Jaime v. Atkins

Background

Luis Jaime filed this civil action without paying the filing fees and without submitting a completed application to proceed without prepaying fees or the required prisoner authorization. The opinion states that Jaime is incarcerated at Green Haven Correctional Facility and is proceeding without a lawyer.

Fees and required forms

The court explained that a prisoner filing a civil action must either pay $405 in fees—$350 for filing and $55 for administration—or request permission to proceed without prepaying fees. To make that request, a prisoner must submit a signed application and an authorization allowing deductions from the prison account. If permission is granted, the $350 filing fee must still be paid in installments under the Prison Litigation Reform Act. The $55 administrative fee does not apply to a person granted that status.

Order

Within 30 days of the order, Jaime must either pay the $405 in fees or submit the attached application and prisoner authorization, labeled with docket number 1:25-CV-4878 (LTS). No summons will issue at this time. If Jaime complies, the case will be processed under the Clerk’s Office procedures; if he does not comply within the allowed time, the action will be dismissed. The order itself does not decide the claims against the defendants.

Appeal and warning

The court certified under 28 U.S.C. § 1915(a)(3) that an appeal from this order would not be taken in good faith and denied permission to appeal without prepaying fees. The court also cautioned that a later dismissal for frivolousness, maliciousness, or failure to state a claim could count as a strike under the prisoner litigation statute.