Scales v. New York Police Department
- Laura Swain
- 1:23-cv-09116
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 2
In Scales v. New York Police Department, Judge Swain denied a transfer request and set conditions for continuing or withdrawing the case.
William Scales, who is proceeding without a lawyer, and the New York Police Department.
What happened
In Scales v. New York Police Department, William Scales, who is representing himself, asked to move the case to the Supreme Court of New York. The federal court had previously ordered him to file an amended complaint and later gave him more time to do so.
The court denied the request to transfer the case. It said Scales could instead ask to withdraw the complaint without prejudice by filing a motion under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 41(a), or continue in federal court by filing an amended complaint within the required time.
Judge Laura Taylor Swain also said that, if Scales did not comply and could not show a sufficient reason for the delay, the complaint would be dismissed for the reasons stated in the court’s earlier order. The court further denied permission to proceed without paying appeal fees for any appeal from this order.
The detailed version
- Scales v. New York Police Department · No. 1:23-cv-09116
- Laura Swain
- Mar. 15, 2024
Background
William Scales brought this action without a lawyer. On December 7, 2023, the court directed him to file an amended complaint within 60 days. On February 12, 2024, the court granted him a 60-day extension. On March 12, 2024, Scales submitted a letter asking to transfer the case to the Supreme Court of New York, stating that he believed that court had jurisdiction over personal-injury cases and general police misconduct.
Ruling
The court denied the motion to transfer the case. The order did not decide the underlying claims against the New York Police Department.
The court stated that Scales had two options. If he wanted to withdraw the complaint without prejudice, meaning he could seek to bring it again, he had to file a motion for voluntary dismissal under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 41(a). If he wanted to continue in federal court, he had to file an amended complaint within 60 days from February 12, 2024. The court warned that, if he failed to comply and could not show good cause for the failure, the complaint would be dismissed for the reasons stated in the December 7, 2023 order.
Appeal-fee ruling
The court certified under 28 U.S.C. § 1915(a)(3) that any appeal from this order would not be taken in good faith. It therefore denied permission to proceed without paying fees for purposes of an appeal.
Read the full 2-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.