COLEMAN v. CRANSTON et al

Filing 3

MEMORANDUM and ORDER that Plaintiff's implied request to proceed in forma pauperis is DENIED WITHOUT PREJUDICE; that the Clerk ADMINISTRATIVELY TERMINATE this mater; that if Plaintiff wishes to reopen this case he shall so notify the Court, in writing, within 30 days of the entry of this Order. Signed by Judge Peter G. Sheridan on 12/1/2015. (mmh)

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
DISTRICT OF NEW JERSEY

SHAWN W. COLEMAN,
Civil Action No. 15-8095 (PGS)
Plaintiff,
v.

MEMORANDUM AND ORDER

MARK CRANSTON, et al.,
Defendants.

Plaintiff Shawn W. Coleman, a pre-trial detainee currently confined at Southern State
Prison in Delmont, New Jersey, seeks to bring this civil action in forma pauperis, without
prepayment of fees or security, asserting claims pursuant to 42 U.S.C.
Litigation Reform Act of 1995 (the “Act”), which amends 28 U.S.C.

§ 1983. The Prison

§ 1915, establishes certain

financial requirements for prisoners who are attempting to bring a civil action informa pauperis.
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)(l). 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. 28 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. Ifinjörmapauperis status is denied, the prisoner must pay the full

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$400, including the $350 filing fee and the $50 administrative fee, before the complaint will be
filed.
If the prisoner is granted injormapauperis 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.

§ 1915(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 failed to submit any injörina pauperis application as required by
28 U.S.C.

§ 1915(a). He did submit a copy of his prisoner account statement, but it was not for

the six months immediately preceding the filing of his Complaint and it was not certified by an
appropriate prison official. See 28 U.S.C.
THEREFORE, it is on this

§ 19l5(a)(2).
of

,2015;

ORDERED that Plaintiff’s implied request to proceed in forma pauperis is hereby
DENIED WITHOUT PREJUDICE; and it is further
ORDERED that the clerk of the Court shall ADMINISTRATIVELY TERMINATE this
case, without filing the complaint or assessing a filing fee; Plaintiff is informed that administrative

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termination is not a “dismissal” for purposes of the statute of limitations, and that if the case is
reopened, it is not subject to the statute of limitations time bar if it was originally filed timely, see
Jenkins v. Superintendent of Laurel Highlands, 705 F.3d 80, 84 n.2 (3d Cir. 2013) (describing
prisoner mailbox rule generally); Dasilva v Sheriffs Dep ‘t, 413 F. App’x 498, 502 (3d Cir. 2011)
(“[The] statute of limitations is met when a complaint is submitted to the clerk before the statute
runs

....“);

and it is further

ORDERED that the Clerk of the Court shall send Plaintiff the form entitled Affidavit of
Poverty and Account Certification (Civil Rights)(DNJ ProSe 007 A(Rev. 5/1 3)) to be used by
Plaintiff in any future application to proceed in forma pauperis; and it is further
ORDERED that if Plaintiff wishes to reopen this case, he shall so notify the Court, in
writing addressed to the Clarkson S. Fisher Building & U.S. Courthouse, 402 East State Street,
Trenton, NJ 08608, within 30 days of the date of entry of this Order; Plaintiff’s writing shall
include either (1) a complete, signed informapauperis application, including a certified prison
account statement for the six month period immediately preceding the filing of his Complaint, or
(2) the $400 fee including the $350 filing fee plus the $50 administrative fee; and 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 jörma pauperis application or payment of the filing and
administrative fees within the time allotted by this Court, the Clerk of the Court will be directed
to reopen this case; and it is finally
ORDERED that the Clerk of the Court shall serve a copy of this Order upon Plaintiff by
regular U.S. mail.

(cL k
Peter U. Sheridan, U.S.D.J.
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