Charles v. Department of Corrections

Background

Luis Charles, who is being held at the Vernon C. Bain Center and is proceeding without a lawyer, was listed as a plaintiff in an amended complaint filed in an earlier related proceeding. He had not paid the fees required to start a federal civil case, submitted a completed application to proceed without paying fees upfront, or signed the amended complaint. The court explained that a magistrate judge had separated the claims of 13 prisoners into individual actions, and Charles’s claims were assigned this docket number.

Fees

The court stated that a prisoner must either pay $400 in filing and administrative fees or request permission to proceed without prepayment. To make that request, Charles had to submit a signed application and a prisoner authorization. The authorization would allow the filing fee to be collected in installments from his prisoner account if the court granted permission to proceed without prepayment. The court also noted that the $50 administrative fee does not apply to a person granted that status.

Signature

Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 11 requires an unrepresented party to personally sign a pleading or other court filing. Because Charles had not signed the complaint, the court required him to complete, sign, and submit the attached declaration form to correct that problem.

Disposition

The court ordered Charles, within 30 days of the order, to either pay the $400 in fees or submit the completed and signed application and prisoner authorization. He also had to submit the signed declaration correcting the missing signature. The Clerk was directed to mail him the order and record service on the docket. No summons would issue at that time. If Charles complied, the action would be processed under the Clerk’s procedures; if he failed to comply within the allowed time, the action would be dismissed. The court also certified that an appeal would not be taken in good faith and denied permission to proceed without prepaying fees for an appeal.