Jackson v. Almadovar
Stephanie Jackson v. Department of Corrections; Almadovar; Cruz; Miller; McKenzie
- Laura Swain
- 1:25-cv-07146
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 2
In Stephanie Jackson v. Department of Corrections, Chief Judge Swain ordered Jackson to pay fees or submit the missing prisoner authorization within 30 days.
Stephanie Jackson, a detained self-represented prisoner who filed the action; the case will not proceed to summons and processing unless she pays the stated fees or submits the required prisoner authorization within 30 days.
What happened
Stephanie Jackson v. Department of Corrections; Almadovar; Cruz; Miller; McKenzie concerns a case filed by Stephanie Jackson, who is detained at the Rose M. Singer Center on Rikers Island and is representing herself. She submitted an application to avoid paying the filing fee upfront but did not submit the required prisoner authorization.
The court ordered Jackson, within 30 days, either to pay the stated fees or complete and submit the prisoner authorization. That authorization would allow installment payments from her detention account and provide six months of account statements. No summons will issue yet, and the case will be processed if she complies; the action will be dismissed if she does not.
Chief United States District Judge Laura Taylor Swain also certified that an appeal would not be taken in good faith and denied permission to appeal without prepaying fees. The order did not decide the underlying claims against the defendants.
The detailed version
- Jackson v. Almadovar · No. 1:25-cv-07146
- Laura Swain
- Aug. 29, 2025
Background
Stephanie Jackson filed this civil action while detained at the Rose M. Singer Center on Rikers Island. The opinion states that she is proceeding without a lawyer. She submitted an application to proceed without prepaying filing fees, but she did not submit the required prisoner authorization.
Court’s Order
The court explained that a prisoner must either pay the filing and administrative fees or seek permission to proceed without prepayment. A prisoner seeking that permission must also submit an authorization directing the detention facility to deduct the filing fee from the prisoner’s account in installments and send the court certified account statements for the preceding six months.
The court ordered Jackson, within 30 days of the order, either to pay the fees or complete and submit the attached prisoner authorization. If she submits the authorization, it must identify docket number 25-CV-7146 (LTS). No summons will issue at this time. If Jackson complies, the Clerk’s Office will process the case under its procedures; if she does not comply within the allowed time, the action will be dismissed.
Appeal and Scope of Ruling
The court certified under 28 U.S.C. § 1915(a)(3) that any appeal from the order would not be taken in good faith and denied permission to appeal without prepaying fees. The court did not address the merits of Jackson’s claims against the Department of Corrections, Almadovar, Cruz, Miller, or McKenzie. The order also cautioned that a later dismissal for frivolousness, maliciousness, or failure to state a claim could count as a “strike” under the prisoner filing-fee statute.
Fee Amounts Stated in the Opinion
The opinion first describes the total fees as $405.00, consisting of a $350.00 filing fee and a $52.00 administrative fee, but later directs Jackson to pay $402.00. The opinion therefore states inconsistent total amounts. It also explains that the $52.00 administrative fee does not apply to a person granted permission to proceed without prepaying fees.
Read the full 2-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.