Pittman v. Fulton County Police Department

Background

Nadira A. Pittman, proceeding without a lawyer, sued the Fulton County Police Department. She alleged that the department violated her constitutional rights under the Fourteenth Amendment. The opinion states that Pittman resides in Queens County, New York, and that the claims concern conduct involving the police department in Georgia.

Venue Analysis

Venue is the federal district where a civil case may properly be heard. Under the general venue statute, a case may be filed where the defendant resides or where a substantial part of the events giving rise to the claim occurred. The court concluded that, based on the complaint, Pittman's claims arose outside the Southern District of New York and involved a nonresident defendant. It therefore found that venue was not proper there.

The court stated that the Fulton County Police Department resides in Fulton County, Georgia, which is in the Northern District of Georgia. It concluded that venue was proper in that district under the defendant-residence provision.

Ruling and Other Orders

Under 28 U.S.C. § 1406(a), a court may dismiss a case filed in the wrong venue or, when appropriate, transfer it to a district where it could have been brought. The court transferred this action, in the interest of justice, to the United States District Court for the Northern District of Georgia, Atlanta Division. The Clerk was directed to carry out the transfer.

The court left any decision about payment of the filing fees to the transferee court. The opinion notes that Pittman had not paid the filing fees, had not submitted an application to proceed without paying them, and had not signed the complaint. The court directed that no summons issue from the New York court and stated that the order closed that case. It also certified that an appeal would not be taken in good faith and denied permission to appeal without paying the required fees. The court did not decide the merits of Pittman's constitutional allegations.