In Re Steven Wayne Bonilla

Background

Steven Wayne Bonilla, a state prisoner, filed multiple civil-rights complaints under 42 U.S.C. § 1983 without a lawyer. The complaints were nearly identical. They named several counties and state and federal officials and sought relief concerning Bonilla’s underlying conviction or the way his other cases had been handled by state and federal courts. The order also noted that Bonilla had a pending federal petition challenging his custody in the same court with appointed counsel, and that he was represented by counsel in state-court proceedings concerning his custody.

Filing-fee restriction

The court addressed Bonilla’s possible request to proceed without paying the filing fee. Under 28 U.S.C. § 1915(g), the court said Bonilla had previously been disqualified from proceeding without paying unless he showed that he was in imminent danger of serious physical injury when he filed the complaints. The court found that the allegations did not show imminent danger at that time. Bonilla therefore could not proceed without paying the filing fee.

Other legal bars

The court further stated that, even if Bonilla’s request to proceed without paying the filing fee had been granted, the lawsuits would still be barred under several legal doctrines and authorities identified in the order: the rule concerning civil-rights challenges to convictions or sentences, the rule requiring federal courts to refrain from interfering with certain ongoing state proceedings, and other restrictions on federal-court review identified by the court.

Disposition

The court dismissed the cases with prejudice. It directed the clerk to terminate all pending motions and close the cases. It also directed the clerk to return, without filing, any further documents Bonilla submitted in the closed cases. Judge Phyllis J. Hamilton signed the order.