Lee v. Shelby County Criminal Court

Filing 5

ORDER DENYING LEAVE TO PROCEED IN FORMA PAUPERIS DISMISSING CASE WITHOUT PREJUDICE AND ASSESSING $400 CIVIL FILING FEE. Signed by Chief Judge S. Thomas Anderson on 4/13/17. (Anderson, S.)

IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
FOR THE WESTERN DISTRICT OF TENNESSEE
WESTERN DIVISION
JARQUEZ SIGEARS LEE,

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Plaintiff,
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VS.
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No. 17-2113-STA-egb
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SHELBY COUNTY CRIMINAL COURT,
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Defendant.
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__________________________________________________________________________
ORDER DENYING LEAVE TO PROCEED IN FORMA PAUPERIS
DISMISSING CASE WITHOUT PREJUDICE AND
ASSESSING $400 CIVIL FILING FEE
__________________________________________________________________________
On February 10, 2017, Plaintiff Jarquez Sigears Lee, booking number 16121860, an inmate
at the Shelby County Criminal Justice Complex in Memphis, Tennessee, filed a pro se letter which
the Court has construed as a complaint for violation of his civil rights, pursuant to 42 U.S.C. § 1983.
(ECF No. 1.) Plaintiff did not pay the $400 civil filing fee or submit an application to proceed in
forma pauperis and a certified copy of his inmate trust account for the last six months, as required
by the Prison Litigation Reform Act (“PLRA”), 28 U.S.C. §§ 1915(a)-(b). Therefore, the Court
issued an order on February 21, 2017, directing Plaintiff to submit the required information or pay
the entire $400 civil filing fee within 30 days. (ECF No. 3.) Plaintiff was warned that if he failed to
comply with the order in a timely manner the Court would “deny leave to proceed in forma
pauperis, assess the entire $400 filing fee from his inmate trust account without regard to the
installment payment procedures, and dismiss the action without further notice for failure to
prosecute, pursuant to Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 41(b),.” (Id. at 3-4.)
Plaintiff has not complied with the February 21, 2017, order, and the time to comply has
expired. Therefore, the motion for leave to proceed in forma pauperis is DENIED, and the
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complaint is hereby DISMISSED without prejudice for failure to prosecute, pursuant to Federal
Rule of Civil Procedure 41(b).
Notwithstanding the dismissal of this action, the Court is still required to assess the civil
filing fee, since the responsibility for paying the filing fee accrues at the time the complaint is filed.
McGore v. Wrigglesworth, 114 F.3d at 601, 607 (6th Cir. 1997), partially overruled on other
grounds by LaFountain v. Harry, 716 F.3d 944, 951 (6th Cir. 2013); cf. In re Alea, 286 F.3d 378,
381-82 (6th Cir. 2002) (dismissal of civil action filed by prisoner pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1915(g)
did not obviate the obligation to pay the filing fee).
It is ORDERED that Plaintiff cooperate fully with prison officials in carrying out this order.
It is further ORDERED that the trust fund officer at Plaintiff’s prison shall withdraw from
Plaintiff’s trust fund account the sum of $400 and forward that amount to the Clerk of this Court. If
the funds in Plaintiff’s account are insufficient to pay the full amount of the civil filing fee, the
prison official is instructed to withdraw all the funds in Plaintiff’s account and forward them to the
Clerk of Court. On each occasion that funds are subsequently credited to Plaintiff’s account, the
prison official shall immediately withdraw those funds and forward them to the Clerk of Court until
the civil filing fee is paid in full. The trust fund officer is not required to remit any balances less
than $10 unless that amount would constitute the final installment of the civil filing fee, provided
that any balance under $10 is held in custody for purposes of paying the civil filing fee in this action
and is promptly remitted to the Clerk when sufficient funds are deposited into Plaintiff’s account to
bring the balance to $10.
Each time that the trust fund officer makes a payment to the Court as required by this order,
he shall print a copy of the prisoner’s account statement showing all activity in the account since the
last payment under this order and file it with the Clerk along with the payment. All payments and
account statements shall be sent to:
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Clerk, United States District Court, Western District Tennessee,
167 N. Main, Ste. 242, Memphis, TN 38103
and shall clearly identify Plaintiff’s name and the case number as it appears on the first page of this
order.
If Plaintiff is transferred to a different prison or released, he is ORDERED to notify the
Court immediately of his change of address. If still confined, he shall provide the officials at the
new prison with a copy of this order. If Plaintiff fails to abide by these or any other requirements of
this order, the Court may impose appropriate sanctions, including a monetary fine or restrictions on
Plaintiff’s ability to file future lawsuits in this Court, without additional notice or hearing.
The Clerk is ORDERED to mail a copy of this order to the prison official in charge of prison
trust fund accounts at the Shelby County Jail and to the Jail Administrator to ensure that the
custodian of Plaintiff’s inmate trust account complies with that portion of the PLRA pertaining to
the payment of filing fees.
It is also CERTIFIED, pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1915(a)(3) and Federal Rule of Appellate
Procedure 24(a), that any appeal in this matter by Plaintiff would not be taken in good faith. Leave
to proceed on appeal in forma pauperis is, therefore, DENIED.
The Clerk is directed to prepare a judgment.
IT IS SO ORDERED.
s/ S. Thomas Anderson
S. THOMAS ANDERSON
CHIEF UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE
Date: April 13, 2017

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