Johnson v. Hernandez
- Yvonne Rogers
- 4:19-cv-03936
- U.S. District Court · Northern District of California
- 2
In Johnson v. Hernandez, Judge Rogers revoked Johnson’s fee-waiver status for appeal and denied requests for a certificate and transcripts.
Lewis W. Johnson, whose appeal fee-waiver status was revoked and whose two pending motions were denied.
What happened
Johnson v. Hernandez was a closed federal civil-rights case brought by pro se state prisoner Lewis W. Johnson, and it was pending on appeal.
Johnson asked for a certificate of appealability and for preparation of transcripts. The court denied the certificate request as unnecessary because that certificate is required only in a habeas case. It denied the transcript request without prejudice because the request should be made directly to the Court of Appeals.
Judge Yvonne Rogers revoked Johnson’s fee-waiver status for the appeal after finding that no valid grounds supported an appeal and certifying that an appeal from the dismissal and judgment would not be taken in good faith. The court said Johnson could ask the Court of Appeals for permission to proceed without paying fees within 30 days after notice of the order.
The detailed version
- Johnson v. Hernandez · No. 4:19-cv-03936
- Yvonne Rogers
- June 25, 2020
Background
This was a closed federal civil-rights action brought by pro se state prisoner Lewis W. Johnson. The case was on appeal. The Court of Appeals referred the matter to the district court to decide whether Johnson’s status allowing him to proceed without paying court fees should continue for the appeal.
Pending Motions
Johnson filed an application for a certificate of appealability and a request for preparation of transcripts on appeal. The court denied the certificate-of-appealability request as unnecessary because that certificate is required only in a habeas proceeding. The court denied the transcript request without prejudice because the request was more properly made directly to the Court of Appeals. The order terminated Docket Nos. 15 and 18.
Ruling
The court determined that Johnson’s fee-waiver status should not continue for the appeal. It found that there were no valid grounds for an appeal and certified that an appeal from the order dismissing the action and the resulting judgment would not be taken in good faith and was therefore frivolous. Judge Yvonne Rogers revoked Johnson’s in forma pauperis status. The clerk was directed to notify Johnson and the Court of Appeals. The order stated that Johnson could file a motion in the Court of Appeals for permission to proceed without paying fees within 30 days after being served notice of the order, and that the motion had to include the district-court affidavit and the district court’s reasons for revoking his status.
Read the full 2-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.