Bonilla v. Averill

Background

Steven Wayne Bonilla, identified as a state prisoner, filed multiple civil-rights complaints without a lawyer under 42 U.S.C. § 1983. The complaints were nearly identical. They named various federal and state judges and other officials as defendants and sought relief concerning Bonilla’s underlying conviction or the way his other state and federal cases had been handled.

The order addresses the cases listed under numerous case numbers, including 24-cv-9255-PJH, 24-cv-9265-PJH, 25-cv-0004-PJH, and additional related cases. The court also noted that Bonilla had a pending federal petition challenging his detention or conviction with appointed counsel and was represented by counsel in state-court proceedings.

Proceeding Without Paying the Filing Fee

The court stated that Bonilla had been disqualified from proceeding without paying the filing fee under 28 U.S.C. § 1915(g), unless he showed that he was under imminent danger of serious physical injury when he filed his complaints. The court found that the allegations did not show imminent danger at that time.

Additional Legal Bars

The court further stated that, even if an application to proceed without paying the filing fee were granted, the lawsuits would be barred under Heck v. Humphrey, Younger v. Harris, Demos v. U.S. District Court, or Mullis v. U.S. Bankruptcy Court. The order also addressed Bonilla’s naming of Judge Hamilton as a defendant in four cases and concluded that the repetitive and allegedly frivolous filings did not provide a basis to question the judge’s impartiality.

Ruling

Judge Phyllis J. Hamilton dismissed the cases with prejudice. The clerk was ordered to terminate all pending motions and close the cases. The clerk was also ordered to return, without filing, any further documents Bonilla submitted in the closed cases.