Moretto v. Centurion

• Court: District Court, M.D. Florida
• Decided: August 6, 2025
• Docket: 2:25-cv-00675
• Status: Unknown

Opinion

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT MIDDLE DISTRICT OF FLORIDA FORT MYERS DIVISION

STEPHEN MORETTO,

Plaintiff,

v. Case No.: 2:25-cv-00675-SPC-KCD

CENTURION, BINGMAN, SCARPATI, GREENBERG, AND PIGMAN,

Defendants, /

OPINION AND ORDER Before the Court is Plaintiff Stephen Moretto’s Complaint for Violation of Civil Rights (Doc. 1). Moretto—a prisoner of the Florida Department of Corrections—moves for leave to proceed in forma pauperis. (Doc. 2). Because Moretto is barred from doing so under 28 U.S.C. § 1915(g), the Court dismisses this action without prejudice. Under § 1915(g), a prisoner cannot proceed in forma pauperis if “on 3 or more prior occasions, while incarcerated or detained in any facility, [he] brought an action or appeal in a [federal] court…that was dismissed on the grounds that it is frivolous, malicious, or fails to state a claim upon which relief can be granted[.]” 28 U.S.C. § 1915(g); see Lomax v. Ortiz-Martinez, 140 S. Ct. 1721, 1723 (2020) (“To help staunch a ‘flood of nonmeritorious’ prisoner litigation, the Prisoner Litigation Reform Act of 1995 established what has become known as the three-strikes rule.” (citation omitted)). Dismissals for

abuse of the judicial process may also qualify as strikes. Allen v. Clark, 266 F. App’x 815, 816 (11th Cir. 2008). The Court takes judicial notice of four prior federal lawsuits Moretto filed in this district, all of which were filed before this case and qualify as

strikes: Case Nos. (1) 2:21-cv-779-JLB-KCD (frivolous and malicious); (2) 2:23- cv-755-JES-NPM (failure to state a claim); (3) 2:23-cv-880-JES-KCD (abuse of the judicial process); and (4) 2:23-cv-881-SPC-NPM (failure to state a claim). Moretto is not exempt from § 1915(g)’s three-strikes rule, as the complaint does

not allege he is in imminent danger of serious physical injury. Mitchell v. Nobles, 873 F.3d 869, 872 (11th Cir. 2017). The Court thus dismisses the complaint without prejudice. If Moretto wishes to pursue his claims, he must file a new complaint—under a new case

number—and pay the filing fee. Accordingly, it is ORDERED: 1. Plaintiff Stephen Moretto’s Complaint for Violation of Civil Rights

(Doc. 1) is DISMISSED without prejudice under 28 U.S.C. § 1915(g). 2. The Clerk is DIRECTED to enter judgment, terminate any pending motions and deadlines, and close this case. DONE AND ORDERED in Fort Myers, Florida on August 6, 2025.

, tit WOblatet he 7 UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE

SA: FTMP-1