De’Amontae Manning v. Corrections Officer Tristin Pruitt

Summary

The United States District Court for the Northern District of Ohio dismissed De’Amontae Manning’s prisoner civil rights action alleging that a corrections officer denied him religious meals during Ramadan. The court denied in forma pauperis status under the Prison Litigation Reform Act’s three-strikes rule, finding no imminent danger of serious physical injury, and required payment of the full filing fee to reopen the case.

Holdings

1. A prisoner who has brought at least three prior federal actions or appeals dismissed as frivolous, malicious, or for failure to state a claim may not proceed in forma pauperis unless the imminent-danger exception applies. Manning had at least three qualifying prior dismissals, so he was barred from proceeding in forma pauperis.
2. The imminent-danger exception requires facts supporting a reasonable inference that the prisoner faced a real and proximate danger of serious physical injury when the complaint was filed; allegations of past harm do not satisfy that requirement.
3. Because Manning was barred from proceeding in forma pauperis and did not qualify for the imminent-danger exception, the action was dismissed under 28 U.S.C. § 1915(g).

Questions Presented

1. Whether Manning qualified to proceed in forma pauperis despite having at least three prior qualifying dismissals under 28 U.S.C. § 1915(g).
2. Whether Manning’s allegations established that he was under imminent danger of serious physical injury when he filed the complaint.
3. Whether the action should be dismissed when the three-strikes rule applied and no imminent-danger exception was shown.

Disposition

dismissed