Omar Johnson v. Rikers Island DOC; Bob Barker Authorization Company Inc.
- Laura Swain
- 1:25-cv-07077
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 2
In Omar Johnson v. Rikers Island DOC, Chief Judge Swain ordered payment or fee-waiver forms within 30 days, or the case will be dismissed.
Omar Johnson, the detained self-represented plaintiff, must either pay the required fees or submit the required forms within 30 days for the action to proceed.
What happened
Omar Johnson v. Rikers Island DOC; Bob Barker Authorization Company Inc. is a civil case brought by Omar Johnson, who is detained at the Otis Bantum Correctional Center and is representing himself. The court had not yet issued summonses or addressed the claims against the defendants.
Johnson filed the complaint without paying the required fees and without submitting a completed application to proceed without prepaying fees or the required prisoner authorization. The order explains that the total fees are $405, although a person approved to proceed without prepaying fees does not have to pay the $55 administrative fee upfront and must instead authorize installment payments of the $350 filing fee.
Within 30 days, Johnson must either pay $405 or submit the required forms. If he does not comply, the action will be dismissed; if he complies, the Clerk’s Office will process the case. Chief Judge Laura Taylor Swain also denied permission to appeal without prepaying fees, finding that any appeal from this order would not be taken in good faith.
The detailed version
- Omar Johnson v. Rikers Island DOC; Bob Barker Authorization Company Inc. · No. 1:25-cv-07077
- Laura Swain
- Sept. 8, 2025
Background
Omar Johnson, who is detained at the Otis Bantum Correctional Center on Rikers Island, filed this action without a lawyer. He submitted the complaint without paying the filing and administrative fees and without submitting a completed application to proceed without prepaying fees or a prisoner authorization.
Fee requirements
The court explained that a prisoner filing a civil action must either pay $405—$350 for the filing fee and $55 for the administrative fee—or ask to proceed without prepaying fees by submitting a signed fee-waiver application and a prisoner authorization. If the court approves that application, the Prison Litigation Reform Act requires collection of the $350 filing fee in installments from the prisoner’s account. The $55 administrative fee does not apply to a person granted that status.
Order
The court ordered Johnson, within 30 days of the order, to either pay the $405 in fees or submit the attached application and prisoner authorization. Any forms must identify docket number 25-CV-7077 (LTS). No summons will issue at this time. If Johnson complies, the Clerk’s Office will process the case under its procedures. If he does not comply within the allowed time, the action will be dismissed.
Chief United States District Judge Laura Taylor Swain certified that an appeal from the order would not be taken in good faith and denied permission to appeal without prepaying fees. The order also cautioned that a future dismissal for frivolousness, maliciousness, or failure to state a claim could count as a qualifying strike under the prisoner-fee statute, subject to the conditions stated in the order.
Scope of the ruling
This order addresses filing fees and the required application documents. It does not decide the merits of Johnson’s claims against Rikers Island DOC or Bob Barker Authorization Company Inc.
Read the full 2-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.