Booker v. Flint

Background

Diquan Booker filed this pro se action under 42 U.S.C. § 1983, a law allowing claims for violations of federal constitutional rights by people acting under state law. Booker sued Sgt. Flint, Officer Murphy, and Officer Hobbs. He alleged that the defendants violated his constitutional rights at Washington Correctional Facility, where he was incarcerated.

Venue and Transfer

Venue means the federal district where a case may properly be heard. The court noted that Booker did not identify where any defendant resided, so it was unclear whether venue was proper in the Southern District of New York based on the defendants’ residences. The court stated, however, that the events giving rise to the claims occurred at Washington Correctional Facility, which is located in Washington County in the Northern District of New York. Venue was therefore proper in the Northern District based on where the events occurred.

The court applied 28 U.S.C. § 1404(a), which permits transfer to another district where the case could have been brought when transfer would be more convenient for the parties and witnesses and would serve the interests of justice. The court found transfer appropriate because the underlying events occurred at Washington Correctional Facility and reasonably expected that the relevant documents and witnesses would also be there.

Disposition

The court transferred the action to the United States District Court for the Northern District of New York. The Clerk of Court was directed to carry out the transfer. The court stated that the receiving court would decide whether Booker could proceed without prepaying fees, directed that no summons issue from the Southern District, and ordered that the case be closed there. The court also certified that an appeal would not be taken in good faith and denied fee-free status for purposes of an appeal.