Durrell v. State of New York
- Colleen McMahon
- 1:20-cv-03761
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 2
In Durrell v. State of New York, Judge McMahon ordered a prisoner to correct his payment authorization or pay filing fees before the case proceeds.
Robert Durrell, the incarcerated plaintiff representing himself, had to correct his prisoner authorization or pay the required fees for the action to proceed.
What happened
In Durrell v. State of New York, Robert Durrell, who is incarcerated and representing himself, submitted an application to proceed without paying fees upfront and a payment authorization form.
The court found that the authorization allowed collection of only $150, rather than the required $350 filing fee. It gave Durrell 30 days either to pay the total $400 in fees or submit a completed authorization allowing collection of the $350 filing fee from his prison account. The court did not issue a summons and said the action would be dismissed if he did not comply.
Chief Judge Colleen McMahon also denied permission to appeal this order without paying fees, finding that such an appeal would not be taken in good faith.
The detailed version
- Durrell v. State of New York · No. 1:20-cv-03761
- Colleen McMahon
- May 18, 2020
Background
Robert Durrell, who was incarcerated at Downstate Correctional Facility, brought this civil action without a lawyer. He submitted an application to proceed without prepaying court fees and a prisoner authorization. The authorization allowed the court to collect only $150 from his prison trust fund account.
Court’s analysis
Under 28 U.S.C. §§ 1914 and 1915, a prisoner must either pay the required fees or submit an application to proceed without prepayment, along with an authorization permitting installment payments from the prisoner’s trust account. If permission to proceed without prepayment is granted, the Prison Litigation Reform Act requires collection of the $350 filing fee in installments. The separate $50 administrative fee does not apply to a person granted that status.
Because Durrell’s authorization did not cover the full $350 filing fee, the court directed him to submit an updated authorization.
Order
Chief United States District Judge Colleen McMahon ordered Durrell, within 30 days of the order, either to pay the $400 in fees or submit the attached completed prisoner authorization, labeled with docket number 20-CV-3761 (CM). No summons was to issue at that time. If Durrell complied, the action 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 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.
Read the full 2-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.