Dubose v. Belfi
- Colleen McMahon
- 1:20-cv-00424
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 3
In Dubose v. Belfi, Judge McMahon ordered the pro se prisoner to pay fees or submit authorization within 30 days before the case could proceed.
Jerrold Eugene Dubose, the detained plaintiff proceeding without a lawyer, had to pay the fees or submit the required prisoner authorization within 30 days for the case to proceed.
What happened
In Dubose v. Belfi, the court said the detained plaintiff had submitted an application to proceed without paying fees upfront but had not submitted the required authorization for prison-account deductions.
The court gave him 30 days to pay $400 in fees or submit the authorization. It said the case would be processed if he complied and would be dismissed if he did not. No summons would issue at that time.
Judge Colleen McMahon also denied permission to appeal without prepaying fees, finding that any appeal would not be taken in good faith. The order did not decide the underlying claims.
The detailed version
- Dubose v. Belfi · No. 1:20-cv-00424
- Colleen McMahon
- May 14, 2020
Background
Jerrold Eugene Dubose, who was detained at the George R. Vierno Center on Rikers Island, brought the action without a lawyer. He submitted an application to proceed in forma pauperis, meaning without prepaying court fees, but did not submit the required prisoner authorization.
Filing-fee requirement
The court explained that a prisoner filing a civil action must either pay $400 in fees—a $350 filing fee and a $50 administrative fee—or submit a signed application and authorization requesting permission to proceed without prepayment. If permission is granted, the Prison Litigation Reform Act requires the $350 filing fee to be collected in installments from the prisoner's account. The authorization also directs the facility to send certified copies of the prisoner's account statements for the prior six months.
Order
The court ordered Dubose, within 30 days of the order, either to pay the $400 in fees or complete and submit the attached prisoner authorization. The order instructed him to label the authorization with docket number 20-CV-0454 (CM), although the case caption identifies the action as 20-CV-0424 (CM). The court directed the Clerk of Court to mail the order and a change-of-address form to Dubose. No summons would issue at that time. If Dubose complied, the case would be processed under the Clerk's procedures; if he failed to comply within the allowed time, the action would be dismissed.
Judge Colleen McMahon also certified 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 address the merits of Dubose's claims.
Read the full 3-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.