Opinion
Criminal Action No. 13-cr-00426-LTB
2013-10-21
PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF COLORADO, Plaintiff, v. MICHAEL WAYNE BINGHAM, Defendant.
(Removal from District Court, Adams County, Colorado, Case No. 2001CR430)
ORDER FOR SUMMARY REMAND
Michael Wayne Bingham is a prisoner in the custody of the Colorado Department of Corrections who currently is incarcerated at the Colorado State Penitentiary in Cañon City. He filed pro se a document that has been docketed as a notice of removal in which he states he is removing to this Court case number 2001CR430 from the District Court of Adams County, Colorado. The Court must construe the notice of removal liberally because Mr. Bingham is not represented by an attorney. See Haines v. Kerner, 404 U.S. 519, 520-21 (1972); Hall v. Bellmon, 935 F.2d 1106, 1110 (10th Cir. 1991). For the reasons stated below, the case will be remanded summarily to the state court.
Title 28 U.S.C. § 1455(a) provides that a defendant seeking to remove a criminal prosecution from a state court must file a notice of removal "containing a short and plain statement of the grounds for removal." Mr. Bingham fails to provide a short and plain statement of the grounds for removal of this action and, even construing the notice of removal liberally, the Court is unable to ascertain any legitimate basis for removal of this action under the relevant statutes. Title 28 U.S.C. §§ 1442, 1442a, and 1443 all authorize the removal of certain criminal prosecutions, but Mr. Bingham makes no allegations relevant to § 1442, which applies to actions against federal officers or agencies; to § 1442a, which applies to members of the armed forces; or to § 1443, which authorizes the removal of certain civil rights cases. Therefore, because it clearly appears on the face of the notice of removal that removal of this action should not be permitted, the action will be remanded summarily to the state court pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1455(b)(4).
Accordingly, it is
ORDERED that Case No. 2001CR430 is remanded summarily to the District Court of Adams County, Colorado. It is
FURTHER ORDERED that the clerk of this court shall mail a certified copy of this order to the clerk of the District Court of Adams County.
DATED at Denver, Colorado, this 21st day of October, 2013.
BY THE COURT:
________
CHRISTINE M. ARGUELLO
United States District Judge, for
LEWIS T. BABCOCK, Senior Judge
United States District Court