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N.D. Cal.Procedural orderFiled Nov. 13, 2023

Ramirez v. Swift

Judge
Martinez-Olguin
Docket
3:23-cv-03826
Court
U.S. District Court · Northern District of California
Pages
2
Civil Procedure
In one sentence

In Ramirez v. Swift, Judge Martinez-Olguin dismissed the case with prejudice after finding the complaint’s allegations plainly frivolous.

Who this affects

The dismissal ended Elias Torres Ramirez’s case against Taylor Alison Swift. Because the court dismissed the case with prejudice, the dismissal bars refiling the same case.

What happened

Ramirez v. Swift concerned a complaint that the court reviewed along with a magistrate judge’s recommendation. The recommendation called for dismissal because Ramirez had not filed an amended application to proceed without paying the filing fee or paid the filing fee.

The court said Ramirez’s filings did not appear to object to the recommendation. It also agreed that allegations that he was married to Taylor Swift, that other people were making false charges against him, and that he was entitled to money from an Osama Bin Laden reward were plainly frivolous.

Judge Araceli Martinez-Olguin adopted the recommendation in every respect and dismissed the entire case with prejudice. The court entered that dismissal on November 13, 2023.

The detailed version

For law students, journalists, and other readers who want the full reasoning

Case
Ramirez v. Swift · No. 3:23-cv-03826
Judge
Martinez-Olguin
Date
Nov. 13, 2023

Background

The court reviewed Magistrate Judge Kandis A. Westmore’s report and recommendation. The recommendation proposed dismissing the case because Ramirez had not filed an amended application to proceed without paying the filing fee or paid the filing fee. The court also reviewed Ramirez’s later filings and stated that none appeared to be objections to the recommendation.

Court’s Analysis

The court found Magistrate Judge Westmore’s report correct, well-reasoned, and thorough, and adopted it in every respect. The court specifically agreed that the complaint’s factual allegations were plainly frivolous. It referred to the rule that courts may dismiss claims whose factual allegations are clearly baseless.

The court identified allegations that Ramirez was married to singer Taylor Alison Swift, that various people who were not defendants were making false charges against him, and that he was entitled to the Osama Bin Laden reward money. The court stated that these allegations plainly failed to satisfy 28 U.S.C. § 1915(a).

Disposition

Judge Araceli Martinez-Olguin ordered that the case be dismissed in its entirety with prejudice. The opinion does not state whether Ramirez was represented by a lawyer.

The authoritative version

Read the full 2-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.

Open opinion PDF →
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