Gamboa v. Singlton
- Laura Swain
- 1:25-cv-03966
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 3
In Gamboa v. Singlton, Judge Swain transferred the § 1983 case to the Western District of New York for convenience.
Clifford Gamboa and the 24 correction officials he sued; the case will proceed, if permitted, in the Western District of New York rather than the Southern District of New York.
What happened
Gamboa v. Singlton is a pro se civil-rights case brought by Clifford Gamboa under a federal law allowing claims against officials who violate constitutional rights. Gamboa alleges that 24 correction officials violated his rights at Collins Correctional Facility, where he is incarcerated.
The Southern District of New York transferred the case to the Western District of New York. The court explained that the alleged events occurred at Collins Correctional Facility, and that the facility, along with the likely documents and witnesses, is in the Western District. The court did not decide whether Gamboa’s rights were violated.
Judge Laura Taylor Swain ordered the transfer and closed the case in the Southern District of New York. The court left any decision about allowing Gamboa to proceed without paying fees to the receiving court, and denied fee-free status for any appeal from this order.
The detailed version
- Gamboa v. Singlton · No. 1:25-cv-03966
- Laura Swain
- May 20, 2025
Background
Clifford Gamboa, who is incarcerated at Collins Correctional Facility, filed this pro se action under 42 U.S.C. § 1983. He alleges that 24 correction officials employed at Collins Correctional Facility violated his rights there. The opinion identifies one named defendant as C.O. Tannis Singlton and also refers to other defendants.
Venue and Transfer
Venue is the proper federal district for a case. The court explained that federal law generally permits a civil action in a district where the defendants reside, where a substantial part of the events occurred, or, in limited circumstances, where a defendant is subject to the court’s authority.
Gamboa did not state where any defendant resides. The court therefore said it was unclear whether venue was proper in the Southern District of New York or the Western District of New York based on the defendants’ residences. But the court determined that venue would be proper in the Western District under the rule allowing a case to be brought where the events occurred because the alleged events took place at Collins Correctional Facility, in Erie County.
Under 28 U.S.C. § 1404(a), a court may transfer a case to another district where it could have been brought when transfer would serve the convenience of the parties and witnesses and the interests of justice. The court concluded that transfer was appropriate because the events occurred at Collins, Gamboa is incarcerated there, the defendants are employed there, and relevant documents and witnesses could reasonably be expected to be there.
Disposition
The court ordered the Clerk of Court to transfer the action to the United States District Court for the Western District of New York. The order closed the case in the Southern District of New York, and a summons was not to issue from that court. The transferee court will decide whether Gamboa may proceed without prepaying filing fees. The court also certified that an appeal would not be taken in good faith and denied fee-free status for purposes of an appeal from this order.
The court transferred the case without deciding the merits of Gamboa’s civil-rights allegations.
Read the full 3-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.