Opinion
3:23-CV-872-DRL-AZ
11-15-2024
DAVID WILLIAM HOLLAND, JR., Plaintiff, v. ELKHART COUNTY CORRECTIONS, Defendant.
OPINION AND ORDER
Damon R. Leichty, Judge
David William Holland, Jr., a prisoner without a lawyer, filed an amended complaint alleging he contracted an infection at the Elkhart County Jail that caused a scar on his left shoulder. ECF 4. “A document filed pro se is to be liberally construed, and a pro se complaint, however inartfully pleaded, must be held to less stringent standards than formal pleadings drafted by lawyers.” Erickson v. Pardus, 551 U.S. 89, 94 (2007) (quotations and citations omitted). Nevertheless, under 28 U.S.C. § 1915A, the court must review the merits of a prisoner complaint and dismiss it if the action is frivolous or malicious, fails to state a claim upon which relief may be granted, or seeks monetary relief against a defendant who is immune from such relief.
This complaint only names one defendant: Elkhart County Corrections. Maybe Holland is trying to sue the Elkhart County Corrections Center (ECCC) also known as “the Jail,” but the jail is not a suable entity. Smith v. Knox County Jail, 666 F.3d 1037, 1040 (7th Cir. 2012). Maybe he is trying to sue the Elkhart County Sheriff's Department. It is possible to sue a municipal entity such as a Sheriff's Department based on a policy, practice, or custom pursuant to Monell v. Dep't of Soc. Servs. of City of New York, 436 U.S. 658 (1978), except this complaint alleges nothing more than a single, unfortunate event.
The amended complaint does not state a claim for which relief can be granted. If Mr. Holland believes he can state a claim based on (and consistent with) the events described in this complaint, he may file an amended complaint because “[t]he usual standard in civil cases is to allow defective pleadings to be corrected, especially in early stages, at least where amendment would not be futile.” Abu-Shawish v. United States, 898 F.3d 726, 738 (7th Cir. 2018). To file an amended complaint, he needs to write this cause number on a Pro Se 14 (INND Rev. 2/20) Prisoner Complaint form, which is available from his law library. He needs to write the word “Second Amended” on the first page above the title “Prisoner Complaint” and send it to the court after he properly completes the form.
For these reasons, the court:
(1) GRANTS David William Holland, Jr., until December 16, 2024 , to file an amended complaint; and
(2) CAUTIONS David William Holland, Jr., if he does not respond by the deadline, this case will be dismissed under 28 U.S.C. § 1915A without further notice because the current complaint does not state a claim for which relief can be granted.
SO ORDERED.