Shelby v. Petreucci
- Kenneth Karas
- 7:23-cv-04315
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 9
In Shelby v. Petreucci, Judge Karas ordered the Bureau of Prisons to identify five defendants so service could proceed.
July Justine Shelby, the five defendants who had not been served, the Bureau of Prisons, and the U.S. Marshals Service.
What happened
In Shelby v. Petreucci, July Justine Shelby, who is incarcerated and representing herself, sued over alleged violations of her federally protected rights during incarceration. The U.S. Marshals Service served four defendants but could not serve five others because of insufficient addresses, transfers, or retirements.
The court ordered the Bureau of Prisons to identify the five unserved defendants and provide service addresses within 30 days. After receiving that information, Shelby must file an amended complaint naming those defendants within 30 days; the amended complaint will replace the earlier complaint.
Judge Kenneth M. Karas did not decide whether Shelby’s claims were valid. He directed the Clerk of Court to send the order to counsel for the Bureau of Prisons and stated that the court would review the amended complaint before deciding whether to direct further service.
The detailed version
- Shelby v. Petreucci · No. 7:23-cv-04315
- Kenneth Karas
- Oct. 11, 2023
Background
July Justine Shelby, who is incarcerated at Federal Medical Center Carswell and is proceeding without a lawyer, brought an action alleging that her federally protected rights were violated during her incarceration at F.C.I. Otisville and the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn. The court had previously allowed her to proceed without prepaying filing fees.
The court issued an order to help the U.S. Marshals Service serve the defendants. The Marshals Service successfully served B. Walls, Alphonse Linley, Warden Washington, and Alex McLearen. Service was not completed for Otisville Warden Petrucci, Otisville Warden W.S. Pliler, Otisville Officer Hannah, Otisville Officer Z. Hurn, and Otisville Officer Christiansen because of insufficient addresses, transfers to other Bureau of Prisons facilities, or retirements from the Bureau of Prisons.
Court’s Analysis
The court relied on the rule that a person representing herself is entitled to help from the district court in identifying a defendant. It found that Shelby had provided enough information for the Bureau of Prisons to identify the five defendants who had not been served and to locate addresses where they could be served.
Order and Effect
The court ordered the Bureau of Prisons to provide the identities and service addresses of those five defendants to Shelby and the court within 30 days of the order. Within 30 days after receiving that information, Shelby must file an amended complaint containing the defendants’ full names. The amended complaint will replace, rather than supplement, the original complaint.
After Shelby files the amended complaint, the court will review it and, if necessary, direct the Clerk of Court to prepare service forms and deliver the required documents to the U.S. Marshals Service. The Clerk was also directed to mail a copy of the order to counsel for the Bureau of Prisons. The order did not decide the merits of Shelby’s underlying claims.
Read the full 9-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.