Summary
The Fifth Circuit held that the Prison Litigation Reform Act's three-strikes rule applies to a prisoner's petition for a writ of mandamus arising from an underlying civil rights action. Because Norman Crittenden had accumulated at least three qualifying dismissals and did not allege imminent danger of serious physical injury, the court dismissed his mandamus petition without allowing him to proceed in forma pauperis.
Topics
Practice areas
Questions Presented
- Whether the three-strikes provision of 28 U.S.C. § 1915(g) applies to a prisoner's petition for a writ of mandamus arising from an underlying civil-rights action.
- Whether Crittenden could file the mandamus petition without prepaying the filing fee absent an allegation that he was under imminent danger of serious physical injury.
Holdings
- The three-strikes rule in 28 U.S.C. § 1915(g) applies to a prisoner's petition for a writ of mandamus when the petition arises from an underlying civil action.
- Crittenden could not file the mandamus petition without prepaying the filing fee because he had accumulated at least three qualifying dismissals and did not claim imminent danger of serious physical injury.
Key quotations
“As such, Crittenden may not file a petition for a writ of mandamus with respect to a civil matter in this Court without prepaying the filing fee unless his filings claim that he is under imminent danger of serious physical injury.” (143 F.3d at 920)
“We conclude that it does.” (143 F.3d at 920)
Factual background
Crittenden was a Texas state prisoner whose federal civil-rights action had been dismissed. After the district court denied him in forma pauperis status for his appeal, he sought a writ of mandamus in the Fifth Circuit. The court noted that Crittenden had at least three prior federal actions dismissed as frivolous, malicious, or for failure to state a claim and had been placed on the court's three-strikes list.
Procedural history
The district court dismissed Crittenden's civil-rights action and denied his request to proceed in forma pauperis on appeal in an order dated December 16, 1997. Crittenden then sought mandamus in the Fifth Circuit. The court dismissed the mandamus petition because the Prison Litigation Reform Act's three-strikes provision barred filing without prepayment of the filing fee absent an imminent-danger showing.