENIED W/O PREJUDICE; the Clerk shall send Plaintiff the form entitled Affidavit of Poverty and Account Certification (Civil Rights)(DNJ ProSe 007 A(Rev. 5/13)) to be used by Plaintiff in any future application to proceed informa pauperis; if Plaintiff wishes to reopen this case, he shall so notify the Court, in writing, within thirty (30) days of the date of entry of this Order, etc; upon receipt of a writing from Plaintiff stating that he wishes to reopen this case, and either a complete in forma pauperis application or payment of the filing and administrative fees within the time allotted by this Court, the Clerk will be directed to reopen this case. Signed by Judge Claire C. Cecchi on 11/21/2016.(Copies Sent) (seb)

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NOT FOR PUBLICATION UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT DISTRICT OF NEW JERSEY MICHAEL WEST, Civil Action No. 16-5427 (CCC) Plaintiff, v. MEMORANDUM AND ORDER KEVIN P. MATTHEWS, Defendant. CECCHI, District Judge. Plaintiff Michael West, a prisoner currently confined at the Federal Correctional Institution in Fort Dix, New Jersey, seeks to bring this civil action informa pauperis, without prepayment of fees or security, asserting claims pursuant to 42 U.S.C. of 1995 (the “Act”), which amends 28 U.S.C. § 1983. The Prison Litigation Reform Act § 1915, establishes certain financial requirements for prisoners who are attempting to bring a civil action informapauperis. Under the Act, a prisoner bringing a civil action informapauperis must submit an affidavit, including a statement of all assets, which states that the prisoner is unable to pay the fee. 28 U.S.C. § 1915(a)(1). The prisoner also must submit a certified copy of his inmate trust fund account statement for the six-month period immediately preceding the filing of his complaint. 2$ U.S.C. § 1915(a)(2). The prisoner must obtain this statement from the appropriate official of each prison at which he was or is confined. Id. The entire fee to be paid in advance of filing a civil complaint is $400. That fee includes a filing fee of $350 plus an administrative fee of $50, for a total of $400. A prisoner who is granted informa pauperis status will, instead, be assessed a filing fee of $350 and will not be responsible for the $50 administrative fee. If informa pauperis status is denied, the prisoner must pay the full $400, including the $350 filing fee and the $50 administrative fee, before the complaint will be filed. If the prisoner is granted informa pauperis status, the prisoner must pay the full amount of the $350 filing fee as follows. 28 U.S.C. § 1915(b)(l). In each month that the amount in the prisoner’s account exceeds $10.00, until the $350.00 filing fee is paid, the agency having custody of the prisoner shall assess, deduct from the prisoner’s account, and forward to the clerk of the Court, payment equal to 20% of the preceding month’s income credited to the prisoner’s account. 28 u.s.c. § 1915(b)(2). Plaintiff may not have known when he submitted his complaint that he must pay the filing fee, and that even if the full filing fee, or any part of it, has been paid, the Court must dismiss the case if it finds that the action is: (1) frivolous or malicious; (2) fails to state a claim upon which relief may be granted; or (3) seeks monetary relief against a defendant who is immune from such relief. 28 U.S.C. § 19l5(e)(2)(B). If the Court dismisses the case for any of these reasons, the Act does not permit the prisoner to get his filing fee back. In this action, Plaintiff fails to submit a complete in forma pauperis application as required by 28 U.S.C. § 1915(a). Specifically, Plaintiff fails to submit a proper six-month prison account statement. Plaintiff attaches to the application a summary statement concerning his prison account, not a six-month account statement as required under § 1915. More importantly, there was no certification from an authorized prison official. This does not satisfy the statutory requirement. IT IS therefore on this 2 day of , 2016, ORDERED that Plaintiffs application to proceed informa pauperis is hereby DENIED WITHOUT PREJUDICE; it is further 2 ORDERED that the Clerk shall send Plaintiff the form entitled Affidavit of Poverty and Account Certification (Civil Rights)(DNJ ProSe 007 A(Rev. 5/13)) to be used by Plaintiff in any future application to proceed informa pauperis; it is further ORDERED that if Plaintiff wishes to reopen this case, he shall so notif’ the Court, in writing, within thirty (30) days of the date of entry of this Order; Plaintiffs writing shall include either (I) a complete, signed informapauperis application, including a proper certified six-month prison account statement, or (2) the $400 fee including the $350 filing fee plus the $50 administrative fee; it is further ORDERED that upon receipt of a writing from Plaintiff stating that he wishes to reopen this case, and either a complete in forma pauperis application or payment of the filing and administrative fees within the time allotted by this Court, the Clerk will be directed to reopen this case; and it is further ORDERED that the Clerk shall serve a copy of this Order upon Plaintiff by regular mail. SO ORDERED. Claire C. Cecchi, U.S.D.J. 3

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