Jose Arteaga v. M. Palmer and R. Buckel

Summary

The United States District Court for the Southern District of California denied Jose Arteaga’s motion to proceed in forma pauperis because he failed to provide a certified trust account statement for the preceding six months. The court dismissed the civil rights action without prejudice and allowed 45 days to either pay the $405 filing and administrative fee or submit a properly supported renewed IFP motion.

Holdings

1. A prisoner seeking to proceed in forma pauperis must submit the required financial information, including a certified trust-account statement for the six-month period preceding the filing of the complaint; because Plaintiff did not submit that statement, the court denied the IFP motion.
2. When a prisoner's IFP application is denied, the action may not proceed unless the required filing fees are paid; because Plaintiff neither paid the fees nor submitted a complete IFP application, the action was dismissed without prejudice.

Questions Presented

1. Whether the court should grant a prisoner's motion to proceed in forma pauperis when the motion lacks the certified six-month trust-account statement required by 28 U.S.C. § 1915(a)(2).
2. Whether the action should be dismissed without prejudice when the plaintiff neither pays the filing fee nor submits a complete IFP application.

Disposition

dismissed