McGinnis v. Orange County Jail
- Vincent Briccetti
- 7:22-cv-03335
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 2
In McGinnis v. Orange County Jail, Judge Swain ordered payment or an application to proceed without prepaying fees.
Jermaine McGinnis, who must either pay the required fees or submit the required application within 30 days for the action to proceed; Orange County Jail and the Town of Walkhill Police Department are named as defendants.
What happened
In McGinnis v. Orange County Jail, Jermaine McGinnis filed a civil lawsuit without paying the required fees or submitting an application to proceed without prepaying them. The defendants are Orange County Jail and the Town of Walkhill Police Department.
The court gave McGinnis 30 days to pay $402 or submit an application to proceed without prepaying fees. The court said no summons would be issued yet and noted that it was unclear whether McGinnis was a prisoner, which could require an additional authorization form.
Judge Swain ordered McGinnis to meet one of those requirements before the case proceeds. The court stated that the action will be dismissed if he does not comply and denied permission to appeal without prepaying fees.
The detailed version
- McGinnis v. Orange County Jail · No. 7:22-cv-03335
- Vincent Briccetti
- Apr. 27, 2022
Background
Jermaine McGinnis filed a civil action against Orange County Jail and the Town of Walkhill Police Department. He proceeded without a lawyer. He submitted the complaint without paying the required fees and without submitting an application to proceed without prepaying fees.
The opinion states that McGinnis appears to be a patient at Rockland Psychiatric Center based on the mailing address he provided, but it also notes that he did not state that he was a patient there. The court further stated that it was unclear whether he was a prisoner under the federal Prison Litigation Reform Act. If he was a prisoner when he filed the complaint, he would also have to submit a prisoner authorization.
Order
The court directed McGinnis, within 30 days of the order, either to pay $402 in fees or to submit the attached application to proceed without prepaying fees. The $402 consists of a $350 filing fee and a $52 administrative fee. If the court grants the application, McGinnis may proceed without prepaying the fees.
The court ordered that no summons issue at that time. It stated that, if McGinnis complies, the case will be processed under the Clerk’s Office procedures. If he does not comply within the allowed time, the action will be dismissed.
Appeal
The court certified under 28 U.S.C. § 1915(a)(3) that any appeal from the order would not be taken in good faith and denied permission to appeal without prepaying fees. This order addressed filing-fee requirements and did not decide the underlying claims.
Read the full 2-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.