Lacey v. Sure Shot Books Publishers LLC

Background

John Jay Lacey filed this civil action without a lawyer. The opinion states that he is incarcerated at Indiana State Reformatory. He submitted his complaint without the required filing fees, a completed application to proceed without paying fees upfront, or a prisoner authorization.

The Court’s Order

The court explained that a prisoner must either pay $405 in fees—$350 for the filing fee and $55 for the administrative fee—or submit an application to proceed without prepaying fees and a prisoner authorization. If the court grants that application, the $350 filing fee must still be collected in installments from the prisoner’s account. The authorization also directs the correctional facility to provide certified account statements for the past six months and deduct the required payments.

The court ordered Lacey, within 30 days of the order, to pay the $405 or submit the attached application and prisoner authorization labeled with docket number 24-CV-2406 (LTS). No summons will issue at this time. If Lacey complies, the Clerk’s Office will process the case under its procedures; if he does not comply within the allowed time, the action will be dismissed.

Appeal Determination

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 fee-waiver status for purposes of an appeal. The order also cautioned that certain qualifying dismissals can count as strikes under the prisoner litigation statute.