Opinion
Case: 1:16-cv-01761
08-31-2016
DEBORAH DIANE FLETCHER, Plaintiff, v. RESIDENT MANAGER, Defendant.
Assigned To : Unassigned
Assign. Date : 9/1/2016
Description: Pro Se Gen. Civil (F Deck) MEMORANDUM OPINION
For purposes of this Memorandum Opinion, the Court consolidates two civil complaints and applications to proceed in forma pauperis. In each complaint, the plaintiff sues the agent of a former landlord from whom she demands the return of her security deposit. In addition, plaintiff demands an award of $5 million for abuse she allegedly underwent while living at each property.
The Federal Rules of Civil Procedure require that a complaint contain "'a short and plain statement of the claim showing that the pleader is entitled to relief,' in order to 'give the defendant fair notice of what the . . . claim is and the grounds upon which it rests[.]'" Bell Atl. Corp. v. Twombly, 550 U.S. 544, 555 (2007) (quoting Conley v. Gibson, 355 U.S. 41, 47 (1957)). Further, a complaint must "contain sufficient factual matter, accepted as true, to 'state a claim to relief that is plausible on its face.'" Ashcroft v. Iqbal, 556 U.S. 662, 678 (2009) (quoting Twombly, 550 U.S. at 570). Although a pro se complaint is "held to less stringent standards than formal pleadings drafted by lawyers," Erickson v. Pardus, 551 U.S. 89, 94 (2007) (per curiam) (internal quotation marks and citation omitted), it too "must plead 'factual matter' that permits the court to infer 'more than the mere possibility of misconduct,'" Atherton v. District of Columbia Office of the Mayor, 567 F.3d 672, 681-82 (D.C. Cir. 2009) (quoting Iqbal, 556 U.S. at 678-79). As drafted, the complaints fail to meet these goals because they contain no factual allegations whatsoever regarding the "abuse" plaintiff allegedly suffered for which she demands hefty compensation.
An Order consistent with this Memorandum Opinion is issued separately. DATE: 8/31/16
/s/_________
United States District Judge