Marte v. Thoms
- Colleen McMahon
- 1:19-cv-11886
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 2
In Marte v. Thoms, Judge McMahon ordered Johansel Marte to pay a $5 filing fee or submit an application to proceed without prepaying it.
Johansel Marte was required to pay the $5 filing fee or submit a signed application to proceed without prepaying fees within 30 days. The respondent was not required to answer at that time.
What happened
Marte v. Thoms is a habeas petition filed by Johansel Marte, who was representing himself. The petition had been transferred from another federal district because venue was improper there.
The court said Marte had to pay the $5 filing fee or submit a signed application to proceed without prepaying the fee within 30 days. If he did not comply, the action would be dismissed. No response from the respondent was required at that time.
Chief Judge Colleen McMahon issued the order directing payment or submission of the application. She also certified that an appeal would not be taken in good faith and denied permission to appeal without prepaying fees.
The detailed version
- Marte v. Thoms · No. 1:19-cv-11886
- Colleen McMahon
- Dec. 30, 2019
Background
Johansel Marte, proceeding without a lawyer, filed a petition seeking a writ of habeas corpus. The petition was originally filed in the Eastern District of New York and was transferred to the Southern District of New York because venue was improper in the Eastern District.
Fee or application requirement
The court explained that a person filing a habeas petition must either pay the $5 filing fee or submit a signed application to proceed in forma pauperis, meaning without prepaying court fees. Marte submitted neither the fee nor the application.
The court gave Marte 30 days from the date of the order to pay the fee or submit the completed application. If he submitted the application and the court granted it, he could proceed without prepaying the fee. The application was to include docket number 19-CV-11886 (CM).
Ruling and case status
Chief Judge Colleen McMahon ordered the Clerk of Court to assign the matter to her docket, mail the order to Marte, and record service on the docket. The court stated that no answer was required at that time and that the case would be processed if Marte complied. The court warned that the action would be dismissed if he failed to comply within the allowed time.
The court also certified under 28 U.S.C. § 1915(a)(3) that an appeal from the order would not be taken in good faith and denied permission to appeal without prepaying fees. The order did not decide the merits of Marte’s habeas petition.
Read the full 2-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.