Opinion
Civil Action No. 15-cv-01791-LTB
04-01-2016
JAN B. HAMILTON, Applicant, v. DON BIRD, Pitkin County Jail, D. MULDOON, Capt., Fairplay, CO, and THE ATTORNEY GENERAL OF THE STATE OF COLORADO, Respondents.
ORDER
The matter before the Court is a Letter filed by Plaintiff requesting copies of all orders entered by the undersigned in this case. (ECF No. 27).
Ms. Hamilton paid the $5.00 filing fee in this action. However, even if she had been granted leave to proceed in forma pauperis, that status does not automatically entitle her to free copies of documents filed in a court action. See Guinn v. Heckler, No. 94-1257, 1994 WL 702684 (10th Cir. Dec. 15, 1994) (unpublished) (28 U.S.C. § 1915 does not include right to free copy of any document in record; court may constitutionally require indigent plaintiff to demonstrate need for free copy). See also In re Richard, 914 F.2d 1526, 1527 (6th Cir.1990) (28 U.S.C. § 1915 "does not give the [prisoner] litigant a right to have documents copied and returned to him at government expense"); Collins v. Goord, 438 F.Supp.2d 399, 416 (S.D.N.Y.2006) ("inmate[s] ha[ve] no constitutional right to free [photo]copies"); Williams v. Minnesota Dep't of Corrections, No. CIVA.02-4200(JRT/RLE), 2003 WL 21744244 (D. Minn. July 22, 2003) (same, citing Guinn); Rayes v. Houson, No. No. 4:14CV3177, 2014 WL 6980254, at *4 (D. Neb. Dec. 9. 2014) (same, citing Guinn).
This action was dismissed with prejudice on October 28, 2015. (ECF Nos. 14, 15). Ms. Hamilton has filed an appeal, which is pending before the Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit. (ECF No. 16). Ms. Hamilton does not explain why she needs copies of the orders to pursue her appeal. Therefore, even if Applicant is indigent, she has failed to demonstrate a need to obtain the documents at the government's expense. Accordingly, it is
ORDERED that Ms. Hamilton's request to receive free copies of the Orders entered by the undersigned (ECF No. 27) is DENIED. It is
FURTHER ORDERED that Ms. Hamilton may obtain copies of the requested documents by contacting the Clerk of the Court and paying the published fee(s). See www.uscourts.gov.
Dated April 1, 2016, at Denver, Colorado.
BY THE COURT:
s/Lewis T. Babcock
LEWIS T. BABCOCK, Senior Judge
United States District Court