Willie Otis Harris v. Wayne McCollum Detention Center

Summary

The United States Magistrate Judge recommends that Willie Otis Harris’s prisoner civil rights action be dismissed without prejudice under the Prison Litigation Reform Act’s three-strikes rule, 28 U.S.C. § 1915(g), unless he pays the full $405 filing fee. The recommendation finds that Harris has accrued at least three qualifying strikes and has not alleged facts showing imminent danger of serious physical injury.

Holdings

1. A prisoner who has accumulated at least three prior federal civil actions or appeals dismissed as frivolous, malicious, or for failure to state a claim may not proceed without prepaying the filing fee unless the imminent-danger exception applies. Harris had accumulated at least three qualifying strikes and was therefore barred from proceeding without prepayment.
2. The imminent-danger exception did not apply because Harris made no factual allegations suggesting that he was in imminent danger of serious physical injury.

Questions Presented

1. Whether Harris could proceed without prepaying the filing fee despite having accumulated at least three prior qualifying dismissals under 28 U.S.C. § 1915(g).
2. Whether Harris alleged facts establishing that he was under imminent danger of serious physical injury, the statutory exception to the three-strikes bar.
3. Whether the action should be summarily dismissed without prejudice unless Harris paid the full filing fee.

Disposition

other