Opinion
No.: 1:20-CV-219-CLC-CHS
08-11-2020
DWAYNE X. CROSS, Plaintiff, v. KENNETH HUTCHISON, BRETT COBBLE, JONATHAN HIGDON, GREG WILLIAMS, ROBERT HILL, SEAN PHILLIPS, DAREN SETTLES, KATIE CAMPBELL, TOMIS MILLER, TONY PARKER, JOHN DOES, and JANE DOES, Defendants.
MEMORANDUM & ORDER
The Court is in receipt of a pro se prisoner's complaint for violation of 42 U.S.C. § 1983 and the Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act ("RLUIPA"), 42 U.S.C. § 2000cc, et seq., [Doc. 2], and a related motion for leave to proceed in forma pauperis [Doc. 1].
It appears from the motion for leave to proceed in forma pauperis that Plaintiff lacks sufficient financial resources to pay the filing fee. Accordingly, pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1915, this motion [Doc. 1] is GRANTED.
Because Plaintiff is an inmate in the Bledsoe County Correctional Complex, he is ASSESSED the civil filing fee of $350.00. The custodian of Plaintiff's inmate trust account is DIRECTED to submit to the Clerk, U.S. District Court, 900 Georgia Avenue, Chattanooga, Tennessee 37402, as an initial partial payment, whichever is the greater of: (a) twenty percent (20%) of the average monthly deposits to Plaintiff's inmate trust account; or (b) twenty percent (20%) of the average monthly balance in his inmate trust account for the six-month period preceding the filing of the complaint. 28 U.S.C. § 1915(b)(1)(A) and (B). Thereafter, the custodian of Plaintiff's inmate trust account is directed to submit twenty percent (20%) of Plaintiff's preceding monthly income (or income credited to Plaintiff's trust account for the preceding month), but only when such monthly income exceeds ten dollars ($10.00), until the full filing fee of three hundred fifty dollars ($350.00) as authorized under 28 U.S.C. § 1914(a) has been paid to the Clerk. 28 U.S.C. § 1915(b)(2).
To ensure compliance with this fee-collection procedure, the Clerk is DIRECTED to mail a copy of this memorandum and order to the custodian of inmate accounts at the institution where Plaintiff is now confined. The Clerk is also DIRECTED to furnish a copy of this order to the Attorney General for the State of Tennessee and the Court's financial deputy. This order shall be placed in Plaintiff's prison file and follow him if he is transferred to another correctional institution.
The Clerk is DIRECTED to update the docket in this cause to identify Katie Campbell and Tony Parker as Defendants, and to identify Defendant "TOMIS" as "Tomis Miller" [See Doc. 2 pp. 7-8].
The Clerk is DIRECTED to send Plaintiff service packets (a blank summons and USM 285 form) for Defendants Hutchison, Cobble, Higdon, Williams, Hill, Phillips, Settles, Miller, Campbell, and Parker.
Packets will not issue for John and Jane Doe, as the U.S. Marshal cannot serve an unidentified party.
Plaintiff is ORDERED to complete the service packets and return them to the Clerk's Office within twenty (20) days of receipt of this order. At that time, the summonses will be signed and sealed by the Clerk and forwarded to the U.S. Marshal for service. Fed. R. Civ. P. 4. Service on Defendants shall be made pursuant to Rule 4(e) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure and Rule 4.04(1) and (10) of the Tennessee Rules of Civil Procedure, either by mail or personally if mail service is not effective. Plaintiff is forewarned that if he fails to timely return the completed service packets, this action will be dismissed.
Defendants shall answer or otherwise respond to the complaint within twenty-one (21) days from the date of service. If any Defendant fails to timely respond to the complaint, it may result in entry of judgment by default against him or her.
Plaintiff is ORDERED to immediately inform the Court and Defendants or their counsel of record of any address changes in writing. Pursuant to Local Rule 83.13, it is the duty of a pro se party to promptly notify the Clerk and the other parties to the proceedings of any change in his or her address, to monitor the progress of the case, and to prosecute or defend the action diligently. E.D. Tenn. L.R. 83.13. Failure to provide a correct address to this Court within fourteen (14) days of any change in address may result in the dismissal of this action.
SO ORDERED.
ENTER:
/s/ _________
CURTIS L. COLLIER
UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE