Riley v. Rish

Background

Adrian Dominic Riley, also known as amiri-abdul: rasheed el, is serving three life sentences at the Minnesota Correctional Facility—Moose Lake after a Minnesota jury convicted him of three counts of first-degree murder. Riley previously filed a federal petition challenging his custody under 28 U.S.C. § 2254, but that petition was denied as untimely.

Riley later filed another § 2254 petition and asked to proceed without paying court fees. The court dismissed that petition as “second or successive” under 28 U.S.C. § 2244(b) because he had not first obtained authorization from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit. The court also denied his request to proceed without paying fees. The earlier petition was dismissed without prejudice, meaning Riley could refile if he first obtained the required Eighth Circuit authorization.

Riley appealed that dismissal and asked to proceed without paying the appellate filing fee. Although the case caption initially named Lisa Stenseth, the warden at the Minnesota Correctional Facility—Rush City, the court substituted Kris Rish because Riley had been transferred to Moose Lake and the proper respondent was the official who then had custody of him.

Reasoning

Under 28 U.S.C. § 1915, a person who cannot afford an appellate filing fee may ask to proceed without paying it. But the court must deny that status if the appeal is not taken in good faith. The court explained that good faith is judged objectively and requires considering whether the issues on appeal are factually or legally frivolous. A legal argument is frivolous when none of its legal points can reasonably be argued on their merits.

The court concluded that Riley’s appeal was legally frivolous because his petition had been denied and no certificate of appealability had been granted. A certificate of appealability is required before a habeas petitioner may appeal a final order on the petition. The court further stated that, even if Riley could appeal, his notice of appeal and fee application offered only unsupported statements that his imprisonment violated the federal Bill of Rights and the Constitution and that the laws underlying his convictions were unconstitutional. The statutes and bills Riley cited concerning court fees did not apply to him, according to the court.

Disposition

The court DENIED Riley’s Motion to Proceed without paying the filing fee on appeal. It also ordered that Kris Rish, warden of the Minnesota Correctional Facility—Moose Lake, be substituted for Lisa Stenseth, warden of the Minnesota Correctional Facility—Rush City. The order did not itself dismiss Riley’s appeal.