Opinion
1:23-cv-00919
09-05-2023
TANNER MACKEY, Plaintiff v. JAMES MCKENZIE, et al., Defendants
ORDER
SYLVIA H. RAMBO, United States District Judge.
AND NOW, on this 5th day of September 2023, upon consideration of pro se Plaintiff Tanner Mackey (“Plaintiff”)'s complaint (Doc. No. 1) and motion for leave to proceed in forma pauperis (Doc. No. 5), and in accordance with the accompanying Memorandum, IT IS ORDERED THAT:
1. Plaintiff's motion for leave to proceed in forma pauperis (Doc. No. 5) is GRANTED, and Plaintiff's complaint (Doc. No. 1) is DEEMED filed;
2. Plaintiff shall pay the full filing fee of $350.00 based on the financial information provided in the application to proceed in forma pauperis. The full filing fee shall be paid regardless of the outcome of the litigation;
3. Pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1915(b)(1) and (2), the Superintendent/Warden or other appropriate official at Plaintiff's place of confinement is directed to deduct an initial partial filing fee of 20% of the greater of:
a. The average monthly deposits in the inmate's prison account for the past six months, or
b. The average monthly balance in the inmate's prison account for the past six months.
The initial partial filing fee shall be forwarded to the Clerk of the United States District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania, P.O. Box 1148, Scranton, Pennsylvania, 18501-1148, to be credited to the abovecaptioned docket number. In each succeeding month, when the amount in Plaintiff's inmate trust fund account exceeds $10.00, the Superintendent/Warden or other appropriate official shall forward payments to the Clerk of Court equaling 20% of the preceding month's income credited to Plaintiff's inmate trust fund account until the fees are paid. Each payment shall reference the above-captioned docket number;
4. The Clerk of Court is directed to SEND a copy of this Order to the Superintendent/Warden of the institution wherein Plaintiff is presently confined;
5. Plaintiff's complaint (Doc. No. 1) is DISMISSED for failure to state a claim upon which relief can be granted pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1915(e)(2)(B)(ii) as follows:
a. Plaintiff's 42 U.S.C. § 1983 (“Section 1983”) claims Defendant Franklin County Jail are DISMISSED WITH PREJUDICE, and the Clerk of Court is directed to TERMINATE Defendant Franklin County Jail from the docket of this case;
b. Plaintiff's remaining Section 1983 claims against Defendants McKenzie, Weller, Bechtold, Pittman, and Sterner are DISMISSED WITHOUT PREJUDICE;
6. Plaintiff is GRANTED leave to amend his Section 1983 claims against Defendants McKenzie, Weller, Bechtold, Pittman, and Sterner;
7. The Clerk of Court is directed to SEND Plaintiff a form civil rights complaint;
8. Plaintiff shall complete the form complaint and file it with the Court. Plaintiff shall title his form complaint “Amended Complaint” and include the docket number for this case, 1:23-cv-00919. Plaintiff shall also state whether he is a pretrial detainee or a convicted and sentenced state prisoner;
9. Plaintiff shall file his amended complaint within thirty (30) days of the date of this Order; and
10. In the event that Plaintiff does not file an amended complaint within the thirty (30) days, the Court will dismiss this action without prejudice.