Thames v. Gonzales
Filing
6
MEMORANDUM OPINION AND ORDER granting 3 Application for Leave to Proceed without Prepayment of Filing Fee, dismissing without prejudice 1 Complaint. (Signed by Judge Sim Lake) Parties notified. (aboyd, 4)
United States District Court
Southern District of Texas
ENTERED
October 27, 2017
IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
FOR THE SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF TEXAS
HOUSTON DIVISION
TRAHEEM THAMES, SPN #02806855,
Plaintiff,
v.
HARRIS COUNTY SHERIFF
ED GONZALES,
Defendant.
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§
§
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§
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§
David J. Bradley, Clerk
CIVIL ACTION NO. H-17-3100
MEMORANDUM OPINION AND ORDER
The plaintiff, Traheem Thames, is currently in custody at the
Thames has filed a Prisoner's Civil Rights
Harris County Jail.
Complaint
No.
1),
under
42
U.S. C.
§
1983
challenging state court
("Complaint")
(Docket
criminal proceedings
Entry
that
are
pending against him in Harris County.
Thames has submitted an
"Affidavit
court
of
Indigency,"
which
the
construes
as
an
application for leave to proceed without prepayment of the filing
fee
(Docket Entry No.
court
is
required
to
3).
Because Thames is incarcerated,
scrutinize
the
claims
and
dismiss
the
the
Complaint, in whole or in part, if it determines that the Complaint
"is frivolous,
malicious,
or fails to state a claim upon which
relief may be granted" or "seeks monetary relief from a defendant
who is immune from such relief."
28 U.S.C.
§
1915A(b).
After
considering the pleadings the court concludes that this case must
be dismissed for the reasons explained below.
I .
Background
Thames is presently in custody at the Harris County Jail as
the
result
of
trafficking,
others. 1
criminal
charges
filed
compelling prostitution,
against
him
for
human
and sexual assault,
among
Public records confirm that Thames was booked into the
Harris County Jail on October 9, 2016, after he was charged with
the following felony offenses:
151545501010;
No.
aggravated sexual assault, Cause
sexual
aggravated
assault,
Cause
No.
151545601010; and possession of a controlled substance, Cause No.
150957401010. 2
On April 11, 2017, the following additional charges
were lodged against Thames: sexual assault of a child, Cause No.
154742701010; compelling prostitution of a child younger than 18,
Cause
No.
154742601010;
trafficking
conduct, Cause No. 154742501010. 3
of
a
child
prohibited
All of these charges are pending
in the 179th District Court for Harris County, Texas.
Thames has filed this civil rights lawsuit under 42 U.S.C.
§
1983 against Harris County Sheriff Ed Gonzales, alleging that he
was denied a prompt probable cause determination within 48 hours of
his arrest on October 9, 2016. 4
1
Arguing that his Fourth Amendment
Complaint, Docket Entry No. 1, p. 4.
2
Harris County District Clerk's Office website, located at:
http://www.hcdistrictclerk.com (last visited Oct. 26, 2017).
3
Id.
4
Complaint,
Docket Entry No.
1, p.
Memorandum, Docket Entry No. 2, pp. 1-3.
-2-
4;
see
also
Legal
rights have been violated, Thames asks for the charges against him
to be "dismissed with prejudice" and he asks this court to order
his immediate release from custody. 5
II.
allegations
Thames'
Discussion
concern
criminal
currently pending against him in state court.
charges
that
are
Absent extraordinary
circumstances the doctrine of abstention announced in Younger v.
Harris,
91 S.
Ct.
federal
court
with
DeSpain v.
746,
751
a
pending
Johnston,
(1971),
state
731 F.2d 1171,
prohibits interference by a
criminal
1176
prosecution.
(5th Cir.
1984)
See
("The
Younger doctrine establishes a presumption that the federal courts
should abstain in cases in which a state criminal proceeding is
pending."); see also Louisiana Debating and Literary Ass'n v. City
of New Orleans, 42 F. 3d 1483, 1489 (5th Cir. 1995)
("[Abstention]
'is generally deemed appropriate [when] assumption of jurisdiction
by a federal court would interfere with pending state proceedings,
whether of a criminal, civil, or even administrative character.'")
(citation omitted).
Thames has an adequate avenue for raising his claims in state
court, where records show that he is represented by counsel.
pleadings
in
extraordinary
this
case
circumstances
intervention is warranted.
5
do
not
are
otherwise
present
or
demonstrate
that
federal
The
that
court
Under these circumstances the court
Complaint, Docket Entry No. 1, p. 4.
-3-
must abstain from exercising
jurisdiction over the plaintiff's
claims.
III.
Conclusion and Order
Based on the foregoing, the court ORDERS as follows:
1.
The application for leave
prepayment of the filing fee
is GRANTED.
to proceed without
(Docket Entry No. 3)
2.
Officials at the Harris County Jail are directed to
deduct the filing fee for indigent litigants
( $350. 00) from the Inmate Trust Fund account of
Traheem
Thames
(SPN
#02806855)
in
periodic
installments pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1915(b), and
forward those funds to the Clerk of Court until the
entire fee is paid.
3.
The Prisoner's Civil Rights Complaint filed by
Traheem Thames (Docket Entry No. 1) is DISMISSED
without prejudice.
The Clerk is directed to provide a copy of this Memorandum
Opinion and Order to the plaintiff.
The Clerk will also provide a
copy of this order by regular mail or electronic mail to the Barris
County Jail Inmate Trust Fund, Attn: Sergeant Tom Katz, 1200 Baker
Street, Houston, Texas, 77002, phone: (713) 755-8436, fax: 713-7554546.
SIGNED at Houston, Texas, on this~~ th day
SIM LAKE
UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE
-4-
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