Miller v. The State of New York
- Laura Swain
- 1:21-cv-04162
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 1
In Brian Miller v. City of New York, Judge Swain dismissed Miller’s complaint without prejudice after he failed to update his address or contact the court.
Brian Miller, whose complaint was dismissed without prejudice and whose permission to proceed without paying the filing fee for an appeal was denied.
What happened
In Brian Miller v. The City of New York, the court had ordered Miller to file an amended complaint within 60 days. The order was returned after Miller was discharged from a facility, and he did not provide a new mailing address or contact the court again.
The court dismissed Miller’s complaint without prejudice. This means the dismissal did not permanently bar refiling, although the opinion does not describe any further filing.
Judge Laura Taylor Swain also ruled that any appeal would not be taken in good faith and denied Miller permission to proceed without paying filing fees for an appeal. The clerk was directed to mail the order to Miller’s address of record.
The detailed version
- Miller v. The State of New York · No. 1:21-cv-04162
- Laura Swain
- June 9, 2021
Background
On May 18, 2021, the court directed Brian Miller to file an amended complaint within 60 days. On June 8, 2021, that order was returned to the court with a notation that Miller had been discharged from the facility. Miller had not notified the court of a change in his mailing address and had not initiated further contact with the court.
Ruling
The court dismissed Miller’s complaint without prejudice. The opinion states that the complaint had been filed without prepaying the filing fee under 28 U.S.C. § 1915(a)(1). The court did not address the merits of Miller’s claims.
The court certified under 28 U.S.C. § 1915(a)(3) that an appeal would not be taken in good faith. It therefore denied Miller permission to proceed without paying the filing fee for an appeal. The clerk was directed to mail a copy of the order to Miller at his address of record and record service on the docket.
Effect
The order ended the case at that point, but the dismissal was without prejudice. The opinion does not state whether Miller later filed an amended complaint or took any other action.
Read the full 1-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.