Opinion
No. 3:18-cv-00147-CAR-CHW
03-25-2019
RUSSELL LEE HARTLEY, Petitioner, v. JOE CHAPMAN, Respondent.
ORDER OF DISMISSAL
Pro se Petitioner Russell Lee Hartley, an inmate in the Walton County Jail in Monroe, Georgia, filed a petition for a writ of habeas corpus. Pet. for Writ of Habeas Corpus, ECF No. 1. It appeared from his filing, however, that Petitioner may have inadvertently filed his petition on the incorrect form. Additionally, Petitioner submitted a motion for leave to proceed in forma pauperis, but he did not include a certified copy of his trust fund account statement for the preceding six months. See Mot. for Leave to Proceed In Forma Pauperis, ECF No. 2.
As a result, Petitioner was ordered to clarify his incarceration status and submit a certified account statement. Order, Dec. 6, 2018, ECF No. 8. Petitioner was given twenty-one days to comply and was cautioned that his failure to do so could result in the dismissal of this action. Id. Thereafter, Petitioner did not comply with the order to clarify his incarceration status and submit a copy of his account statement within the allotted time.
Moreover, the previous order, sent to Petitioner at the Walton County Jail, the only address this Court has on file for Petitioner, was returned to this Court as undeliverable. See Mail Returned, ECF No. 9. Petitioner's failure to keep the Court apprised of his current address constitutes a failure to prosecute this case, and insofar as this Court had no information as to Petitioner's current whereabouts, this case may not proceed.
Therefore, Petitioner was ordered to respond and show cause why this case should not be dismissed for failure to comply with the Court's previous order and failure to keep the Court apprised of his current address. Order to Show Cause, ECF No. 10. Petitioner was given twenty-one days to respond to the show cause order and was cautioned that his failure to respond would result in the dismissal of this action. Id.
To date, Petitioner has not responded to the show cause order, which has also been returned to this Court as undeliverable. See Mail Returned, ECF No. 11. Thus, because Petitioner has failed to respond to the Court's orders or otherwise prosecute his case, this action is DISMISSED WITHOUT PREJUDICE. See Fed. R. Civ. P. 41(b); Brown v. Tallahassee Police Dep't, 205 F. App'x 802, 802 (11th Cir. 2006) ("The court may dismiss an action sua sponte under Rule 41(b) for failure to prosecute or failure to obey a court order.") (citing Fed. R. Civ. P. 41(b) and Lopez v. Aransas Cty. Indep. Sch. Dist., 570 F.2d 541, 544 (5th Cir. 1978)).
SO ORDERED, this 25th day of March, 2019.
S/ C. Ashley Royal
C. ASHLEY ROYAL, SENIOR JUDGE
UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT