Evans v. Macheskee
- Laura Swain
- 1:23-cv-00637
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 2
Evans v. Santa was dismissed without prejudice as duplicative by Chief Judge Swain after Evans failed to respond to the court’s order.
James Earl Evans Sr.; the action against Lyndsay Santa and the other named defendants was dismissed without prejudice as duplicative.
What happened
In James Earl Evans Sr. v. Lyndsay Santa, et al., the court warned Evans that it might dismiss this action without prejudice because it duplicated a related case.
Evans was ordered to submit a declaration explaining why the action should continue, but he did not file one within the allowed time.
The court dismissed the action without prejudice as duplicative, denied fee-free appeal status, and directed entry of judgment. Chief Judge Laura Taylor Swain signed the order.
The detailed version
- Evans v. Macheskee · No. 1:23-cv-00637
- Laura Swain
- Apr. 4, 2023
Background
James Earl Evans Sr. appeared without a lawyer. In an order dated January 30, 2023, the court directed him to show cause—meaning explain why the court should not take a particular action—by declaration within 30 days. The court said it was considering dismissing this action without prejudice as duplicative of a related action, identified in the opinion by docket number 1:23-CV-0626 (LTS). The court warned that it would dismiss the action if Evans did not file the declaration or did not show why dismissal was unwarranted.
Court’s reasoning and ruling
Evans did not file the required declaration. The court therefore dismissed the present action without prejudice as duplicative of the related action. “Without prejudice” means the dismissal itself does not bar refiling, although the opinion does not otherwise discuss the effect of refiling.
The court also certified under 28 U.S.C. § 1915(a)(3) that an appeal would not be taken in good faith and denied fee-free appeal status for purposes of an appeal. It directed the Clerk of Court to enter judgment. Chief United States District Judge Laura Taylor Swain signed the order.
Read the full 2-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.