Opinion
2:22-cv-00603-GMN-EJY
04-19-2022
TERENCE FAIR, Plaintiff, v. STATE OF NEVADA, et al., Defendants.
ORDER
ELAYNA J. YOUCHAH UNITED STATES MAGISTRATE JUDGE
I. DISCUSSION
On April 11, 2022, Plaintiff, an inmate in the custody of the Nevada Department of Corrections, submitted an application to proceed in forma pauperis (“IFP”), Motion to Defer In Forma Pauperis, and a civil rights complaint under 42 U.S.C. § 1983. ECF Nos. 1, 1-1. Plaintiff's IFP application is incomplete because Plaintiff failed to fill in the blanks or answer any question on the form, and failed to submit a financial certificate and inmate account statement for the previous six month period. In the Motion to Defer In Forma Pauperis Plaintiff states that he sought a financial certificate and account summary from prison authorities in October 2021 and January 2022, but has received neither.
Under 28 U.S.C. § 1915(a)(2) and Local Rule LSR 1-2, an inmate seeking to commence a civil action may apply to proceed in forma pauperis, allowing the inmate to file the civil action without prepaying the $402 filing fee. To apply for in forma pauperis status, the inmate must submit all three of the following documents to the Court:
(1) a completed Application to Proceed in Forma Pauperis for Inmate , on this Court's approved form (i.e. pages 1 through 3 with the inmate's two signatures on page 3),
(2) a Financial Certificate properly signed by both the inmate and a prison or jail official (i.e. page 4 of this Court's approved form), and1
(3) a copy of the inmate's prison or jail trust fund account statement for the previous six-month period . If Plaintiff has not been at the facility a full six-month period, Plaintiff must still submit an inmate account statement for the dates he has been present at the facility.
II. ORDER
Accordingly, IT IS HEREBY ORDERED that Plaintiff's application to proceed in forma pauperis (ECF No. 1) is denied without prejudice.
IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that Plaintiff is granted a one time extension to file a fully complete in forma pauperis application containing all three of the required documents. Plaintiff must file a fully complete in forma pauperis application or before June 20, 2022. Absent unusual circumstances, the Court will not grant any further extensions of time.
IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that if Plaintiff is unable to file a fully complete in forma pauperis application with all three required documents on or before June 20, 2022, the Court will recommend this case be dismissed without prejudice for Plaintiff to file a new case with the Court when Plaintiff is able to acquire all three of the documents needed to file a fully complete in forma pauperis application.
A dismissal without prejudice means Plaintiff does not give up the right to refile the case with the Court, under a new case number, when Plaintiff has all three documents needed to submit with the in forma pauperis application. Alternatively, Plaintiff may choose not to file an in forma pauperis application and instead pay the filing fee of $402 on or before June 20, 2022 to proceed with this case.
The Court will retain Plaintiff's civil rights complaint (ECF No. 1-1) but the Court will not file the complaint unless and until Plaintiff timely files a fully complete in forma pauperis application with all three documents or pays the $402 filing fee. 2
IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that the Clerk of Court must send Plaintiff the approved form application to proceed in forma pauperis by an inmate, as well as the document entitled information and instructions for filing an in forma pauperis application.