White v. Holder et al

Filing 6

MEMORANDUM AND ORDER 1. The Clerk of Court is directed to VACATE the Administrative Order (Doc. 5) issued in this case and return any monies to Plaintiff collected pursuant to that Order. 2. Plaintiffs Motion for leave to proceed in forma pauperis (Doc. 2) is GRANTED for the sole purpose of filing this action. 3. The Complaint (Doc. 1) is DISMISSED. 4. The Clerk of Court shall CLOSE this case. Signed by Honorable Robert D. Mariani on 3/14/12. (jfg)

IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

FOR THE MIDDLE DISTRICT OF PENNSYLVANIA

CIVIL NO. 3:CV·12·0454

ARTHUR WAYNE WHITE,
Plaintiff,

(Judge Mariani)

v.
ERIC HOLDER, et at,
Defendants

MEMORANDUM
Plaintiff Arthur Wayne White ("Plaintiff' or "White"), a detainee of the United States
Immigration and Customs Enforcement ("ICE") Office, who currently is confined at the Pike
County Correctional Facility in Lords Valley, Pennsylvania, initiated the above action Q[Q se by
filing a form civil rights Complaint. 1 (Doc. 1.) Named as Defendants are Attorney General Eric
Holder, ICE, Warden Craig Lowe, and the Department of Homeland Security. White states that
he is challenging the constitutionality of his continued detention by ICE for a time period
exceeding six (6) months, and he requests that this Court examine the legality of his continued
detention and order his immediate release.
It is well-settled that a habeas corpus petition is the proper mechanism for a prisoner to

lWhite completed this Court's form application for leave to proceed in forma pauperis
and authorization form (Docs. 2, 3) and submitted them with his form Complaint. An
Administrative Order (Doc. 5) therefore was issued at the time of filing on March 13, 2012
directing the warden at White's place of confinement to begin deducting the full $350.00 filing
fee from White's prison trust fund account. Because the Court will dismiss this action as an
improperly filed civil rights action, the Clerk of Court will be directed to vacate the Administrative
Order and return to White any monies withdrawn pursuant to that Order.

utilize in order to challenge either the fact or duration of his confinement in prison. Preiser v.
Rodriguez, 411 U.S. 475 (1973); Telford v. Hepting, 990 F.2d 745, 748 (3d Cir.), cert. denied,
510 U.S. 920 (1993). Federal habeas corpus review is available "where the deprivation of
rights is such that it necessarily impacts the fact or length of detention." Leamer v. Fauver, 288
F.3d 532,540 (3d Cir. 2002). In contrast, acivil rights action is the appropriate mechanism for
a prisoner to utilize in seeking monetary, declaratory, or injunctive relief for allegedly
unconstitutional conduct.
In the instant action, White is not seeking any type of monetary, declaratory, or
injunctive relief, but instead seeks only his immediate release, which is a form of habeas relief.
In fact, White already has filed a Petition for Writ of Habeas Corpus under the provisions of 28
U.S.C. § 2241 challenging his continued detention by ICE that currently is pending before this
Court. See White v. Holder, Civil No. 3:CV-11-2355. Accordingly, we shall grant White's
request for in forma pauperis status for the sole purpose of filing this action, and his Complaint
will be dismissed.
An appropriate Order follows.

Robert D. Mariani
United States District Judge

2

IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

FOR THE MIDDLE DISTRICT OF PENNSYLVANIA

ARTHUR WAYNE WHITE,

CIVIL NO. 3:CV·12·0454

Plaintiff,
(Judge Mariani)

v.
ERIC HOLDER, et aI.,
Defendants

ORDER
AND NOW, to wit, this

DAY OF MARCH, 2012, for the reasons set forth in the

foregoing Memorandum, IT IS HEREBY ORDERED as follows:
1.

The Clerk of Court is directed to VACATE the Administrative Order (Doc. 5)
issued in this case and return any monies to Plaintiff collected pursuant to that
Order.

2.

Plaintiffs Motion for leave to proceed in forma pauperis (Doc. 2) is GRANTED for
the sole purpose of filing this action.

3.

The Complaint (Doc. 1) is DISMISSED.

4.

The Clerk of Court shall CLOSE th!J>;l'~~.

Robert D. anam
United States District Judge