DIXIT v. FAIRNOT

District Court, M.D. Georgia·Decided June 26, 2023·No. 7:19-cv-00194-WLS-TQL·Unknown

Opinion

IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE MIDDLE DISTRICT OF GEORGIA VALDOST DIVISION

AKASH DIXIT, : : Plaintiff, : v. : CASE NO: 7:19-CV-194 (WLS) :

: VINCENT FAIRNOT, , :

: Defendants. : ___________________________________ ORDER Before the Court is Plaintiff’s Motion to Proceed In Forma Pauperis and Paupers Affidavit for the Appeal (Doc. 152) (“Second IFP Motion”). By Notice of Appeal (Doc. 149) (“Second Appeal”) filed April 27, 2023,1 Plaintiff is appealing the Court’s Order (Doc. 146) and Judgment (Doc. 147) (“Appealed Order”) adopting the Order and Recommendation (“O&R”) (Doc. 140) of United States Magistrate Judge Thomas Q. Langstaff. The Appealed Order granted the Defendants’ Motion for Summary Judgment (Doc. 98) and denied the Plaintiff’s Motion for Partial Summary Judgment (Doc. 113).2 Plaintiff’s Second Appeal further indicates that he “also appeal[s] all the collateral orders leading up to the final order.” (Doc. 149 at 1) Plaintiff submitted a Declaration in Support of the Motion (Doc. 152 at 6-7) (“Second Declaration”) which is signed under penalty of perjury pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1746. After full review of the record and for the reasons stated below, Plaintiff’s Second IFP Motion (Doc. 152) is DENIED.

1 The Second IFP Motion indicates it is filed in connection with Plaintiff’s Notice of Interlocutory Appeal, filed March 10, 2022 (Doc. 118) (“First Appeal”). However, the Eleventh Circuit dismissed that appeal for lack of jurisdiction. (See Doc. 148; Dixit v. Fairnot, No. 22-10823-F (11th Cir. Apr. 5, 2023)). Therefore, the Court treats the Second IFP Motion as if Plaintiff’s intention was to reference his most recent Second Appeal (Doc. 149) filed on April 27, 2023. 2 The Appealed Order also denied Plaintiff’s motion to reconsider denial of Plaintiff’s motion to stay (Doc. 138) all proceedings in this Court so Plaintiff could file a motion requesting the Eleventh Circuit to reconsider its dismissal of his First Appeal for lack of jurisdiction. See supra n. 1. It is unclear whether Plaintiff is appealing the denial of his motion to reconsider the denial of this motion to stay which was also decided by the Appealed Order. I. BACKGROUND FACTS AND PROCEDURES On November 18, 2019, Plaintiff filed this civil rights complaint pursuant to Bivens v. Six Unknown Named Agents of Fed. Bureau of Narcotics, 403 U.S. 388 (1971) (Doc. 1). At that time, Plaintiff, a citizen of India, was a detainee of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (“ICE”) in the Irwin County Detention Center (“ICDC”) in Ocilla, Georgia. On January 31, 2020, Plaintiff was deported to India. (Doc. 152 at 6.) By prior order of this Court, Plaintiff’s deliberate indifference to a serious medical need claim, pertaining to dental care, was allowed to proceed against certain Defendants, and all other claims were dismissed. (Docs. 13, 29, 58.) On January 13, 2020, Plaintiff filed his recasted Complaint (Doc. 9) and on June 30, 2020, he filed an Amended Complaint (Doc. 23). After numerous pretrial matters were resolved, on December 20, 2021, the discovery period expired. (Docs. 132, 137.) Dispositive motions were due thirty days after the discovery period expired (or January 19, 2022). (Doc. 13 at 25.) On December 7, 2021, Defendants filed their Motion for Summary Judgment. On February 16, 2022, Plaintiff filed his untimely Motion for Partial Summary Judgment. In addition, Plaintiff filed a motion to recuse (Doc. 139). Prior to entering a decision on the pending motions for summary judgment, the Court fully reviewed and considered the motion to recuse. An Order (Doc. 145) (“Recusal Order”) denying the motion to recuse was entered on February 22, 2023 and the Appealed Order was entered on March 28, 2023 (Doc. 146). II. APPLICABLE LAW Applications to appeal in forma pauperis are governed by 28 U.S.C. § 1915 and Federal Rule of Appellate Procedure 24. 28 U.S.C. § 1915 provides: (a)(1) [A]ny court of the United States may authorize the commencement, prosecution or defense of any suit, action or proceeding, civil or criminal, or appeal therein, without prepayment of fees or security therefor, by a person who submits an affidavit that includes a statement of all assets such prisoner possesses that the person is unable to pay such fees or give security therefor. Such affidavit shall state the nature of the action, defense or appeal and affiant’s belief that the person is entitled to redress. . . . (3) An appeal may not be taken in forma pauperis if the trial court certifies in writing that it is not taken in good faith. Similarly, Appellate Rule 24(a) provides: (1) . . . [A] party to a district-court action who desires to appeal in forma pauperis must file a motion in the district court. The party must attach an affidavit that: (A) shows in the detail prescribed in Form 4 of the Appendix of Forms the party’s inability to pay or to give security for fees and costs; (B) claims an entitlement to redress; and (C) states the issues that the party intends to present on appeal. (2) . . . If the district court denies the motion, it must state its reasons in writing. Fed. R. App. P. 24(a). III. DISCUSSION The Court must make two determinations when faced with an application to proceed with an appeal in forma pauperis. First, it must determine whether the plaintiff is financially able to pay the filing fee required for an appeal. Additionally, “[a]n appeal may not be taken in forma pauperis if the trial court certifies in writing that it is not taken in good faith.” 28 U.S.C. § 1915(a)(3); Fed. R. App. P. 24. A. Plaintiff failed to provide sufficient information for the Court to conclude that he is unable to pay the $505 filing fee. As noted above, Plaintiff’s Second Declaration asserts that since September 9, 2016, he has not had a stable source of income (Doc. 152 at 6 ¶ 1). The Second Declaration is a duplicate of the declaration (Doc. 125 at 4-7) (“First Declaration”) attached to Plaintiff’s in forma pauperis motion (Doc. 125) (“First IFP Motion”) filed April 1, 2022, with respect to his First Appeal. A substantial portion of the Second Declaration relates to Plaintiff’s lack of income from September 2016 through his deportation on January 30, 2020, rather than his current income (Doc. 152 at 6 ¶¶ 1-9). Plaintiff asserts that since returning to India, more than three years ago, he has not been able to obtain employment in the institutions of higher learning—his area of competence—because of a hiring freeze, the corona virus pandemic, and his incarceration in the United States. (Id. ¶ 10) Plaintiff further asserts that he has mental health issues, and it is believed he is suffering from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. (Id. ¶¶ 10- 11) Finally, Plaintiff contends that his only income is $200 per month from tutoring children and that he “take[s] help from [his] parents to ease [his] boarding and lodging expenses.”3 (Id. ¶¶ 13-14). As mentioned above, the statements in Plaintiff’s Second Declaration are duplicative of those made more than a year ago in First Declaration. Plaintiff has not updated his financial information and has not explained his efforts to obtain a job outside

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