Bonilla v. Del Norte County

Background

Steven Wayne Bonilla, identified as a state prisoner and a condemned prisoner, filed multiple self-represented civil-rights complaints under 42 U.S.C. § 1983. The complaints named various federal judges, state judges, municipalities, and other municipal and court officials. The opinion states that the cases presented very similar claims concerning Bonilla’s underlying conviction and the handling of his self-represented petitions and other cases in state and federal court.

The opinion also states that Bonilla had a pending federal petition challenging his confinement in the same court with appointed counsel and was represented by counsel in state-court proceedings.

Filing-fee ruling

Bonilla was disqualified from proceeding without paying the filing fee under 28 U.S.C. § 1915(g), unless he showed that he was under imminent danger of serious physical injury when he filed the complaints. The court concluded that the allegations did not show such imminent danger. As a result, Bonilla could not proceed without paying the filing fee.

Other grounds for dismissal

The court further stated that, even if a request to proceed without paying the filing fee were granted, the lawsuits would be barred under one or more legal rules identified by the court, including rules concerning challenges to criminal convictions, interference with ongoing state proceedings, and challenges to certain federal-court actions.

Disposition

The court dismissed the cases with prejudice. It also ordered the clerk to terminate all pending motions and close the cases. The clerk was directed to return, without filing, any additional documents Bonilla submitted in the closed cases. The court separately concluded that the judge’s impartiality could not reasonably be questioned.

Uncertainty

The opinion caption lists multiple case numbers and identifies the opposing parties collectively as “Defendants.” The supplied case metadata identifies the case as Bonilla v. Del Norte County.