Lawtone-Bowles v. Baum

Opinion

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF NEW YORK NICOLE LAWTONE-BOWLES, Plaintiff, 25-CV-1218 (LTS) -against- ORDER STEVEN J. BAUM, et al., Defendants. LAURA TAYLOR SWAIN, Chief United States District Judge: Plaintiff, proceeding pro se, has filed a motion “for an order permitting the submission of exhibits as proof in support of her claims under the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO) Act.” (ECF 7.) At the pleading stage, a plaintiff’s complaint need only make a short and plain statement statement showing that the pleader is entitled to relief. A complaint states a claim for relief if the claim is plausible, Ashcroft v. Iqbal, 556 U.S. 662, 678- 79 (2009) (citing Bell Atl. Corp. v. Twombly, 550 U.S. 544, 555 (2007)), and a plaintiff need not submit evidence with her complaint. Because Plaintiff indicates that she wishes to include the attached exhibits, the Court treats the exhibits attached to the motion (ECF 7) as a supplement to and a part of the operative complaint (ECF 1).1 CONCLUSION Plaintiff’s request for an “ order permitting the submission of exhibits” (ECF 7) is granted to the extent that the exhibits attached to the motion are deemed part of the operative

1 The Court notes that “treating an exhibit as part of the pleading does not require accepting the contents of the exhibit as true.” Lively v. WAFRA Inv. Advisory Grp., Inc., 6 F.4th 293, 305 (2d Cir. 2021). complaint. The Court directs the Clerk of Court to terminate the motion (ECF 7). The Court certifies under 28 U.S.C. § 1915(a)(3) that any appeal from this order would not be taken in good faith, and therefore in forma pauperis status is denied for the purpose of an appeal. Cf. Coppedge v. United States, 369 U.S. 438, 444-45 (1962) (holding that an appellant

demonstrates good faith when he seeks review of a nonfrivolous issue). SO ORDERED. Dated: June 24, 2025 New York, New York

/s/ Laura Taylor Swain LAURA TAYLOR SWAIN Chief United States District Judge