Isaacs v. Imperati
- Laura Swain
- 1:25-cv-03964
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 2
In Isaacs v. Imperati, Judge Swain denied Stephen Isaacs’s petition without prejudice because he neither paid the fee nor filed an IFP application.
Stephen Isaacs’s petition was denied without prejudice because he did not pay the $5 filing fee or submit the required application to proceed without paying it. The court also denied permission to appeal without paying the appeal fee.
What happened
In Isaacs v. Imperati, Stephen Isaacs filed a petition against Sheriff Kirk Imperati and Commissioner Daniel Martuscello.
The court had ordered Isaacs to either pay the required $5 filing fee or submit an application to proceed without paying the fee. Isaacs did neither within the required time.
Judge Laura Taylor Swain denied the petition without prejudice, directed the Clerk of Court to enter judgment, and declined to issue a certificate allowing an appeal. The court also denied Isaacs permission to appeal without paying the fee, finding that an appeal would not be taken in good faith.
The detailed version
- Isaacs v. Imperati · No. 1:25-cv-03964
- Laura Swain
- July 15, 2025
Background
Stephen Isaacs filed a petition against Sheriff Kirk Imperati and Commissioner Daniel Martuscello. The opinion describes the filing as a petition for a writ of habeas corpus, meaning a request for court review of a person’s custody or detention.
Filing-fee requirement
In an order dated May 16, 2025, the court directed Isaacs, within 30 days, either to submit a completed application to proceed without paying the filing fee or to pay the $5 fee required to file the petition. The order warned that failing to comply would result in denial of the petition. Isaacs did not submit the application or pay the fee.
Ruling
Judge Laura Taylor Swain denied the petition without prejudice under 28 U.S.C. §§ 1914 and 1915. The opinion does not decide the underlying issues raised by the petition. The court also stated that Isaacs had not made a substantial showing that a constitutional right had been denied, so it would not issue a certificate of appealability. It certified that an appeal would not be taken in good faith and denied permission to appeal without paying the fee. The Clerk of Court was directed to enter judgment.
Read the full 2-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.