Opinion
Civil Action No. 04-5645.
December 13, 2004
MEMORANDUM AND ORDER
Presently before the Court is a Motion to Proceed In Forma Pauperis and a Complaint ("Complaint") filed by pro se Plaintiff Thomas A. Roche ("Plaintiff") against Defendant Nicole Stigliano ("Defendant"). On the Designation Form, used by the Clerk's Office to assign cases to the appropriate calendar, Plaintiff marked this matter as a Complaint for an "other federal question violation," but fails to allege any facts to support his claim that an unidentified federal law is involved in this matter.
Plaintiff seeks permission to file his Complaint in forma pauperis pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1915. For the following reasons, Plaintiff's Motion to Proceed In Forma Pauperis is GRANTED and his Complaint is DISMISSED WITHOUT PREJUDICE.
If within twenty (20) calendar days from the date of this Order, Plaintiff is able to cure the deficiencies set forth in this Memorandum through an amended pleading, the Court will reopen Plaintiff's case. See Grayson v. Mayview State Hosp., 293 F.3d 103, 108 (3d Cir. 2002).
Under § 1915(a), a Court can allow a litigant to proceed without the prepayment of the required filing fee upon a showing of indigence. Deutsch v. United States, 67 F.3d 1080, 1084 n. 5 (3d Cir. 1995). Plaintiff has been unemployed since 1989, maintains $182.00 in his bank account, and, as his only form for income, receives $824.00 a month in disability payments. Therefore, after reviewing Plaintiff's application, this Court finds that Plaintiff qualifies as indigent, and it is ORDERED that his Motion to Proceed In Forma Pauperis is GRANTED.
However, Plaintiff's Complaint must be dismissed under § 1915(e)(2)(B)(ii) for failure to state a claim upon which relief may be granted as Plaintiff failed to comply with Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 8. Rule 8 mandates that a Complaint shall contain: "(1) a short and plain statement of the grounds upon which the court's jurisdiction depends . . . (2) a short and plain statement of the claim showing that the pleader is entitled to relief, and (3) a demand for judgment for the relief the pleader seeks." Fed.R.Civ.P. 8(a). Plaintiff's Complaint fails to set forth the grounds upon which this Court's jurisdiction depends. See Id.
Plaintiff's hand-written Complaint appears to arise out of a dispute over a check in the amount of $629.00 that he claims was fraudulent. Aside from this one incident involving a fraudulent check, Plaintiff's Complaint is otherwise vague as to any facts that support federal question jurisdiction. Accordingly, it is ORDERED that Plaintiff's Complaint is DISMISSED WITHOUT PREJUDICE.