Perales v. Daniels

Background

Richard A. Perales filed an affidavit seeking permission to proceed without paying the full appellate filing fee in advance. The court construed the filing as a motion to proceed in forma pauperis (without prepaying the full fee) on appeal. The opinion identifies Perales as a prisoner and as representing himself.

The court stated that Perales qualified financially for this status. It also stated that, although it continued to believe his underlying action had been correctly dismissed, his appeal was not frivolous under the applicable Supreme Court standard.

Ruling

The court granted Perales’s application, subject to the requirements of 28 U.S.C. § 1915(b). Under that statute and the Prison Litigation Reform Act, a prisoner who receives this status does not avoid the appellate filing fee; instead, the fee is paid in installments.

The court calculated the initial partial filing fee as 20 percent of Perales’s average monthly deposits during the preceding six months. His average monthly deposits were $74.92, while his average monthly balance was $20.49. Because the deposits were higher, the initial partial fee was $14.98, and the court ordered that amount paid immediately.

The court also ordered Perales to pay the remaining $490.02 of the $505 statutory appellate filing fee through deductions from his prison trust account as provided by § 1915(b)(2). The Clerk of Court was ordered to notify the authorities at the institution where Perales is confined. This order addressed only payment of the appellate filing fee and did not decide the merits of the appeal.