Avent v. New York State Division of Parole
- Louis Stanton
- 1:20-cv-06275
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 4
In Avent v. New York State Division of Parole, Judge Stanton ordered Reuben Avent to confirm his custody challenge and pay $5 or seek a fee waiver.
Reuben Avent, who had to decide whether to pursue the federal custody challenge and either pay the $5 filing fee or submit an application to proceed without prepaying fees; the New York State Division of Parole was not required to answer at that time.
What happened
In Avent v. New York State Division of Parole, Reuben Avent challenged his 2009 resentencing, which added post-release supervision to his 2001 conviction. The court separated those claims from his claims for damages against parole officers and opened this separate case for the custody challenge.
The court gave Avent until September 4, 2020, to notify the court in writing if he wanted to continue with a federal petition challenging his custody. He also had to pay the $5 filing fee or submit an application to proceed without paying the fee in advance.
Judge Louis L. Stanton ordered the Clerk to send Avent the order and said no response from the state was required at that time. Judge Stanton stated that the case would be dismissed without prejudice if Avent did not confirm that he wished to proceed or did not pay the fee or submit the fee-waiver application on time.
The detailed version
- Avent v. New York State Division of Parole · No. 1:20-cv-06275
- Louis Stanton
- Aug. 10, 2020
Background
Reuben Avent filed a pro se action, meaning he was representing himself, under a different docket number. That action asserted damages claims against his parole officers and challenged a 2009 resentencing that amended his 2001 Rockland County judgment of conviction to add a term of post-release supervision.
In an August 4, 2020 order, the court directed the Clerk of Court to separate Avent’s resentencing claims because they sought habeas relief—a federal court review of allegedly unlawful custody or a related state-court judgment. The separated claims were opened under docket number 20-CV-6275. The court also stated that claims arising outside the Southern District of New York had been separated and transferred to the Northern District of New York.
Recharacterization as a Habeas Petition
The court told Avent that, if he wished to pursue relief under 28 U.S.C. § 2254, he had to notify the court in writing within 30 days. The order set September 4, 2020, as the deadline for that notice. The court did not decide whether Avent’s resentencing challenge had merit.
Filing Fee
The court stated that a habeas petitioner must either pay the $5 filing fee or submit a signed application to proceed without prepaying fees. If Avent submitted the application and the court granted it, he could proceed without paying the fee in advance.
Disposition
Judge Louis L. Stanton directed the Clerk to mail Avent a copy of the order and note service on the docket. No answer from the respondent was required at that time. The order stated that, if Avent did not notify the court that he wished to proceed, or did not pay the fee or submit the application within the allowed time, the action would be dismissed without prejudice. The order itself did not dismiss the case and did not resolve the underlying resentencing challenge.
Read the full 4-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.