Long v. Cushenberry

• Court: District Court, District of Columbia
• Decided: December 30, 2010
• Docket: Civil Action No. 2010-2340
• Status: Published

Opinion

FILED UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT DEC 30 2010 Clerk, U.S. Distri FOR THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA Courts for the D/S~~ & Bankruptcy ct of COlumbia

KAREN F. LONG, ) ) Plaintiff, ) ) v. ) Civil Action NolO 2340 ) KENT CUSHENBERRY, ) ) Defendant. )

MEMORANDUM OPINION

On December 6,2010, the Clerk of Court received fifteen pro se complaints from the

plaintiff, and to each she attached an application to proceed in forma pauperis. The Court

consolidates these fifteen filings for purposes of this Memorandum Opinion.

Rule 8(a) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure requires that a complaint contain a short

and plain statement of the grounds upon which the court's jurisdiction depends, a short and plain

statement of the claim showing that the pleader is entitled to relief, and a demand for judgment

for the relief the pleader seeks. Fed. R. Civ. P. 8(a). The purpose of the minimum standard of

Rule 8 is to give fair notice to the defendants of the claim being asserted, sufficient to prepare a

responsive answer, to prepare an adequate defense and to determine whether the doctrine of res

judicata applies. Brown v. Califano, 75 F.R.D. 497, 498 (D.D.C. 1977).

The plaintiffs complaints are utterly incomprehensible. It is impossible to decipher what

claim or claims the plaintiff brings, and under no circumstances could the defendants craft proper

responses. The pleadings contain neither a short and plain statement ofthis court's jurisdiction,

N 3 nor a short and plain statement showing the plaintiff s entitlement to relief, nor a demand for any

particular relief. Instead, the complaints consist of "scribbling and disjointed phrases [which]

fail[] to provide any notice of a claim or the basis of federal court jurisdiction." Long v. Lanier,

No. 10-2108 (D.D.C. Dec. 13,2010) (Memorandum Opinion). Accordingly, the complaints will

be dismissed because they fail to comply with Rule 8(a).l An Order consistent with this

Memorandum Opinion is issued separately.

United States District Judge DATE:

The plaintiff is advised that, because she has filed several similar complaints recently, the Court may impose restrictions on her ability to file cases in this Court.