Opinion
3:21-cv-03931-TSH
07-30-2021
Chapman Melton
INSTRUCTIONS FOR FILING A CIVIL RIGHTS COMPLAINT BY A PRISONER UNDER 42 U.S.C. § 1983
I. SCOPE OF 42 U.S.C. § 1983
You may file a civil rights action under 42 U.S.C. § 1983 to challenge federal constitutional or statutory violations by state actors which affect the conditions of your confinement.
A § 1983 action may not be used to challenge the length of your sentence or the validity of your conviction. Such claims must be addressed in a petition for a writ of habeas corpus, on the forms provided by the clerk. If you wish to challenge a state court sentence or conviction, ask for the packet titled Instructions for Filing a Petition for a Writ of Habeas Corpus by a Person in State Custody under 28 U.S.C. § 2254.
II. FILING A § 1983 ACTION
To file a § 1983 action, you must submit:
• an original, completed complaint form; and
• a check or money order for $402, or an original, completed Prisoner's Application to Proceed In Forma Pauperis (see more below).
When these forms are completed fully, provide these forms to the librarian for scanning if the prison participates in Prison Email Filing with this court; otherwise, mail the originals to: Clerk, U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, 450 Golden Gate Avenue, Box 36060, San Francisco, CA 94102.
III. FILING FEE
The fee for filing a § 1983 action is $402 ($350 filing fee plus $52 administrative fee), to be paid at the time of filing. If you are unable to pay the full fee when you file your complaint, you may petition the court to proceed in forma pauperis, using the forms provided by the clerk. Ask for the packet titled Instructions for Filing an Application to Proceed In Forma Pauperis by a Prisoner under 28 U.S.C. § 1915. Even if you are granted leave to proceed in forma pauperis, you must still pay the $350 filing fee (not the $52 administrative fee), but the filing fee will be paid in several installments.
You must complete the Prisoner's Application to Proceed In Forma Pauperis in its entirety and sign and declare under penalty of perjury that the facts stated therein are true and correct. Each plaintiff must submit his or her own Prisoner's In Forma Pauperis Application. You must use the Prisoner's In Forma Pauperis Application provided and not any other version.
IV. COMPLAINT FORM
You must complete the complaint form in its entirety. All questions must be answered for your action to proceed. Your responses must be typewritten or legibly handwritten and you must sign and declare under penalty of perjury that the facts stated in the complaint are true.
Under 42 U.S.C. § 1997e, you are required to exhaust available administrative remedies before filing a § 1983 action; you must indicate clearly in the space provided on the complaint form whether you have done so.
V. MAGISTRATE JUDGE JURISDICTION
Magistrate judges are selected through a statutorily prescribed merit selection process and are appointed by the judges of this court. The court encourages parties to consent to magistrate judge jurisdiction as it may result in an earlier resolution of the matter; the rules and procedures used to decide your case will be the same regardless of whether a district judge or a magistrate judge decides your case. But you are free to decline magistrate judge jurisdiction and request that your case be decided by a district judge. Please indicate on the Consent or Declination to Magistrate Judge Jurisdiction form, provided by the clerk, whether you consent or decline to consent to magistrate judge jurisdiction.
VI. AFTER YOUR COMPLAINT IS FILED
The clerk will assign a case number and judge to your complaint and mail you a copy of the first page, which will have the case number and judge's initials stamped on it. (If your prison participates in Prison Email Filing with this court, you will get a confirmation email from the court with this information.) Please retain this copy for your records and put the case number on any case-related document you send to the court. If your complaint is deficient in any way, the clerk may send you a notice that will require your response. If your case is assigned to a magistrate judge before you consented or declined to consent to magistrate judge jurisdiction, the clerk may send you a Consent or Declination to Magistrate Judge Jurisdiction form that will require your response. Please note that it isyour responsibility to inform the court in writing without delay if your address changes. You will be notified at the address the court has on record whenever the court issues an order. A failure to respond to notices or orders or a failure to update your address may result in the dismissal of your case.
VII. REPEAT FILERS
If you are seeking leave to proceed in forma pauperis and, while incarcerated or detained, you filed § 1983 actions on three or more prior occasions that were dismissed as frivolous, malicious or for failure to state a claim upon which relief may be granted, you may not file a new § 1983 action unless you are under imminent danger of serious physical injury. 28 U.S.C. § 1915(g).
VIII. INQUIRIES AND COPYING REQUESTS
Because of the large volume of cases filed in this court and limited court resources, the court will not answer inquiries concerning the status of your case or provide copies of documents, except at a charge of fifty cents ($0.50) per page. It is therefore recommended that you make and keep for your records a copy of every document you submit to the court.