Opinion
Civil Action No. 13 0022
01-08-2013
Maurice Grayton, Plaintiff, v. United States of America et al., Defendants.
MEMORANDUM OPINION
This action is before the Court on its initial review of plaintiff's pro se complaint and application to proceed in forma pauperis. The Court will grant the application and dismiss the complaint for lack of subject matter jurisdiction. See Fed. R. Civ. P. 12(h)(3) (requiring dismissal of an action "at any time" the Court determines that it lacks subject matter jurisdiction).
Plaintiff, a resident of Chula Vista, California, challenges the U.S. Supreme Court's denial of his motion for leave to proceed in forma pauperis. See In re Grayton, 132 S.Ct. 88 (Mem) (Oct. 3, 2011). He sues the United States and four employees of the Supreme Court's Office of the Clerk, Compl. at 6-7, seeking to compel "the highest court [to] reopen [his] case, and/or accept [his] filing fee and/or set this matter before a jury trial . . . . Id. at 24. This Court lacks jurisdiction to review the decisions of the Supreme Court or its Clerk. In re Marin, 956 F.2d 339, 340 (D.C. Cir. 1992); see Panko v. Kodak, 606 F.2d 168, 171 n.6 (7th Cir. 1979), cert. denied, 444 U.S. 1081 (1980) ("It seems axiomatic that a lower court may not order the judges or officers of a higher court to take an action."). Furthermore, "[a]bsent a waiver, sovereign immunity shields the Federal Government. . . from suit." FDIC v. Meyer, 510 U.S. 471, 475 (1994) (citations omitted). The United States has consented to be sued under the Federal Tort Claims Act ("FTCA"), 28 U.S.C. §§ 1346, 2671-80, which plaintiff has invoked, but only for monetary damages and "under circumstances where the United States, if a private person, would be liable to the claimant in accordance with the law of the place where the act or omission occurred." Id., § 1346(b)(1). Such consent does not encompass the alleged conduct forming the basis of this action. See Compl. at 11-13; FDIC v. Meyer, 510 U.S. at 478 ("[T]he United States simply has not rendered itself liable under § 1346(b) for constitutional tort claims."). Hence, this case will be dismissed with prejudice. A separate Order accompanies this Memorandum Opinion.
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United States District Judge