Frost v. CVR Associates Inc.

Background

Yvonne Frost filed this action against CVR Associates Inc. and other defendants while representing herself. On November 21, 2019, the court granted her request to proceed without paying filing fees. The opinion also states that, because of Frost’s history of filing frivolous and vexatious actions, the court had barred her from filing future civil actions without first obtaining permission to proceed without paying fees. That bar did not apply to this action because Frost filed it before the bar was issued.

Court’s analysis

Under 28 U.S.C. § 1915(e)(2)(B), a court must dismiss a complaint filed by a person proceeding without paying fees if it is frivolous, malicious, fails to state a claim for relief, or seeks money from a defendant protected from such relief. The court also noted that it must dismiss a case when it lacks subject-matter jurisdiction. At the same time, courts must read complaints filed by people representing themselves liberally and interpret them to raise the strongest claims the allegations suggest.

Frost alleged, among other things, that someone told her to open a gate, that money was flowing, and that she saw keys, payments, a train, and unidentified people. The court concluded that these allegations were irrational and that there was no legal theory on which Frost could rely. It therefore dismissed the action as frivolous under § 1915(e)(2)(B)(i).

Disposition

The court dismissed the action as frivolous. It declined to give Frost permission to amend because it found that the defects could not be corrected through amendment. The court also certified under 28 U.S.C. § 1915(a)(3) that an appeal would not be taken in good faith and denied fee-free status for purposes of an appeal. The opinion does not state that the dismissal was with or without prejudice.