Whitfield v. Operation
- Colleen McMahon
- 1:20-cv-07725
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 2
In Whitfield v. OEPRATION, Judge McMahon ordered payment or an amended fee-waiver application within 30 days.
Demitrius Whitfield must either pay the $400 fees or submit a complete amended IFP application within 30 days; the order states that the action will be dismissed if he does not comply.
What happened
Whitfield v. OEPRATION concerns Demitrius Whitfield’s request to proceed without paying court fees in his civil case. The opinion states that Whitfield was representing himself.
Whitfield submitted an application to proceed without prepaying fees, but answered the financial questions with “No,” “N/A,” or “$0.” The court said those answers did not show whether he could pay the required fees.
Judge McMahon ordered Whitfield, within 30 days, either to pay $400 or submit a complete amended application. The order states that the case will be dismissed if he does not comply, and that he may proceed without prepaying fees only if the amended application is granted.
The detailed version
- Whitfield v. Operation · No. 1:20-cv-07725
- Colleen McMahon
- Sept. 21, 2020
Background
Demitrius Whitfield brought the civil action without a lawyer. To proceed in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, he had to either pay $400 in fees—a $350 filing fee and a $50 administrative fee—or submit a signed application to proceed without prepaying fees, commonly called an in forma pauperis or IFP application.
Reason for the Order
Whitfield submitted an IFP application, but the court found that his answers did not establish that he was unable to pay the fees. He answered every question with “No,” “N/A,” or “$0.” The court said he did not provide information about his financial situation or how he supported himself, so it could not determine whether he lacked sufficient funds.
Order
The court ordered Whitfield, within 30 days of the order, to either pay the $400 in fees or submit an amended IFP application. The amended application had to identify the case number, answer every question, list all sources of income and monthly expenses, and explain how he supported himself. If the court granted the amended application, Whitfield would be allowed to proceed without prepaying fees.
The order states that the action will be dismissed if Whitfield does not comply within the allowed time. The court also certified that an appeal from the order would not be taken in good faith and denied IFP status for purposes of an appeal. This order addressed filing fees and the IFP application; it did not decide the underlying claims.
Clerk’s Instructions
The Clerk of Court was directed to assign the matter to Judge McMahon’s docket, mail Whitfield a copy of the order, and note service on the docket.
Read the full 2-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.