Mescall v. Mcfarland
- Rearden
- 1:23-cv-00689
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 4
In Mescall v. Mcfarland, Judge Rearden ordered service of the home-confinement lawsuit through Marshals and denied fee-free appeal status.
Sean Fitzgerald Mescall and the defendants named in the action, including the Federal Bureau of Prisons, Patrick Mcfarland, Colette S. Peters, and Magaly Cosme.
What happened
In Mescall v. Mcfarland, Sean Fitzgerald Mescall, who was released to home confinement and is representing himself, sued several defendants seeking court orders related to his home-confinement monitoring.
Because Mescall was allowed to proceed without paying court fees in advance, the court directed the Clerk of Court and the U.S. Marshals Service to issue and serve the required documents. The order covers the federal defendants and Magaly Cosme, who is employed by the GEO-operated Bronx Community Reentry Center.
Judge Jennifer H. Rearden also stated that service should be completed within 90 days after summonses are issued, and that Mescall should request more time if necessary. The court denied fee-free status for any appeal from this order and warned that failing to update his address could lead to dismissal.
The detailed version
- Mescall v. Mcfarland · No. 1:23-cv-00689
- Rearden
- Feb. 14, 2023
Background
Sean Fitzgerald Mescall, who is proceeding without a lawyer, brought an action seeking injunctive relief concerning his monitoring while on home confinement after release by the United States Bureau of Prisons. The defendants are Patrick Mcfarland, identified as the Residential Reentry Management Home Confinement Coordinator; the Federal Bureau of Prisons; Colette S. Peters, identified as the Bureau of Prisons Director; and Magaly Cosme, identified as the Director of the GEO-operated Bronx Community Reentry Center.
The court had previously allowed Mescall to proceed without paying court fees in advance. In this order, the court addressed how the defendants must be served with the lawsuit. The order does not decide the underlying claims concerning home-confinement monitoring.
Service of Process
Because Mescall was allowed to proceed without prepaying fees, the court directed the Clerk of Court to prepare service forms, issue summonses, and provide the necessary documents to the U.S. Marshals Service.
For Mcfarland, the Bureau of Prisons, and Peters, the Clerk must mark the forms for service on the United States and provide the paperwork needed for service on the United States. For Cosme, the Clerk must prepare a service form, issue a summons, and provide the paperwork needed for service on her.
The court extended the service deadline to 90 days after the summonses are issued. If service is not completed within that period, Mescall should request an extension of time. The court also directed Mescall to notify it in writing if his address changes and stated that the action may be dismissed if he fails to do so.
Disposition
Judge Jennifer H. Rearden directed the Clerk of Court to issue summonses for all defendants, complete the service forms, and deliver the necessary documents to the U.S. Marshals Service. The Clerk was also directed to issue Mescall an information package. The court certified that any appeal from this order would not be taken in good faith and denied permission to proceed without prepaying fees for purposes of an appeal.
Read the full 4-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.