Poindexter v. United States
- Laura Swain
- 1:24-cv-01258
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 4
In Poindexter v. United States, Chief Judge Swain ordered payment or an IFP application within 30 days before the habeas case could proceed.
Dewell Poindexter, whose habeas petition could proceed only if he paid the $5 filing fee or submitted an IFP application within 30 days; the United States was not required to answer at that time.
What happened
In Poindexter v. United States, Dewell Poindexter filed a petition for a writ of habeas corpus without paying the required $5 filing fee or submitting an application to proceed without prepaying fees.
The court gave Poindexter 30 days to pay the fee or submit a signed application explaining his inability to pay. The court said no response from the United States was required at that time.
Chief Judge Swain ordered that the case would be processed if Poindexter complied, but would be dismissed if he did not. The court also denied permission to appeal without prepaying fees, finding that an appeal would not be taken in good faith.
The detailed version
- Poindexter v. United States · No. 1:24-cv-01258
- Laura Swain
- Mar. 6, 2024
Background
Dewell Poindexter, proceeding without a lawyer, filed a petition for a writ of habeas corpus. The opinion does not describe the underlying claims or the relief Poindexter sought. He submitted the petition without the $5 filing fee and without an application to proceed without prepaying fees, commonly called an IFP application.
Order
The court directed Poindexter, within 30 days of the order, to do one of two things: pay the $5 filing fee or complete and submit the attached IFP application. The court explained that, if it granted the IFP application, Poindexter could proceed without paying the fee in advance. The application requested information about employment, income, assets, expenses, dependents, and debts.
The court stated that no answer from the United States was required at that time. If Poindexter complied with the order, the case would be processed under the Clerk’s Office procedures. If he failed to comply within the allowed time, the action would be dismissed.
Disposition
Chief United States District Judge Laura Taylor Swain ordered payment of the filing fee or submission of an IFP application. The court also certified that any appeal from the order would not be taken in good faith and denied IFP status for purposes of an appeal. The order did not decide the substance of Poindexter’s habeas petition.
Read the full 4-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.