1 2 3 4 5 6 UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT 7 SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA 8 9 STEVEN JOHN OLSON, Case No.: 3:19-cv-01517-JAH-BLM Booking #19705513, 10 ORDER DISMISSING CIVIL Plaintiff, 11 ACTION WITHOUT PREJUDICE vs. FOR FAILING TO PAY 12 FILING FEE REQUIRED U.S. TREASURY DEPARTMENT, et al., 13 BY 28 U.S.C. § 1914(a), FAILING Defendants. TO MOVE TO PROCEED IN 14 FORMA PAUPERIS PURSUANT 15 TO 28 U.S.C. § 1915(a), AND FAILING TO COMPLY WITH 16 Fed. R. Civ. P. 3, 8(a)(1)-(3) 17 AND 12(h)(3) 18 19 Steven John Olson (“Plaintiff”), while detained at the San Diego Central Jail, and 20 proceeding pro se, has filed a civil complaint entitled “Constitutional and Civil Human 21 Rights Violations.” (See Compl., ECF No. 1 at 1.) 22 As far as the Court can decipher, it appears Plaintiff seeks to sue the U.S. Treasury, 23 NASA Apollo Missions, Napa Wine Country, and the State of California, among others, 24 for discriminating against him as a “handicapped disabled veteran,” causing him “financial 25 problems,” and somehow contributing to his December 2018 arrest by the Escondido 26 Police Department. (Id. at 1-4.) He includes drawings, photographs, and portions of 27 newspaper clipping about a WWII survivor of the Battle of the Bulge, but his pleading is 28 essentially incomprehensible. (Id. at 1-15.) 1 I. Failure to Pay Filing Fee or Request IFP Status 2 However, all parties instituting any civil action, suit or proceeding in any district 3 court of the United States, except an application for writ of habeas corpus, must pay a filing 4 fee of $400. See 28 U.S.C. § 1914(a).1 An action may proceed despite a party’s failure to 5 pay this filing fee only if the party is granted leave to proceed in forma pauperis (“IFP”) 6 pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1915(a). See Andrews v. Cervantes, 493 F.3d 1047, 1051 (9th Cir. 7 2007); Rodriguez v. Cook, 169 F.3d 1176, 1177 (9th Cir. 1999). 8 Plaintiff has not prepaid the $400 in filing and administrative fees required to 9 commence a civil action, and he has not filed a Motion to Proceed IFP in compliance with 10 28 U.S.C. § 1915(a). Therefore, no civil action can yet proceed. See 28 U.S.C. § 1914(a); 11 Andrews, 493 F.3d at 1051. 12 II. Initial Review of Plaintiff’s Pleadings 13 “The first step in a civil action in a United States district court is the filing of [a] 14 complaint with the clerk or the judge.” 4 Wright, Miller, Kane, Marcus & Steinman, Fed. 15 Prac. & Proc. Civ. § 1052 (3d ed. 2002 & Supp. Aug. 2019); Fed. R. Civ. P. 3 (“A civil 16 action is commenced by filing a complaint with the court.”) (emphasis added). Pursuant to 17 FED. R. CIV. P. 8(a), every complaint must contain: “(1) a short and plain statement of the 18 grounds for the court’s jurisdiction,” ... (2) a short and plain statement showing that the 19 pleader is entitled to relief; and (3) a demand for the relief sought.” Fed. R. Civ. P. 8(a)(1)- 20 (3). 21 Federal courts have limited jurisdiction, and limitations on the court’s jurisdiction 22 “must neither be disregarded nor evaded.” Moore v. Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office, 657 23 F.3d 890, 894 (9th Cir. 2011) (citing Owen Equip. & Erection Co. v. Kroger, 437 U.S. 365, 24 374 (1978)). The Court must determine sua sponte whether it has subject matter 25 26 1 In addition to the $350 statutory fee, civil litigants must pay an additional administrative 27 fee of $50. See 28 U.S.C. § 1914(a) (Judicial Conference Schedule of Fees, District Court Misc. Fee Schedule, § 14 (eff. June 1, 2016). The additional $50 administrative fee does 28 not apply to persons granted leave to proceed IFP. Id. 1 jurisdiction. See Valdez v. Allstate Ins. Co., 372 F.3d 1115, 1116 (9th Cir. 2004). See also 2 Fed. R. Civ. P. 12(h)(3) (“If the court determines at any time that it lacks subject-matter 3 jurisdiction, the court must dismiss the action.”). Here, while Plaintiff may wish to file a 4 civil rights action, or some claim for relief based on his status as a disabled veteran, his 5 current Complaint fails to invoke federal subject matter jurisdiction pursuant to 42 U.S.C. 6 § 1983, 28 U.S.C. § 1343(a)(3) or 42 U.S.C. § 12132. See Watson v. Chessman, 362 F. 7 Supp. 2d 1190, 1194 (S.D. Cal. 2005) (“The court will not ... infer allegations supporting 8 federal jurisdiction; federal subject matter [jurisdiction] must always be affirmatively 9 alleged.”). 10 Plaintiff’s Complaint also fails to allege any discernible claim to relief that is 11 “plausible on its face,” Ashcroft v. Iqbal, U.S. 662, 678 (2009) (citation omitted), and 12 therefore, it must be dismissed sua sponte pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1915A(b), regardless of 13 his IFP status. See Hamilton v. Brown, 630 F.3d 889, 892 n.3 (9th Cir. 2011) (noting court’s 14 obligation under the Prison Litigation Reform Act to “review, before docketing or as soon 15 thereafter as practicable, any civil action brought by a prisoner seeking redress from a 16 governmental entity, officer or employee,” and its requirement to dismiss complaints or 17 any portion thereof that are “frivolous, malicious, or fails to state a claim upon which relief 18 may be granted,” or “seek[ing] monetary relief from a defendant who is immune” pursuant 19 to 28 U.S.C. § 1915A(a), (b)). 20 Because Plaintiff is proceeding without counsel, however, the Court will grant him 21 an opportunity to amend. As noted above, however, Plaintiff’s Amended Complaint must 22 comply with Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 8. “Each allegation [in a pleading] must be 23 simple, concise, and direct. No technical form is required.” Fed. R. Civ. P. 8(d)(1).
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1 2 3 4 5 6 UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT 7 SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA 8 9 STEVEN JOHN OLSON, Case No.: 3:19-cv-01517-JAH-BLM Booking #19705513, 10 ORDER DISMISSING CIVIL Plaintiff, 11 ACTION WITHOUT PREJUDICE vs. FOR FAILING TO PAY 12 FILING FEE REQUIRED U.S. TREASURY DEPARTMENT, et al., 13 BY 28 U.S.C. § 1914(a), FAILING Defendants. TO MOVE TO PROCEED IN 14 FORMA PAUPERIS PURSUANT 15 TO 28 U.S.C. § 1915(a), AND FAILING TO COMPLY WITH 16 Fed. R. Civ. P. 3, 8(a)(1)-(3) 17 AND 12(h)(3) 18 19 Steven John Olson (“Plaintiff”), while detained at the San Diego Central Jail, and 20 proceeding pro se, has filed a civil complaint entitled “Constitutional and Civil Human 21 Rights Violations.” (See Compl., ECF No. 1 at 1.) 22 As far as the Court can decipher, it appears Plaintiff seeks to sue the U.S. Treasury, 23 NASA Apollo Missions, Napa Wine Country, and the State of California, among others, 24 for discriminating against him as a “handicapped disabled veteran,” causing him “financial 25 problems,” and somehow contributing to his December 2018 arrest by the Escondido 26 Police Department. (Id. at 1-4.) He includes drawings, photographs, and portions of 27 newspaper clipping about a WWII survivor of the Battle of the Bulge, but his pleading is 28 essentially incomprehensible. (Id. at 1-15.) 1 I. Failure to Pay Filing Fee or Request IFP Status 2 However, all parties instituting any civil action, suit or proceeding in any district 3 court of the United States, except an application for writ of habeas corpus, must pay a filing 4 fee of $400. See 28 U.S.C. § 1914(a).1 An action may proceed despite a party’s failure to 5 pay this filing fee only if the party is granted leave to proceed in forma pauperis (“IFP”) 6 pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1915(a). See Andrews v. Cervantes, 493 F.3d 1047, 1051 (9th Cir. 7 2007); Rodriguez v. Cook, 169 F.3d 1176, 1177 (9th Cir. 1999). 8 Plaintiff has not prepaid the $400 in filing and administrative fees required to 9 commence a civil action, and he has not filed a Motion to Proceed IFP in compliance with 10 28 U.S.C. § 1915(a). Therefore, no civil action can yet proceed. See 28 U.S.C. § 1914(a); 11 Andrews, 493 F.3d at 1051. 12 II. Initial Review of Plaintiff’s Pleadings 13 “The first step in a civil action in a United States district court is the filing of [a] 14 complaint with the clerk or the judge.” 4 Wright, Miller, Kane, Marcus & Steinman, Fed. 15 Prac. & Proc. Civ. § 1052 (3d ed. 2002 & Supp. Aug. 2019); Fed. R. Civ. P. 3 (“A civil 16 action is commenced by filing a complaint with the court.”) (emphasis added). Pursuant to 17 FED. R. CIV. P. 8(a), every complaint must contain: “(1) a short and plain statement of the 18 grounds for the court’s jurisdiction,” ... (2) a short and plain statement showing that the 19 pleader is entitled to relief; and (3) a demand for the relief sought.” Fed. R. Civ. P. 8(a)(1)- 20 (3). 21 Federal courts have limited jurisdiction, and limitations on the court’s jurisdiction 22 “must neither be disregarded nor evaded.” Moore v. Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office, 657 23 F.3d 890, 894 (9th Cir. 2011) (citing Owen Equip. & Erection Co. v. Kroger, 437 U.S. 365, 24 374 (1978)). The Court must determine sua sponte whether it has subject matter 25 26 1 In addition to the $350 statutory fee, civil litigants must pay an additional administrative 27 fee of $50. See 28 U.S.C. § 1914(a) (Judicial Conference Schedule of Fees, District Court Misc. Fee Schedule, § 14 (eff. June 1, 2016). The additional $50 administrative fee does 28 not apply to persons granted leave to proceed IFP. Id. 1 jurisdiction. See Valdez v. Allstate Ins. Co., 372 F.3d 1115, 1116 (9th Cir. 2004). See also 2 Fed. R. Civ. P. 12(h)(3) (“If the court determines at any time that it lacks subject-matter 3 jurisdiction, the court must dismiss the action.”). Here, while Plaintiff may wish to file a 4 civil rights action, or some claim for relief based on his status as a disabled veteran, his 5 current Complaint fails to invoke federal subject matter jurisdiction pursuant to 42 U.S.C. 6 § 1983, 28 U.S.C. § 1343(a)(3) or 42 U.S.C. § 12132. See Watson v. Chessman, 362 F. 7 Supp. 2d 1190, 1194 (S.D. Cal. 2005) (“The court will not ... infer allegations supporting 8 federal jurisdiction; federal subject matter [jurisdiction] must always be affirmatively 9 alleged.”). 10 Plaintiff’s Complaint also fails to allege any discernible claim to relief that is 11 “plausible on its face,” Ashcroft v. Iqbal, U.S. 662, 678 (2009) (citation omitted), and 12 therefore, it must be dismissed sua sponte pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1915A(b), regardless of 13 his IFP status. See Hamilton v. Brown, 630 F.3d 889, 892 n.3 (9th Cir. 2011) (noting court’s 14 obligation under the Prison Litigation Reform Act to “review, before docketing or as soon 15 thereafter as practicable, any civil action brought by a prisoner seeking redress from a 16 governmental entity, officer or employee,” and its requirement to dismiss complaints or 17 any portion thereof that are “frivolous, malicious, or fails to state a claim upon which relief 18 may be granted,” or “seek[ing] monetary relief from a defendant who is immune” pursuant 19 to 28 U.S.C. § 1915A(a), (b)). 20 Because Plaintiff is proceeding without counsel, however, the Court will grant him 21 an opportunity to amend. As noted above, however, Plaintiff’s Amended Complaint must 22 comply with Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 8. “Each allegation [in a pleading] must be 23 simple, concise, and direct. No technical form is required.” Fed. R. Civ. P. 8(d)(1). “‘While 24 the proper length and level of clarity for a pleading cannot be defined with any great 25 precision,’ Rule 8(a) has ‘been held to be violated by a pleading that was … highly 26 repetitious, or confused, or consisted of incomprehensible rambling.’” Cafasso v. Gen’l 27 Dynamics C4 Systems, Inc., 637 F.3d 1047, 1059 (9th Cir. 2011) (quoting 5 Wright & 28 Miller, Fed. Prac. & Proc., § 1217 (3d ed. & Supp. Aug. 2019)); see also Hearns v. San 1 Bernardino Police Dept., 530 F.3d 1124, 1132 (9th Cir. 2008) (“[I]t is not the district 2 court’s job to stitch together cognizable claims for relief from [a] wholly deficient 3 pleading.”) (citation omitted); Morrison v. United States, 270 F. App’x 514, 515 (9th Cir. 4 2008) (affirming Rule 8 dismissal of pro se complaint “contain[ing] a confusing array of 5 vague and undeveloped allegations,” and which “did not allege sufficient facts or 6 jurisdictional basis for any federal claim for relief.”). 7 In addition, Plaintiff is cautioned that if he files an Amended Complaint pursuant to 8 42 U.S.C. § 1983, it too will be subject to another initial screening and that it will be 9 dismissed sua sponte pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1915A(b) (because he is a prisoner) or 28 10 U.S.C. § 1915(e)(2) (if he files a motion to proceed IFP) for failing to state a claim unless 11 it contains factual matter sufficient to plausibly show that: (1) a right secured by the 12 Constitution or laws of the United States was violated; and (2) the alleged violation was 13 committed by a person acting under color of state law. Campbell v. Washington Dep’t of 14 Soc. Servs., 671 F.3d 837, 842 n.5 (9th Cir. 2011). “Because vicarious liability is 15 inapplicable to ... § 1983 suits,” he must also plead that each Government-official 16 defendant he wishes to sue, “through the official’s own individual actions, has violated the 17 Constitution.” Iqbal, 556 U.S. at 676 (emphasis added). “[A] complaint must contain 18 sufficient factual matter, accepted as true, to state a claim to relief that is plausible on its 19 face.” Id. at 678. “Under this rule, a claim must contain ‘more than labels and conclusions’ 20 or a ‘formulaic recitation of the elements of the cause of action.’” Sheppard v. Evans & 21 Assoc., 694 F.3d 1045, 1048 (9th Cir. 2012) (quoting Bell Atlantic Corp. v. Twombly, 550 22 U.S. 544, 555 (2007)). 23 III. Conclusion and Order 24 For the reasons explained, the Court: 25 1. DISMISSES this civil action without prejudice based on Plaintiff’s failure to 26 pay the $400 filing fee required by 28 U.S.C. § 1914(a), failure to file a Motion to Proceed 27 IFP pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1915(a), and his failure to file a Complaint which alleges 28 /// 1 || federal subject matter jurisdiction pursuant to Fed. R. Civ. P. 3, 8(a)(1)-(3), and 12(h)(3); 2 || and, 3 2. GRANTS Plaintiff forty-five (45) days leave from the date of this Order to 4 || re-open the case by: (a) prepaying the entire $400 civil filing fee in full; or (b) completing 5 filing a Motion to Proceed IFP which includes a certified copy of his trust account 6 ||statement for the 6-month period preceding the filing of his Complaint, see 28 U.S.C. 7 1915(a)(2); S.D. Cal. CivLR 3.2(b); and (c) filing an Amended Complaint that conforms 8 || with Rule 8. 9 If Plaintiff fails to comply with these directions within the time provided, this civil 10 || action will remain dismissed without prejudice for the reasons set forth in this Order and 11 || without any further action by the Court. 12 IT IS SO ORDERED. 13 14 || Dated: September 27, 2019 Mk 15 16 jf Hon. John A. Houston 7 United States District Judge 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 5