Gardner v. Green Haven Corr. Facility

Background

Phillip Jerome Gardner, who was incarcerated and represented himself, sued Green Haven Correctional Facility and Westchester Medical Center concerning medical care he received while incarcerated at Green Haven. He alleged that surgery in April 2022 caused permanent injuries and that he would not have consented to the surgery had he known about the potential injury. He alleged that he could no longer masturbate or have children.

Gardner asked to proceed without prepaying the filing fee. The opinion states that he filed this action on May 5, 2025, while incarcerated at Mid-State Correctional Facility. The case caption and the court’s order are dated June 4, 2025.

Reasoning

The court applied the Prison Litigation Reform Act’s “three-strikes” rule, 28 U.S.C. § 1915(g). That rule generally prevents a prisoner from bringing a civil action without prepaying the filing fee if the prisoner has, on three or more earlier occasions while incarcerated or detained, brought an action or appeal that was dismissed as frivolous, malicious, or for failure to state a claim. An exception applies when the prisoner faces an imminent danger of serious physical injury.

The court said an imminent danger must exist when the complaint is filed. It identified multiple earlier dismissals involving Gardner as qualifying strikes. The court concluded that Gardner’s allegations described a permanent injury that had already occurred, not an impending danger. The complaint did not allege that he was being denied appropriate medical care at Mid-State Correctional Facility or that he otherwise faced an imminent danger of serious physical injury there when he filed the complaint.

Ruling

The court denied Gardner’s request to proceed without prepaying fees and dismissed the complaint without prejudice under the three-strikes rule. The court stated that Gardner could commence a new action by paying the filing fees; any such complaint would be reviewed under the prisoner-screening statute, 28 U.S.C. § 1915A. The court also stated that Gardner remains barred from proceeding without prepaying fees in future actions while he is in custody unless he satisfies the imminent-danger exception.

The court certified that an appeal would not be taken in good faith and therefore denied payment-free status for purposes of an appeal. It directed the Clerk of Court to enter judgment.