Littlejohn v. Shoultz
- Laura Swain
- 1:23-cv-04592
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 3
In Littlejohn v. Shoultz, Judge Swain transferred the case to the Northern District of Georgia because New York was the wrong venue.
Timothy Littlejohn and the defendants named in his action; the transfer also affects where the case will proceed. The order addressed only venue and did not decide whether the alleged rights violations occurred.
What happened
Timothy Littlejohn, who is detained at the Cobb County Detention Center in Georgia, filed a self-represented lawsuit against correction officials and other employees, claiming they violated his rights. He also appeared to seek relief for other detainees.
The court said the alleged events occurred at the Cobb County Detention Center and that the defendants worked there, making the Southern District of New York an improper venue. It also noted that Littlejohn could not represent other people without a lawyer.
Judge Laura Taylor Swain ordered the case transferred to the Northern District of Georgia under the federal venue statute. The New York court closed its case, did not issue a summons, left any decision about proceeding without paying fees to the receiving court, and denied fee-free status for an appeal.
The detailed version
- Littlejohn v. Shoultz · No. 1:23-cv-04592
- Laura Swain
- June 5, 2023
Background
Timothy Littlejohn filed a self-represented action against Deputy Shoultz and other correction officials and employees of the Cobb County Detention Center. The opinion states that Littlejohn was detained at that facility in Marietta, Georgia, and alleged that the defendants violated his rights there. He styled the action as a class action and appeared to assert claims for other detainees as well.
Littlejohn did not submit an application to proceed without prepaying filing fees or the required prisoner authorization. The court also explained that a person representing himself without a lawyer may not represent other people in their claims. Accordingly, Littlejohn could not appear on behalf of anyone else in the action.
Venue Analysis
Federal law allows a civil case to be filed where a defendant resides, where a substantial part of the events occurred, or, in limited circumstances, where a defendant is subject to the court's authority. The court said Littlejohn did not allege where any defendant resided. But he alleged that the defendants were employed by the Cobb County Detention Center and that the events giving rise to his claims occurred there.
Because the detention center is in Cobb County, Georgia, the court concluded from the complaint that venue was not proper in the Southern District of New York. The court determined that the claims arose in Cobb County and that venue was proper in the Northern District of Georgia.
Ruling
Under the federal venue statute, a court may dismiss a case filed in the wrong venue or, when the interests of justice support it, transfer the case to a district where it could have been filed. Judge Laura Taylor Swain ordered the Clerk of Court to transfer the action to the United States District Court for the Northern District of Georgia. The order closed the case in the Southern District of New York, stated that no summons would issue from that court, and left the decision about whether Littlejohn could proceed without prepaying fees to the transferee court. The court certified that an appeal would not be taken in good faith and denied fee-free status for an appeal.
Read the full 3-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.