Johnson v. Rose M. Singer Center

Background

Jinja Johnson, also known as Kyng Pariah, filed this civil action without a lawyer. The opinion states that Johnson was detained at the Rose M. Singer Center on Rikers Island. Johnson submitted the complaint without paying the filing and administrative fees and without submitting a completed application to proceed without prepaying fees or a prisoner authorization.

Court’s order

The court explained that a prisoner filing a civil action must either pay $402 in fees—a $350 filing fee and a $52 administrative fee—or submit the required application and authorization forms. If the court grants the application, the $350 filing fee must be collected in installments from the prisoner’s account. The authorization also directs the detention facility to make those deductions and provide certified copies of the account statements for the previous six months.

Within 30 days of the order, Johnson was required to pay the $402 or submit the application and authorization forms, labeled with docket number 22-CV-2410 (LTS). No summons would issue at that time. The order states that, if Johnson complied, the case would be processed under the Clerk’s Office procedures; if Johnson did not comply within the allowed time, the action would be dismissed.

Appeal and classification

Judge Laura Taylor Swain certified that any appeal from the order would not be taken in good faith and denied permission to appeal without prepaying fees. The order also cautioned that a later dismissal for frivolousness or failure to state a claim could count as a strike under the applicable prisoner-litigation statute. This was a filing-fee and application order, not a decision on the allegations or merits of Johnson’s civil claims.