Hayes v. John/Jane Doe
- Laura Swain
- 1:24-cv-00560
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 2
In Hayes v. John/Jane Doe, Judge Swain dismissed the complaint without prejudice because Hayes did not pay fees or submit the required forms.
Hafiz Hayes, whose complaint was dismissed without prejudice and whose request to proceed without paying fees on appeal was denied.
What happened
In Hayes v. John/Jane Doe, the court had ordered Hafiz Hayes to submit an application to proceed without paying filing fees and a required prisoner form, or to pay the filing fees. The order warned that failing to comply would lead to dismissal.
Hayes did not submit the required forms or pay the fees. Instead, he filed a notice and a blank federal tax form, which did not satisfy the court’s order. The complaint was dismissed without prejudice, and the court directed the Clerk of Court to enter judgment.
Judge Laura Taylor Swain also ruled that an appeal would not be taken in good faith and denied Hayes permission to proceed without paying fees for an appeal.
The detailed version
- Hayes v. John/Jane Doe · No. 1:24-cv-00560
- Laura Swain
- Mar. 14, 2024
Background
The court had previously directed Hafiz Hayes to submit a completed application to proceed without paying the filing fee and a prisoner authorization, or to pay the $405 filing fees required for a civil action. The January 29, 2024 order stated that the complaint would be dismissed if Hayes did not comply within 30 days.
Hayes did not submit the required application and authorization or pay the fees. Instead, he filed a “Notice of Affidavit of Truth” and a blank federal tax form on February 21, 2024. The court found that these documents did not respond to its earlier order.
Ruling
The court dismissed the complaint without prejudice under 28 U.S.C. §§ 1914 and 1915 because Hayes failed to comply with the filing-fee and document requirements. “Without prejudice” means the dismissal did not bar refiling. The court also directed the Clerk of Court to enter judgment.
Appeal-Fee Ruling
The court certified under 28 U.S.C. § 1915(a)(3) that any appeal from the 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.