Todd v. Silverman
- Nelson Roman
- 7:20-cv-03608
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 2
In Todd v. Silverman, Judge McMahon ordered a corrected prisoner authorization or $400 payment before the case could proceed.
Keith Todd, an incarcerated person representing himself, must either pay $400 or submit a corrected prisoner authorization within 30 days for the action to proceed.
What happened
Keith Todd, who is incarcerated and representing himself, filed a civil action against Adam W. Silverman and other defendants. He asked to proceed without paying the filing fees upfront and submitted the required prisoner authorization.
The court found that the authorization allowed collection of $400 instead of the required $350 filing fee. Within 30 days, Todd had to either pay $400 or submit a corrected authorization; the court also said no summons would issue yet and that the action would be dismissed if he did not comply.
Judge Colleen McMahon directed the Clerk of Court to mail the order to Todd and record service. The court denied permission to proceed without prepaying fees for any appeal, stating that an appeal would not be taken in good faith.
The detailed version
- Todd v. Silverman · No. 7:20-cv-03608
- Nelson Roman
- May 11, 2020
Background
Keith Todd, who was incarcerated at Fishkill Correctional Facility and proceeding without a lawyer, brought this civil action. He submitted an application to proceed without prepaying filing fees and a prisoner authorization. That authorization allowed the court to collect $400 from his prison account, but the required filing fee for a prisoner granted that status is $350. The separate $50 administrative fee does not apply to a person granted permission to proceed without prepaying fees.
Court’s directive
The court ordered Todd, within 30 days of the order, to do one of two things: pay the full $400 in fees, or complete and submit the attached prisoner authorization using docket number 20-CV-3608 (CM). The authorization would permit the facility to deduct the $350 filing fee from Todd’s account in installments and provide the court with certified account statements for the preceding six months.
Disposition
The court directed the Clerk of Court to mail Todd a copy of the order and note service on the docket. No summons was to issue at that time. The court stated that, if Todd 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. The court also certified that an appeal would not be taken in good faith and denied permission to proceed without prepaying fees for an appeal. This order addressed filing-fee and authorization requirements, not the merits of Todd’s claims. Judge Colleen McMahon signed the order.
Read the full 2-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.