Crymes v. Stadium Homeless Shelter
- Laura Swain
- 1:25-cv-07832
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 2
In Crymes v. Stadium Homeless Shelter, Judge Swain ordered payment of fees or a corrected fee-waiver application within 30 days.
Necolle L. Crymes, who must either pay the $405 fee or submit an amended application showing inability to pay within 30 days to avoid dismissal of the action.
What happened
In Necolle L. Crymes v. Stadium Homeless Shelter, et al., the plaintiff asked to proceed without paying the court’s fees. Judge Swain found that her application did not show that she was unable to pay.
The court ordered Crymes, within 30 days, either to pay $405 or submit a corrected application with information about her income and expenses. No summons will issue yet, and the court said the case will be dismissed if she does not comply.
Judge Swain also denied permission to proceed without paying fees for an appeal, finding that an appeal would not be taken in good faith. The court did not decide the underlying claims.
The detailed version
- Crymes v. Stadium Homeless Shelter · No. 1:25-cv-07832
- Laura Swain
- Sept. 23, 2025
Background
Necolle L. Crymes brought the action without a lawyer. To proceed with a civil case in the Southern District of New York, a plaintiff must either pay $405 in fees—a $350 filing fee and a $55 administrative fee—or submit a signed application to proceed without prepaying the fees, commonly called an IFP application.
Crymes submitted an IFP application, but the court found that her answers did not establish that she could not pay the fees. She identified herself as self-employed without stating the income from that work. She also marked “Yes” for several other possible income sources, including businesses, rent, interest, dividends, pensions, gifts or inheritances, and public assistance, but did not state the amounts received or expected. In response to how she pays her expenses, she wrote, “arm robbery, extorted. Brinks online.”
Order
The court ordered Crymes, within 30 days of the order, either to pay the $405 in fees or submit an amended IFP application. The amended application must use docket number 25-CV-7832 (LTS) and provide facts showing that she cannot pay the filing fees. If the court grants the amended application, Crymes may proceed without prepaying the fees.
No summons will issue at this time. If Crymes complies with the order, the case will be processed under the Clerk’s Office procedures. If she does not comply within the allowed time, the action will be dismissed. The order does not decide the merits of her claims.
Appeal and disposition
The court certified that any appeal from this order would not be taken in good faith and denied permission to proceed without prepaying fees for an appeal. Judge Laura Taylor Swain signed the order. The court directed payment of the fee or submission of an amended IFP application; it did not dismiss the action in this order.
Read the full 2-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.