Johnson v. New York Police Department

Background

Robert W. Johnson filed this pro se action against numerous defendants, including the New York Police Department, individual officers, courts and government offices. He sought permission to proceed without paying the filing fee, known as in forma pauperis status.

The court described an earlier case filed by Johnson that had been dismissed as frivolous, for failure to state a claim, and because it sought money from defendants protected by legal immunity. In that earlier case, the court also directed Johnson to explain why he should not be barred from filing additional cases without paying the filing fee unless he first obtained court permission. Johnson did not submit the required declaration. Instead, he filed an appeal.

The Court of Appeals later denied that appeal and warned that further duplicative, harassing, or clearly meritless filings could lead to sanctions, including a requirement that Johnson obtain permission before filing additional submissions. On July 10, 2020, the district court entered the filing bar, effective November 5, 2019. The opinion states that Johnson filed this action on February 14, 2020, without seeking the required permission.

Ruling

Chief Judge Colleen McMahon dismissed the action without prejudice because Johnson failed to comply with the July 10, 2020 order. The ruling addressed compliance with the filing bar rather than the merits of Johnson’s claims. The court directed the Clerk of Court to mail Johnson a copy of the order and record service on the docket.

The court also certified under 28 U.S.C. § 1915(a)(3) that any appeal would not be taken in good faith and denied Johnson permission to proceed without paying the filing fee for purposes of an appeal.