ELUL LLC v. Stacy R. Germany

Summary

The court considers Stacy R. Germany’s pro se notice of removal and application to proceed in forma pauperis in an eviction action originally filed in the Magistrate Court of DeKalb County, Georgia. The court grants in forma pauperis status for purposes of remand and recommends remand because the dispossessory proceeding presents no federal question, does not satisfy the requirements for civil-rights removal, and does not establish diversity jurisdiction. The court directs the Clerk to terminate the reference because nothing remains pending in the federal case.

Holdings

1. Removal jurisdiction was absent because the state-court dispossessory complaint asserted a state-law eviction claim and did not present a federal question on its face.
2. Germany's federal defenses and counterclaims did not create federal-question jurisdiction or make the eviction action removable.
3. Section 1443(1) did not authorize removal because Germany did not show that she was denied, or could not enforce in the Georgia courts, a right arising under a federal law providing for specific civil rights stated in terms of racial equality.
4. Diversity jurisdiction did not support removal because Germany identified herself as a Georgia resident, did not establish citizenship in another state, and did not demonstrate that the amount in controversy exceeded $75,000.
5. Sections 1441(c), 1441(e), and 1367 did not provide an independent basis for federal jurisdiction or removal.

Questions Presented

1. Whether the Georgia dispossessory action presented a federal question permitting removal under 28 U.S.C. § 1441.
2. Whether Germany's federal defenses, counterclaims, and assertions under 18 U.S.C. §§ 241 and 242 created federal-question removal jurisdiction.
3. Whether removal was authorized under 28 U.S.C. § 1443(1) based on alleged denial of civil rights.
4. Whether diversity jurisdiction supported removal under 28 U.S.C. §§ 1332 and 1441(b).
5. Whether 28 U.S.C. §§ 1441(c), 1441(e), or 1367 supplied an independent basis for federal jurisdiction.

Disposition

remanded