Opinion
Case No. 14 C 6857
03-23-2015
JOSEPH FELTON, Plaintiff, v. CITY OF CHICAGO, et al., Defendants.
Court of Appeals Case No. 14-3211 MEMORANDUM
In response to this Court's February 20, 2015 memorandum order (copy attached), the Cook County Department of Corrections has provided this Court with the previously missing information as to transactions in the trust fund account of appellant Joseph Felton ("Felton") at that institution during the gap period from September 15 to October 7, 2014. This Court has now been enabled to make the calculation under 28 U.S.C. § 1915 ("Section 1915") applicable to Felton's appeal, and the combined trust fund account printouts reflect that the average monthly deposits to his account for the entire six-month period that ended on October 7 came to $120.
That figure confirms the calculation that this Court had earlier made in its October 30, 2014 memorandum order that had denied Felton's in forma pauperis motion at the District Court level, a denial that was based on this Court's initial September 8, 2014 memorandum order and its attached exhibits.
Under Section 1915(b)(1) Felton is required to pay the full amount of the $505 appellate filing fees, with the amount of the required initial partial filing fee payment being 20% of the $120 figure, or $24. In addition, Felton has also become obligated under Section 1915(b)(2) to pay toward the appellate filing fees an amount equal to 20% of the deposits to his trust fund account for each of the months since October 7, 2014, but because that obligation relates to his appeal it is this Court's understanding that the Court of Appeals retains the responsibility for enforcing that obligation. Finally, Dkt. 26 in the District Court docket reflects the pendency of a motion by Felton seeking attorney representation, and that too is left to the Court of Appeals for ruling.
If instead the Court of Appeals' procedures impose that enforcement obligation on this District Court, it is anticipated that this Court would be apprised to that effect so that the necessary enforcement arrangements can be made.
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/s/_________
Milton I. Shadur
Senior United States District Judge
Date: March 23, 2015 MEMORANDUM ORDER
On October 7, 2014 plaintiff Joseph Felton ("Felton") filed a notice of appeal from the order entered in this District Court that had dismissed his Complaint and the civil case bearing the case number listed in the caption of this memorandum order. With the Court of Appeals having recently directed this Court to make the calculation under 28 U.S.C. § 1915 applicable to Felton's appeal, it has become necessary to obtain the printout reflecting transactions in Felton's trust fund account at the Cook County Department of Corrections for the entire six-month period that ended on October 7 (the printout that accompanied Felton's In Forma Pauperis Application, which in turn accompanied his notice of appeal, extended only to September 15, 2014).
Because it would involve an extra (and needless) step to request Felton himself to obtain the missing information for the period from September 15 through October 7, 2014, this Court is transmitting a copy of this memorandum order directly to the Cook County Department of Corrections with a request that a printout covering that gap period be transmitted directly to this District Court. For that purpose the fiscal officer at that institution is advised (1) that Felton's Resident Identification Number is 20140319001 and (2) that to facilitate proper handling the transmittal of the requested information should bear both case numbers listed in the caption of this memorandum order and should be addressed as follows:
Office of the Clerk
United States District Court
219 South Dearborn Street
Chicago IL 60604
Attention: Fiscal Department.
/s/_________
Milton I. Shadur
Senior United States District Judge
Date: February 20, 2015