Peters v. Rosenthal

• Court: District Court, S.D. Texas
• Decided: February 15, 2022
• Docket: 4:22-cv-00312
• Status: Unknown

Opinion

□ Southern District of Texas ENTERED UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT February 18, 2022 SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF TEXAS Nathan Ochsner, Clerk HOUSTON DIVISION

MICHAEL G. PETERS, § TDCJ # 02019190, et al., § § Plaintiffs, § § VS. § CIVIL ACTION NO. H-22-00312 § LEE H ROSENTHAL, § § Defendant. § ORDER OF DISMISSAL State inmate Michael G. Peters (TDCJ #02019190) filed this complaint under 42 U.S.C. § 1983 against another federal district judge, alleging that she is aiding a national crime enterprise in Texas.! He moves to proceed in forma pauperis in this proceeding. Doc. No. 2. Because the plaintiff is an inmate who proceeds in forma pauperis, the Court is required by the Prison Litigation Reform Act (the “PLRA”) to scrutinize the complaint and dismiss the case, in whole or in part, if it determines that the action is frivolous, malicious, fails to state a claim upon which relief may be granted, or seeks monetary relief from a defendant who is immune from such relief. See 28 U.S.C. § 1915A(b); 28 U.S.C. § 1915(e)(2)(B).

! Peters attempts to join his minor child in this action as another plaintiff. However, as explained in Peters v. Atlas, Civ. A. No. H-22-080 (S.D. Tex. Jan. 13, 2022), a minor cannot proceed pro se and Peters may not represent him even as Next Friend. See id. (citing cases). Therefore, Peters is the sole plaintiff in this case and cannot circumvent the PLRA by attempting to add his minor child to this action. See id. 1/3

I. DISCUSSION Peters sues Lee H. Rosenthal, the Chief Judge of the United States District Court for the Southern District of Texas, who presided over several of his frivolous cases and/or dismissed his claims without prejudice under 28 U.S.C. § 1915(g). He seeks $20 million in personal injury damages. Doc. No. 1 at 4. Judges are generally immune from damages and suit for their actions completed in their official capacities. See Stump v. Sparkman, 435 U.S. 349, 364 (1978); Imbler v. Pachtman, 424 U.S. 409, 430-31 (1976). The doctrine of absolute judicial immunity protects judges not only from liability, but also from suit. Mireles v. Waco, 502 U.S. 9, 10 (1991). Allegations of bad faith do not overcome judicial immunity, id., and neither do allegations of procedural errors. See Mitchell v. McBryde, 944 F.2d 229, 230 (Sth Cir. 1991). judicial immunity is overcome only when the complained-of acts were not taken in the judge’s judicial capacity or when they were taken in the complete absence of all jurisdiction. Mireles, 502 U.S. at 11-12. Peters alleges that Judge Rosenthal and others unite to cover up a Texas racketeering organization and join other district judges by citing the “bogus” three-strike rule under 28 U.S.C. § 1915(g), among other things. Peters’s allegations against Judge Rosenthal concern her judicial actions and adverse decisions in his cases. Because Peters’s claims against Judge Rosenthal relate to actions undertaken in the exercise of her judicial function, she is immune from suit, and his claim against her must be dismissed.

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Il. ORDER Based on the foregoing, the Court ORDERS as follows: □ 1. This case is DISMISSED with prejudice as frivolous. 2. Peters’s motion to proceed in forma pauperis (Doc. No. 2) is GRANTED, and he is assessed an initial partial filing fee of $60.66. Thereafter, Plaintiff shall pay the remainder of the $350.00 filing fee in periodic installments as required by 28 U.S.C. § 1915(b). The TDCJ Inmate Trust Fund shall collect 20% of each month’s deposits from his trust account and forward it to the Clerk until the full filing fee is paid. 3. Any and all other pending motions are DENIED as MOOT. 4. This dismissal counts as a “strike” under 28 U.S.C. § 1915(g). The Clerk will send a copy of this order to the parties and to: (1) the TDCJ Inmate Trust Fund, P.O. Box 629, Huntsville, Texas 77342-0629, by email at ctfcourt.collections@tdcj.texas.gov for the collection of the filing fee as set forth above; and (2) the Manager of the Three-Strikes List for the Southern District of Texas at Three_Strikes@txs.uscourts.gov. WA. SIGNED at Houston, Texas, this / 5 day of February 2022. DARA ANDREW S. HANEN UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE

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