Smith v. James
- Laura Swain
- 1:25-cv-07052
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 3
In Scott Allen Smith v. New York, Chief Judge Swain transferred the action to the Eastern District of New York because the relevant events occurred there.
Scott Allen Smith’s federal civil-rights action was moved from the Southern District of New York to the Eastern District of New York. The transferee court will decide whether he may proceed without prepaying fees.
What happened
Scott Allen Smith, who is detained on Rikers Island and is representing himself, sued New York State, Eric Gonzales, and Jessica Wishhart under a federal civil-rights law. He alleges that they violated his rights in connection with his ongoing criminal proceedings in Brooklyn, Kings County.
The Southern District of New York determined that the events underlying the claims occurred in Brooklyn, which is in the Eastern District of New York. The court also stated that relevant documents and witnesses were likely to be there and that the Eastern District would be more convenient.
Chief Judge Laura Taylor Swain ordered the action transferred to the Eastern District of New York. The Southern District case was closed, no summons would issue from that court, and the Eastern District would decide whether Smith could continue without paying filing fees; the court also denied permission to appeal without paying fees.
The detailed version
- Smith v. James · No. 1:25-cv-07052
- Laura Swain
- Aug. 28, 2025
Background
Scott Allen Smith, who is detained on Rikers Island and is proceeding without a lawyer, brought an action under 42 U.S.C. § 1983, a federal law that allows claims against certain government actors for violating constitutional rights. He alleges that New York State, Kings County District Attorney Eric Gonzales, and Kings County Assistant District Attorney Jessica Wishhart violated his rights in connection with his ongoing criminal proceedings in Brooklyn, Kings County, New York.
Venue
The court explained that venue—the proper federal district for a case—may be based on where a defendant resides or where a substantial part of the events giving rise to the claims occurred. Smith did not state where the defendants reside, but he alleged that the relevant events occurred in Brooklyn. Brooklyn is in Kings County, which lies within the Eastern District of New York. The court stated that venue would therefore be proper in the Eastern District even if venue were also proper in the Southern District based on the defendants’ residence.
Transfer decision
Under 28 U.S.C. § 1404(a), a court may transfer a case to another district where it could have been brought when the transfer would serve the convenience of the parties and witnesses and the interests of justice. The court found that transfer appeared appropriate because the underlying events occurred in Kings County, the criminal proceedings at issue were pending there, and the individual defendants worked there as prosecutors. The court also stated that relevant documents and witnesses could reasonably be expected to be in Kings County.
Judge Laura Taylor Swain ordered the Clerk of Court to transfer the action to the United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York. The order closed the case in the Southern District of New York, stated that a summons would not issue from that court, and left the question of whether Smith could proceed without prepaying fees to the transferee court. The court certified that any appeal would not be taken in good faith and denied permission to appeal without prepaying fees.
Disposition
The action was transferred to the Eastern District of New York under 28 U.S.C. § 1404(a).
Read the full 3-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.