Opinion
1:23-cv-01122-JDB-jay
11-04-2024
ORDER DIRECTING CLERK TO MODIFY THE DOCKET AND SEND FORM AND DIRECTING PETITIONER TO FILE AN AMENDED PETITION
J. DANIEL BREEN UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE
The Petitioner, Stacy Curry, Tennessee Department of Correction prisoner number 322211, an inmate at the Hardeman County Correctional Facility in Whiteville, Tennessee, has filed a pro se petition under 28 U.S.C. § 2254 for a writ of habeas corpus (the “Petition”). (Docket Entry (“D.E.) 1.) The $5.00 habeas filing fee has been paid. (D.E. 7.) The Petition is now before the Court on preliminary review. See Rule 4 of the Rules Governing Section 2254 Cases in the United States District Courts (“Habeas Rules”).
The Clerk is DIRECTED to record Respondent as Warden Robert Adams Jr., and to terminate Jerry Wardlow as a party to this action. See Fed.R.Civ.P. 25(d); see also Rumsfeld v. Padilla, 542 U.S. 426, 435 (2004) (explaining that “in habeas challenges to present physical confinement . . . the default rule is that the proper respondent is the warden of the facility where the prisoner is being held”).
Curry challenges his Tennessee conviction for aggravated sexual battery and his sentence of twenty years' imprisonment. Though he used the district's official § 2254 form, he did not complete all sections thereof. Particularly, he did not complete the section relating to the timeliness of the Petition, and it is not addressed in his supporting memorandum. He also failed to complete the section of the form asking him to state his grounds for relief. Finally, Petitioner failed to state whether he exhausted his state court remedies for each ground for relief. The Court therefore lacks the information necessary to proceed with preliminary screening. See Habeas Rule 4.
Petitioner is therefore DIRECTED to file an amended petition. He must use or substantially follow the district's official § 2254 form and file the amended petition within twentyeight days of the entry of this order. Each ground for relief must be listed in the text of the form petition or on separate sheets that conform to the format of pages six through eleven of the form petition. Curry must also address the timeliness of his petition as required by page fourteen of the form. The Clerk is DIRECTED to send the prisoner a § 2254 form.
If the inmate needs additional time to file his amended petition, he may file a motion seeking an extension of time on or before the due date for his amendment. Failure to file an amended petition will result in dismissal of the Petition and the case without further notice for failure to prosecute under Rule 41(b) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure.
IT IS SO ORDERED.