Lance Dupard v. C. Cosio, Sheriff Deputy

District Court, S.D. California·Decided July 13, 2026·No. 3:26-cv-03221·Unknown

Opinion

Lance DUPARD, Case No.: 26-cv-03221-WQH-DEB Booking No. 25754224, ORDER (1) GRANTING MOTION Plaintiff, v. PAUPERIS AND (2) SCREENING PRO SE § 1983 COMPLAINT C. COSIO, Sheriff Deputy, Defendant. (ECF Nos. 1, 2)

HAYES, Judge: In this civil-rights suit filed under 42 U.S.C. § 1983, Plaintiff Lance Wilson Dupard, proceeding pro se while housed at the George Bailey Detention Facility (“GBDF”), claims a San Diego County Sheriff Deputy violated several of his constitutional rights when he handcuffed Dupard during a housing unit laundry exchange on April 29, 2026. (ECF No. 1 at 3–8.) Dupard did not pay the filing fee but instead has filed a motion to proceed in forma pauperis (“IFP”) under 28 U.S.C. § 1915(a). (ECF No. 2.) As explained below, the Court GRANTS Dupard’s IFP motion and SCREENS his Complaint under 28 U.S.C. §§ 1915(e)(2) and 1915A(b). The Court finds Dupard adequately alleges an excessive force claim against Defendant Cosio in Count One. But the Court finds he fails to state any plausible claim for relief in Counts Two and Three, which miscellaneously allege violations related to retaliation, free speech, race discrimination, and “personal injury.” (ECF No. 1 at 3, 7, 8.) Therefore, the Court ORDERS Dupard to either file an Amended Complaint that addresses the pleading deficiencies discussed below, or a Notice of Intent to Proceed with the excessive force claim alleged in Count One of his current Complaint. Anyone instituting a civil action in a district court of the United States must typically pay a filing fee of $405—consisting of a $350 statutory fee plus an additional $55 administrative fee—although the administrative fee does not apply to persons granted leave to proceed IFP. See 28 U.S.C. § 1914(a) (Judicial Conference Schedule of Fees, District Court Misc. Fee Schedule, § 14 (eff. Dec. 1, 2023)). The action may proceed despite a plaintiff’s failure to prepay the entire fee only if he is granted leave to proceed IFP. See Andrews v. Cervantes, 493 F.3d 1047, 1051 (9th Cir. 2007). “While the previous version of the IFP statute granted courts the authority to waive fees for any person ‘unable to pay[,]’ . . . the PLRA [Prison Litigation Reform Act] amended the IFP statute to include a carve-out for prisoners.” Hymas v. U.S. Dep’t of the Interior, 73 F.4th 763, 767 (9th Cir. 2023). Namely, “if a prisoner brings a civil action or files an appeal in forma pauperis, the prisoner ‘shall be required to pay the full amount of a filing fee.’” Id. (quoting 28 U.S.C. § 1915(b)(1)). Section 1915(b) “provides a structured timeline for collecting this fee.” Id. (citing 28 U.S.C. § 1915(b)(1)-(2)). First, prisoners must submit a “certified copy of the[ir] trust fund account statement (or institutional equivalent) for . . . the 6-month period immediately preceding the filing of the complaint.” 28 U.S.C. § 1915(a)(2). Next, the Court assesses an initial payment of 20% of the greater of (a) “the average monthly deposits to the prisoner’s account” or (b) “the average monthly balance in the prisoner’s account for the 6-month period immediately preceding the filing of the complaint.” See 28 U.S.C. §§ 1915(b)(1) & (4); Bruce v. Samuels, 577 U.S. 82, 84 (2016). Unless the prisoner has no assets, prisoners who proceed IFP must pay the initial partial assessed fee and whatever balance remains in installments regardless of whether their case is ultimately dismissed. 28 U.S.C. § 1915(b)(1) & (2); Bruce, 577 U.S. at 84. Dupard has provided a trust account statement and certificate from GBDF showing he had an average monthly balance of $22.00 during the 6-month period preceding the filing of his Complaint, average monthly deposits of $22.00, and an available balance of $0.08 at the time of filing. (ECF No. 2 at 4, 6.) The Court, therefore, finds Dupard cannot pay any initial filing fee, grants his IFP motion, and orders payment of the entire fee balance in installments. See 28 U.S.C. § 1915(b)(2); Taylor v. Delatoore, 281 F.3d 844, 850 (9th Cir. 2022) (“[U]nder [28 U.S.C. § 1915(b)(4)’s] safety-valve provision, ‘[i]n no event shall a prisoner be prohibited from bringing a civil action ... for the reason that the prisoner has no assets and no means by which to pay the initial partial filing fee.’”). A. Legal Standard Because Dupard was imprisoned or detained at the time of filing and is proceeding IFP, his Complaint requires preliminary screening pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1915(e)(2) and § 1915A(b). “On review, the court shall . . . dismiss the complaint, or any portion of the complaint,” if it “(1) is frivolous, malicious, or fails to state a claim upon which relief may be granted; or (2) seeks monetary relief from a defendant who is immune from such relief.” Olivas v. Nevada ex rel. Dep’t of Corr., 856 F.3d 1281, 1283 (9th Cir. 2017) (quoting 28 U.S.C. § 1915A(b)). “The standard for dismissal for prisoner claims at screening is the same as the Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 12(b)(6) standard for failure to state a claim.” Long v. Sugai, 91 F.4th 1331, 1336 (9th Cir. 2024) (citing Watison v. Carter, 668 F.3d 1108, 1112 (9th Cir. 2012)); Wilhelm v. Rotman, 680 F.3d 1113, 1121 (9th Cir. 2012) (Section 1915A screening “incorporates the familiar standard applied in the context of failure to state a claim under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 12(b)(6).”). Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 8 “prescribes the information a plaintiff must present about the merits of his claim at the outset of litigation.” Berk v. Choy, 607 U.S. 187, 193 (2026). Together Rules 8 and 12(b)(6) require a complaint to “contain sufficient factual matter, accepted as true, to ‘state a claim to relief that is plausible on its face.’” Ashcroft v. Iqbal, 556 U.S. 662, 678 (2009) (quoting Bell Atlantic Corp. v. Twombly, 550 U.S. 544, 570 (2007)).1 Detailed factual allegations are unnecessary, but “[t]hreadbare recitals of the elements of a cause of ac

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