Graves v. The State of New York
- Colleen McMahon
- 1:20-cv-01489
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 2
In Graves v. The State of New York, Judge McMahon ordered Donald Graves to correct his prisoner authorization or pay filing fees within 30 days.
Donald Graves was required to pay the filing fees or submit a completed prisoner authorization within 30 days. The case’s underlying claims were not decided in this order.
What happened
Donald Graves, who was incarcerated at Sing Sing Correctional Facility and represented himself, filed this case against the State of New York and others. He asked to proceed without paying the fees upfront but submitted an incomplete prisoner authorization form.
The court gave Graves 30 days to either pay the $400 in fees or complete and return the prisoner authorization. The authorization would allow installment payments of the $350 filing fee from his prison account. The court also said no summons would issue yet and that the action would be dismissed if he did not comply.
Judge Colleen McMahon issued the order on April 9, 2020. She also denied permission to appeal without paying fees, finding that an appeal would not be taken in good faith, and warned about possible filing “strikes” for certain future dismissals.
The detailed version
- Graves v. The State of New York · No. 1:20-cv-01489
- Colleen McMahon
- Apr. 9, 2020
Background
Donald Graves, who was incarcerated at Sing Sing Correctional Facility, brought this civil action without a lawyer. He submitted an application to proceed without prepaying court fees, commonly called an application to proceed in forma pauperis, along with a prisoner authorization. The court found that he had not completed the prisoner authorization form.
Under the statutes cited by the court, a prisoner who wants to proceed without prepaying fees must submit a signed application and authorize deductions from the prison account. If permission to proceed without prepaying fees is granted, the $350 filing fee is collected in installments. The court stated that the total fees for filing the action were $400: a $350 filing fee and a $50 administrative fee. The administrative fee does not apply to a person granted permission to proceed without prepaying fees.
Order
The court directed Graves, within 30 days of the order, to do one of two things: pay the $400 in fees or complete and submit the attached prisoner authorization. If he submitted the authorization, the court instructed him to label it with docket number 20-CV-1489 (CM). The Clerk of Court was directed to mail him a copy of the order and record service on the docket.
The court stated that no summons would issue at that time. If Graves 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.
Additional rulings and warning
The court 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 court also warned that a prisoner may receive a filing “strike” under 28 U.S.C. § 1915(g) if an action is dismissed as frivolous or for failing to state a claim. After three such strikes, a prisoner generally cannot proceed without prepaying fees unless the prisoner is under imminent danger of serious physical injury.
Judge Colleen McMahon’s order addressed Graves’s filing requirements and did not decide the underlying claims against the defendants.
Read the full 2-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.