Blackwell v. City of Saint Paul
- Paul Magnuson
- 0:25-cv-01048
- U.S. District Court · District of Minnesota
- 2
In Blackwell v. City of Saint Paul, Judge Magnuson denied Blackwell’s request to appeal without prepaying fees because the appeal was not taken in good faith.
Richard Preston Blackwell’s request to appeal without prepaying court fees was denied.
What happened
In Blackwell v. City of Saint Paul, Richard Preston Blackwell asked to appeal without paying court fees in advance. The case involved claims against the City of Saint Paul and several officers.
The court had previously dismissed Blackwell’s civil-rights claims under 42 U.S.C. § 1983 as filed too late and declined to decide his state-law claims. It had also told him that an appeal from that dismissal could not be taken in good faith.
Judge Paul A. Magnuson denied Blackwell’s application to appeal without prepaying fees. The order did not otherwise change the earlier dismissal.
The detailed version
- Blackwell v. City of Saint Paul · No. 0:25-cv-01048
- Paul Magnuson
- Apr. 29, 2025
Background
Richard Preston Blackwell applied to proceed without prepaying fees, costs, or security while appealing. The application was made under 28 U.S.C. § 1915.
The court stated that it may allow a person to proceed without prepaying these amounts based on an affidavit showing an inability to pay, describing the appeal, and explaining why the person believes the appeal has merit. But the court must deny that status when the appeal was not taken in good faith. The opinion explains that an appeal is not taken in good faith when it is factually or legally frivolous.
Earlier dismissal
The court had previously dismissed Blackwell’s claims under 42 U.S.C. § 1983 because they were plainly filed too late. It declined to exercise supplemental jurisdiction over the state-law claims. The court also previously informed Blackwell that he could not appeal the dismissal in good faith and that it would not grant him permission to appeal without prepaying fees if he requested it.
Ruling
The court denied Blackwell’s Application to Proceed In Forma Pauperis on Appeal, Docket No. 7. The order was signed by Judge Paul A. Magnuson on April 29, 2025.
Read the full 2-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.