Gunn v. Annucci
- Colleen McMahon
- 7:20-cv-02004
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 2
In Gunn v. Annucci, Judge McMahon ordered Darrell Gunn to pay court fees or request permission to proceed without prepayment, warning noncompliance would lead to dismissal.
Darrell Gunn, who had to pay the required fees or submit the required paperwork within 30 days to avoid dismissal of the action; the defendants were not required to respond at this stage.
What happened
In Gunn v. Annucci, Darrell Gunn, who was incarcerated at Sing Sing Correctional Facility and represented himself, filed a civil action without paying the required fees or submitting completed paperwork to proceed without prepaying them.
The court ordered Gunn, within 30 days, either to pay $400 in fees or submit a signed application to proceed without prepayment and authorization for installment deductions from his prison account. The court also stated that no summons would issue at that time.
Judge Colleen McMahon ordered the Clerk to mail the order to Gunn and stated that the action would be dismissed if he did not comply within the allowed time. She also denied permission to appeal without prepaying fees, finding that any appeal would not be taken in good faith.
The detailed version
- Gunn v. Annucci · No. 7:20-cv-02004
- Colleen McMahon
- Mar. 9, 2020
Background
Darrell Gunn, who was incarcerated at Sing Sing Correctional Facility, filed this civil action against Anthony J. Annucci, identified as Acting Commissioner, and Thomas R. Griffin, identified as Superintendent. Gunn was proceeding without a lawyer. He submitted the complaint without paying the required fees and without a completed application to proceed without prepayment of fees or a prisoner authorization.
Fee and IFP requirements
The court explained that a prisoner starting a civil action must either pay $400—consisting of a $350 filing fee and a $50 administrative fee—or apply to proceed in forma pauperis (without prepaying the fees). If the court grants that application, the Prison Litigation Reform Act requires collection of the $350 filing fee through installment deductions from the prisoner’s account. The prisoner authorization permits those deductions and requires certified account statements for the previous six months to be sent to the court. The $50 administrative fee does not apply to a person granted this status.
Order
The court ordered Gunn to do one of two things within 30 days of the order: pay the $400 in fees or submit the attached application to proceed without prepayment and prisoner authorization, labeled with docket number 20-CV-2004 (CM). The Clerk was directed to mail Gunn a copy of the order and note service on the docket. No summons was to issue at that time. The court stated that, if Gunn complied, the case would be processed under the Clerk’s Office procedures; if he failed to comply within the allowed time, the action would be dismissed.
Appeal and caution
The court certified under 28 U.S.C. § 1915(a)(3) that any appeal from the order would not be taken in good faith and denied permission to appeal without prepaying fees. The court also cautioned that a later dismissal of a prisoner’s action as frivolous, malicious, or failing to state a claim could count as a “strike” under 28 U.S.C. § 1915(g), and that three such strikes generally prevent a prisoner from filing new actions without prepaying fees unless the prisoner faces imminent danger of serious physical injury.
Disposition
Judge Colleen McMahon issued an administrative fee-and-paperwork order. The opinion did not decide the underlying claims in Gunn’s civil action.
Read the full 2-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.