Dizzy Dean Wells, Jr. v. Lt. Blaatz, Nurse Tyson, and John Does

Summary

The United States District Court for the Eastern District of Wisconsin denied prisoner-plaintiff Dizzy Dean Wells, Jr.’s motion to proceed in forma pauperis under the Prison Litigation Reform Act’s three-strikes provision. The court found that Wells had accumulated at least four qualifying dismissals and had not alleged an imminent danger of serious physical injury, giving him until June 18, 2026, to pay the filing fee or face dismissal without prejudice.

Holdings

1. Because Wells had at least three prior federal actions dismissed for failure to state a claim, he was barred from proceeding in forma pauperis unless he satisfied the imminent-danger exception.
2. Wells's allegations did not establish imminent danger because they concerned a completed act of harm from years earlier and chronic pain that was not shown to pose a current, real, and proximate threat of serious physical injury.

Questions Presented

1. Whether Wells was barred from proceeding in forma pauperis under the PLRA three-strikes provision, 28 U.S.C. § 1915(g).
2. Whether Wells's allegations of chronic back and leg pain arising from a completed incident nearly three years earlier established an imminent danger of serious physical injury.

Disposition

other