Staten v. Buchanan

CourtDistrict Court, E.D. Wisconsin
DecidedAugust 28, 2020
Docket2:20-cv-01009
StatusUnknown

This text of Staten v. Buchanan (Staten v. Buchanan) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, E.D. Wisconsin primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Staten v. Buchanan, (E.D. Wis. 2020).

Opinion

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT EASTERN DISTRICT OF WISCONSIN

DESHAUN STATEN,

Plaintiff,

v. Case No. 20-CV-1009

L. BUCHANAN, GARETH FITZPATRICK, DR. KELSEY STANGE, DR. DANIEL NORGE, LARRY FUCHS, KEVIN GARCEAU, GWEN SHULTZ, LINDSEY WALKER, MARY LARSON, T. MILLER, and DENISE VALERIUS,

Defendants.

ORDER

Plaintiff Deshaun Staten, a prisoner at Columbia Correctional Institution (CCI) who is representing himself, filed a civil rights complaint under 42 U.S.C. § 1983 on July 6, 2020, alleging that the defendants violated his constitutional rights. (ECF No. 1.) That same day he filed a motion for a preliminary injunction. (ECF No. 2). He also filed a motion to use funds from his release account to pay for his trust account statement (ECF No. 7) and a motion to screen the complaint. (ECF No. 10.) Not all parties have had the opportunity to fully consent to magistrate judge jurisdiction under 28 U.S.C. § 636(c). Nonetheless, the court has jurisdiction to screen the amended complaint under the Wisconsin Department of Justice’s limited consent to the exercise of magistrate judge jurisdiction as set forth in the Memorandum of Understanding between the Wisconsin Department of Justice and this court. This order resolves Staten’s motions and screens his complaint. Motion for Leave to Proceed without Prepaying the Filing Fee

The Prison Litigation Reform Act (PLRA) applies to this case because Staten was a prisoner when he filed his complaint. See 28 U.S.C. § 1915(h). The PLRA allows the court to give a prisoner plaintiff the ability to proceed with his case without prepaying the civil case filing fee. 28 U.S.C. § 1915(a)(2). When funds exist, the prisoner must pay an initial partial filing fee. 28 U.S.C. § 1915(b)(1). He must then pay the balance of the $350 filing fee over time, through deductions from his prisoner

account. Id On July 14, 2020, Staten filed a motion for leave to proceed without prepayment of the filing fee. (ECF No. 6.) On July 16, 2020, the court ordered Staten to pay the initial partial filing fee of $1.45 by August 6, 2020. Staten paid the initial partial filing fee on August 7, 2020. The court will grant Staten’s motion for leave to proceed without prepayment of the filing fee and allow him to pay the remainder of the filing fee over time in the manner explained at the end of this order.

Motion to Pay Fee for Trust Account Statement out of Release Account Staten also filed a motion requesting that the court order CCI to deduct the fees for his trust account statement out of his release account. (ECF No. 7.) According to Staten, the fee to print out his six-month trust account statement would not be more than $1.00. He claims that, if the court does not allow him to pay for this fee out of his release account, he will suffer the irreparable harm of having the claim dismissed. This court lacks the authority—statutory or otherwise—to order that a

prisoner be allowed to tap into his release account to pay current (or future) litigation costs. Cf. Wilson v. Anderson, No. 14-CV-0798, 2014 WL 3671878, at *3 (E.D. Wis. July 23, 2014) (declining to order that a prisoner’s full filing fee be paid from his release account, “[g]iven the [DOC’s] rationale for segregating funds into a release account” and the absence of any statutory authority allowing the court to do so). Denying prisoners the use of their release accounts to fund litigation costs is

also prudent given that those accounts are “restricted account[s] maintained by the [DOC] to be used upon the prisoner’s release from custody.” Id. Permitting a prisoner to invade that account for litigation costs could be a detriment to that prisoner’s likelihood of success post-incarceration, see Wis. Admin. Code § DOC 309.466 (stating that disbursements from a prisoner’s release account are authorized “for purposes that will aid the inmate’s reintegration into the community”), especially if the prisoner is overly litigious. Considering the stated purpose of the release account, the

court denies his motion. Motion to Screen the Complaint On August 26, 2020, Staten filed a motion requesting the court to expedite screening the complaint. (ECF No. 10.) Because the court is now screening his complaint, his motion is moot. However, in his motion, Staten states that, once the complaint is screened and defendants have answered, he will be ready to file his motion and brief for summary judgment. (ECF No. 10 at 1.) The court cautions Staten that, if his claims survive screening, he must abide

by the scheduling order the court will issue after the defendants answer the amended complaint. Discovery should not be served until the court issues a scheduling order. Screening of the Complaint Under the PLRA, the court must screen complaints brought by prisoners seeking relief from a governmental entity or officer or employee of a governmental

entity. 28 U.S.C. § 1915A(a). The court must dismiss a complaint if the prisoner raises claims that are legally “frivolous or malicious,” that fail to state a claim upon which relief may be granted, or that seek monetary relief from a defendant who is immune from such relief. 28 U.S.C. § 1915A(b). In determining whether the complaint states a claim, the court applies the same standard that applies to dismissals under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 12(b)(6). See Cesal v. Moats, 851 F.3d 714, 720 (7th Cir. 2017) (citing Booker-El v.

Superintendent, Ind. State Prison, 668 F.3d 896, 899 (7th Cir. 2012)). To state a claim, a complaint must include “a short and plain statement of the claim showing that the pleader is entitled to relief.” Fed. R. Civ. P. 8(a)(2). The complaint must contain enough facts, accepted as true, to “state a claim for relief that is plausible on its face.” Ashcroft v. Iqbal, 556 U.S. 662, 678 (2009) (quoting Bell Atlantic Corp. v. Twombly, 550 U.S. 544, 570 (2007)). “A claim has facial plausibility when the plaintiff pleads factual content that allows a court to draw the reasonable inference that the defendant is liable for the misconduct alleged.” Id. (citing Twombly, 550 U.S. at 556). To state a claim for relief under 42 U.S.C. § 1983 a plaintiff must allege that

someone deprived him of a right secured by the Constitution or the laws of the United States, and that whoever deprived him of this right was acting under color of state law. D.S. v. E. Porter Cty. Sch. Corp., 799 F.3d 793, 798 (7th Cir. 2015) (citing Buchanan–Moore v. Cty. of Milwaukee,

Related

Haines v. Kerner
404 U.S. 519 (Supreme Court, 1972)
Estelle v. Gamble
429 U.S. 97 (Supreme Court, 1976)
Bell Atlantic Corp. v. Twombly
550 U.S. 544 (Supreme Court, 2007)
Ashcroft v. Iqbal
556 U.S. 662 (Supreme Court, 2009)
Owens v. Hinsley
635 F.3d 950 (Seventh Circuit, 2011)
Booker-El v. Superintendent, Indiana State Prison
668 F.3d 896 (Seventh Circuit, 2012)
Wheeler v. Wexford Health Sources, Inc.
689 F.3d 680 (Seventh Circuit, 2012)
Buchanan-Moore v. County of Milwaukee
570 F.3d 824 (Seventh Circuit, 2009)
Burks v. Raemisch
555 F.3d 592 (Seventh Circuit, 2009)
George v. Smith
507 F.3d 605 (Seventh Circuit, 2007)
Woods v. Buss
496 F.3d 620 (Seventh Circuit, 2007)
Cyril Korte v. HHS
735 F.3d 654 (Seventh Circuit, 2013)
Miguel Perez v. James Fenoglio
792 F.3d 768 (Seventh Circuit, 2015)
D. S. v. East Porter County School Corp
799 F.3d 793 (Seventh Circuit, 2015)
Devose v. Herrington
42 F.3d 470 (Eighth Circuit, 1994)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
Staten v. Buchanan, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/staten-v-buchanan-wied-2020.