Aviles v. The State of New York

Background

Michael Aviles filed this civil action against The State of New York and The Department of Corrections. The opinion says that Aviles was detained at the Vernon C. Bain Center on Rikers Island and was representing himself.

A prisoner filing a civil action must either pay the required fees or request permission to proceed without paying them upfront. The court states that the total required payment was $402: a $350 filing fee and a $52 administrative fee. A prisoner granted permission to proceed without prepaying fees must still pay the $350 filing fee in installments deducted from the prisoner's account. The prisoner must therefore submit both an application and an authorization permitting those deductions, along with certified account statements for the prior six months.

Order

Aviles submitted his complaint without the fees, a completed application, or a prisoner authorization. The court ordered him, within 30 days of the order, to either pay the $402 in fees or submit the attached application and authorization forms. The court directed that the forms identify docket number 21-CV-4189 (CM), although the case caption lists docket number 21-CV-4189 (LTS).

If Aviles complied, the case would be processed under the Clerk's Office procedures. The order stated that the action would be dismissed if he failed to comply within the allowed time. No summons would issue at that stage. The court also cautioned that a later dismissal as frivolous or for failure to state a claim could count as a statutory “strike” affecting a prisoner's ability to proceed without prepaying fees in future cases.

Disposition

The court did not rule on the merits of Aviles's claims. It issued an order requiring payment or submission of the required fee-waiver paperwork. The court also certified that an appeal from the order would not be taken in good faith and denied permission to appeal without prepaying fees. Judge Laura Taylor Swain signed the order as Chief United States District Judge.