Shaw, Terrance v. Vasquez et al

Filing 3

ORDER denying plaintiff's 2 motion to use of release account funds. Plaintiff is to submit the $400 filing fee or a motion for leave to proceed without prepayent of the filing fee and a trust fund account statement by 12/27/2017. Signed by Magistrate Judge Peter A. Oppeneer on 12/5/2017. (jef),(ps)

IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
FOR THE WESTERN DISTRICT OF WISCONSIN
TERRANCE J. SHAW,
Plaintiff,

ORDER

v.
Case No. 17-cv-913-wmc
MS. VASQUEZ AND LAURA FRAZIER,
Defendants.

Plaintiff Terrance J. Shaw has filed a proposed civil complaint, but has neither paid
the filing fee nor requested leave to proceed without prepayment.

Instead, plaintiff has

submitted a motion to pay the full $400 filing fee from both his release account funds.
Plaintiff’s motion will be denied.
There is no federal law permitting this court to require state officials to submit the
entire filing fee or other litigation costs by accessing a prisoner’s release account funds. It is
only when a prisoner’s general account has insufficient funds to pay an initial partial filing fee
payment that the Prisoner Litigation Reform Act (“PLRA”) permits this court to order an
institution to access a prisoner’s release account funds to satisfy that payment. See Carter v.
Bennett, 399 F. Supp. 2d 936, 936-37 (W.D. Wis. 2005). Therefore, if plaintiff wishes to
proceed with this lawsuit, he must either pay the $400 filing fee or submit a properly
supported motion for leave to proceed without prepayment of the filing fee no later than
December 27, 2017.
A motion for leave to proceed without prepayment of the filing fee must be
accompanied by a certified copy of plaintiff’s inmate trust fund account statement (or
institutional equivalent) for the six-month period immediately preceding the date of the

complaint. 28 U.S.C. § 1915(a)(2). If I find that plaintiff is indigent, I will calculate an
initial partial payment amount that must be paid before the court can screen the merits of
the complaint under 28 U.S.C. § 1915(e)(2). Thereafter, plaintiff will be required to pay the
balance of the filing fee in installments.

ORDER
IT IS ORDERED that
1. Plaintiff Terrance J. Shaw’s motion for use of his release account funds to pay the
entire filing fee in this case is denied.
2. Plaintiff may have until December 27, 2017 to submit the $400 filing fee or a
motion for leave to proceed without prepayment and a trust fund account
statement for the period beginning approximately June 6, 2017 and ending
approximately December 5, 2017.

If, by December 27, 2017, plaintiff fails to

respond to this order, I will assume that plaintiff wishes to withdraw this action
voluntarily. In that event, the case will be closed without prejudice to plaintiff
filing the case at a later date.

Entered this 5th day of December, 2017.
BY THE COURT:

/s/
PETER OPPENEER
Magistrate Judge

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
FOR THE WESTERN DISTRICT OF WISCONSIN
TERRANCE J. SHAW,
Plaintiff,

ORDER

v.
Case No. 17-cv-913-wmc
MS. VASQUEZ AND LAURA FRAZIER,
Defendants.

PRISONER REQUEST TO PROCEED IN DISTRICT COURT
WITHOUT PREPAYING THE FULL FILING FEE
Answer the following questions to the best of your ability.
Note: If you do not tell the truth, the court may dismiss your lawsuit.
I.

Personal Information

1)

Your name: ___________________________________________________________
(a)

State the place of your incarceration and provide your prisoner identification
number:

_______________________________________
(place)

_____________________________
(number)

(b)

Are you employed at the institution?

□Yes

□ No

(c)

Do you receive any payment from the institution?

□Yes

□ No

Attach a printout of your prison trust account statement showing transactions for the sixmonth period immediately preceding the filing of this request and showing the current
balance of your account.
2)

Do you have any dependents that you are responsible for supporting?
□ Yes

□ No

If “yes,” list them below.

Name or initials (for
minor children only)

Relationship to You

Age

Amount of Support
Provided per Month

________________________

_________________

________

$____________

________________________

_________________

________

$____________

________________________

_________________

________

$____________

II.

Property or Assets: - If you are married, your answers must include your spouse's
property.

1)

Do you own a car?
□ Yes

□ No

If “yes,” list the car(s) below:

Make and Model

Year

Approximate Current
Value

_______________________________________________ __________

$________________

_______________________________________________ __________

$________________

2)

Do you own your home(s)?

□ Yes

If “Yes,” state the approximate value(s).

□ No
$ ____________________

What is the amount of equity (assessed value of residence minus outstanding
mortgage balance) in the home(s)? $ ____________________
3)

Do you have any cash or checking, savings, or other similar accounts?
□ Yes
□ No
If “Yes,” state the total of such sums.

4)

$ ____________________

Do you own any other property of value, such as real estate, stocks, bonds, trusts, or
individual retirement accounts (e.g., IRA, 401 k), artwork, or jewelry?
□ Yes

□ No

If “Yes,” describe the property and the approximate value(s).
______________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________

III.

Litigation History

For each federal lawsuit that you recall having filed, list as much of the following
information that you remember about each case: The name of the case (that is, the plaintiffs and
the defendants), the case number or year of filing, and the federal district in which you filed the
case. Use more paper if needed.
Case Name
(Plaintiffs and defendants)

Case number
(or year of filing)

Federal district

________________________

____________________

_______________________

________________________

____________________

_______________________

________________________

____________________

_______________________

________________________

____________________

_______________________

IV.

Other Circumstances - Describe any other financial circumstance(s) that you would
like the court to consider when reviewing this petition.

____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________

I, ____________________, declare that I am the plaintiff bringing this complaint. I declare that
I am unable to prepay the full filing fee and that I am entitled to the relief sought in the
complaint.
___________________________
Date

_________________________________________
Signature - Signed Under Penalty of Perjury