Hussey v. Ward

Background

Yessuh Suhyes Hussey, proceeding without a lawyer, brought this action against Bleeker Ward based on events that allegedly occurred on October 27, 2022. The action was initially filed in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York and was transferred to the Southern District of New York. The court stated that Hussey already had an action pending in that district against Ward arising from the same events.

Court’s Decision

The court stated that Hussey could not maintain two federal actions against the same defendant arising from the same incident. Because the complaint in this action might contain new or different information, the court directed the Clerk of Court to file the complaint from this docket as an amended complaint in the earlier related proceeding, under docket number 23-CV-03526, and treat it as a supplement to the original complaint.

The court also directed the Clerk to administratively close this action, terminate all pending matters, and accept no further filings under docket number 23-CV-3560. Because the action was being administratively closed and the complaint would proceed under a different docket number, the court did not grant Hussey’s request to proceed without paying the filing fee in this action. The Clerk was directed not to charge the $350 filing fee or require deductions from Hussey’s prison trust account for this lawsuit.

Appeal and Disposition

Judge Laura Taylor Swain certified under 28 U.S.C. § 1915(a)(3) that any appeal from the order would not be taken in good faith. The court therefore denied permission to proceed without paying fees for purposes of an appeal. The action was administratively closed, and the complaint was ordered transferred into the earlier related proceeding as an amended complaint.