Chirse v. Piccolo
- Colleen McMahon
- 1:21-cv-00282
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 2
In Chirse v. Piccolo, Judge McMahon transferred the civil-rights case to Western New York because venue was improper in Southern New York.
Devante Chirse and the defendants are affected because the action was transferred from the Southern District of New York to the Western District of New York. The receiving court will decide whether Chirse may proceed without prepaying fees.
What happened
In Chirse v. Piccolo, Devante Chirse, who was incarcerated at Southport Correctional Facility, sued Superintendent Paul Piccolo and others without a lawyer. He alleged that the defendants violated his rights at Southport.
The court found that the case did not belong in the Southern District of New York because Chirse did not allege that any defendant lived there or that the events occurred there. Southport is in Chemung County, which is in the Western District of New York.
Judge Colleen McMahon transferred the action to the Western District of New York. The order closed the Southern District case, left the decision about proceeding without paying filing fees to the receiving court, and denied permission to appeal without paying fees.
The detailed version
- Chirse v. Piccolo · No. 1:21-cv-00282
- Colleen McMahon
- Jan. 14, 2021
Background
Devante Chirse, who was incarcerated at Southport Correctional Facility, filed this civil-rights action under 42 U.S.C. § 1983 against Superintendent Paul Piccolo and other defendants. Chirse proceeded without a lawyer and alleged that the defendants violated his rights at Southport. The opinion does not describe the underlying alleged violations.
Venue analysis
Federal law permits a civil action to be filed where a defendant resides, where a substantial part of the events occurred, or, in certain circumstances, where a defendant is subject to the court’s authority. The court found that Chirse did not allege that any defendant resided in the Southern District of New York or that a substantial part of the events occurred there.
The court determined that Chirse’s claims arose in Chemung County, which is in the Western District of New York. It therefore concluded that venue was proper in that district under 28 U.S.C. § 1391(b)(2), not in the Southern District. Under 28 U.S.C. § 1406(a), the court transferred the action to the district where venue was proper.
Ruling and effect
Judge Colleen McMahon ordered the Clerk of Court to transfer the action to the United States District Court for the Western District of New York and to mail Chirse a copy of the order. The Southern District court stated that the receiving court would decide whether Chirse could proceed without prepaying fees. It also ordered that no summons issue from the Southern District and stated that the order closed the case there.
The court certified that an appeal would not be taken in good faith and denied permission to appeal without prepaying fees. The opinion does not decide the merits of Chirse’s civil-rights claims.
Read the full 2-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.