Whitted v. Marsh
- Kenneth Karas
- 7:24-cv-01659
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 4
In Whitted v. Marsh, Judge Swain ordered Richard O’Neal Whitted to pay filing fees or submit an application to proceed without prepayment.
Richard O’Neal Whitted must either pay the required fees or submit a completed IFP application within 30 days. The case will not proceed to issuance of a summons unless he complies, and the action will be dismissed if he does not.
What happened
In Whitted v. Marsh, Richard O’Neal Whitted, who is incarcerated at Dutchess County Jail and is representing himself, filed a civil action with a prisoner authorization but without a completed application to proceed without prepaying fees.
The court ordered Whitted, within 30 days, either to pay $405 in filing and administrative fees or to submit the completed application. If he submits the application, the court explained that the $350 filing fee may be collected from his account in installments, while the $55 administrative fee does not apply to people granted permission to proceed without prepayment.
No summons will issue yet, and the case will be processed if Whitted complies. If he does not comply within the deadline, the action will be dismissed. Judge Laura Taylor Swain also denied permission to appeal without prepaying fees, finding that an appeal would not be taken in good faith.
The detailed version
- Whitted v. Marsh · No. 7:24-cv-01659
- Kenneth Karas
- Mar. 6, 2024
Background
Richard O’Neal Whitted, who is incarcerated at Dutchess County Jail and is proceeding without a lawyer, filed this civil action against E. Marsh and other defendants. He submitted a prisoner authorization but did not submit a completed application to proceed without prepayment of fees, commonly called an IFP application.
Payment or IFP Requirement
The court ordered Whitted to take one of two actions within 30 days of the order: pay $405 in fees or submit the attached IFP application. The $405 consists of a $350 filing fee and a $55 administrative fee. Under the prisoner-fee provisions cited by the court, a prisoner granted IFP status must still pay the $350 filing fee through installments deducted from the prison account and must authorize the facility to provide certified account statements for the previous six months. The $55 administrative fee does not apply to a person granted IFP status.
Ruling and Case Status
No summons will issue at this time. If Whitted complies with the order, the case will be processed under the Clerk’s Office procedures. If he does not comply within the permitted time, the action will be dismissed. Judge Laura Taylor Swain certified under 28 U.S.C. § 1915(a)(3) that an appeal from the order would not be taken in good faith and denied IFP status for purposes of an appeal. The order also cautioned that certain dismissals can count as strikes under the prisoner litigation statute.
Read the full 4-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.