Source: s3://data.kl3m.ai/documents/govinfo/USCOURTS/USCOURTS-cand-4_19-cv-00299/USCOURTS-cand-4_19-cv-00299-1/pdf.json

Nature of Suit Code: 555
Nature of Suit: Prisoner - Prison Condition
Cause of Action: 42:1983 Prisoner Civil Rights

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United States District Court

Northern District of California

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

NORTHERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA

AARON STRIBLING,

Plaintiff,

v.

DEPARTMENT OF STATE HOSPITALS, 

et al.,

Defendants.

Case No. 19-cv-00299-YGR (PR)

ORDER DENYING PLAINTIFF’S 

SECOND MOTION REGARDING 

FILING FEE; AND GRANTING HIM A 

SECOND EXTENSION OF TIME TO 

PAY THE FILING FEE OR FILE A 

COMPLETED PRISONER IN FORMA 

PAUPERIS APPLICATION

On January 17, 2019, Plaintiff, a state prisoner currently incarcerated at Salinas Valley 

State Prison (“SVSP”), filed the present pro se prisoner complaint under 42 U.S.C. § 1983. 

On the same date, the Clerk of the Court sent a notice to Plaintiff, informing him that his 

action could not go forward until he paid the filing fee or filed a completed prisoner’s in forma 

pauperis (“IFP”) application. The Clerk sent Plaintiff a blank IFP application and told him that he 

must pay the fee or return the completed application within twenty-eight days or his action would 

be dismissed. Thereafter, Plaintiff filed a motion requesting the Court to direct SVSP prison 

officials to “hand over an institutional check in [his] name to pay the filing fee with [his] money 

[that] they have complete control over.” Dkt. 2 at 1.

On March 12, 2019, the Court denied Plaintiff’s request for a Court Order directing prison 

officials pay the filing fee with his funds. Dkt. 6. The Court stated as follows:

At this time, the Court cannot review Plaintiff’s complaint because he 

has neither paid the filing fee nor submitted a completed prisoner IFP 

application form. 28 U.S.C. § 1915(a)(2) provides: “A prisoner 

seeking to bring a civil action . . . in addition to filing the affidavit . . . , 

shall submit a certified copy of the trust fund account statement (or 

institutional equivalent) for the prisoner for the 6-month period 

immediately preceding the filing of the complaint . . . , obtained from 

the appropriate official of each prison at which the prisoner is or was 

confined.” This language is mandatory on its face. While Plaintiff 

claims that SVSP prison officials are “unwilling[] to release or 

remove money off [his] books,” such a claim is not supported by any 

evidence showing such conduct. Many cases are filed in this Court 

by inmates who are housed at SVSP. Some inmates have been able 

to request SVSP prison officials to access their funds to pay the filing 

fee, but most inmates (who file IFP applications) have been able to 

obtain Certificate of Funds and copies of their inmate accounts from 

Case 4:19-cv-00299-YGR Document 10 Filed 05/24/19 Page 1 of 3
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United States District Court

Northern District of California

prison officials. 

Although at some point the Court may have to consider whether the 

Constitution requires an exception to the apparently mandatory 

requirement of 28 U.S.C. § 1915(a)(2), Plaintiff here has not 

established a factual basis for such an exception. Thus, Plaintiff is 

granted an extension of time of up to and including twenty-eight (28) 

days from the date of this Order to pay the filing fee or provide a 

completed prisoner IFP application form, a Certificate of Funds, and 

a copy of his inmate trust account showing six months of transactions 

from SVSP. Blank copies of the aforementioned forms are attached 

to this Order. Failure to pay the full filing fee or submit a completed 

prisoner IFP application as ordered herein by the twenty-eight-day 

deadline shall result in the dismissal of this action without prejudice. 

However, if Plaintiff provides documented proof of his legitimate 

requests for his IFP supporting documents and evidence showing that 

prison officials are obstructing his ability to meet the mandatory 

requirements of 28 U.S.C. § 1915(a)(2), then the Court will reconsider 

Plaintiff’s request to issue an order directing prison officials to submit 

the necessary IFP supporting documents. The Clerk shall send 

Plaintiff a blank prisoner IFP application along with a copy of this 

Order. 

Id. at 1-2 (emphasis in original).

To date, Plaintiff has neither paid the filing fee or filed a complete IFP application, and the 

deadline to do so has passed. Instead, Plaintiff has filed another motion entitled, “Motion for 

Court to Order Prison [to] Pay Filing Fee Using My Own Money,” which is construed as his 

second request for a Court Order directing prison officials pay the filing fee with his funds. Dkt. 

9. Plaintiff claims that he is “attempting to have the filing fee paid by prison staff through a trust 

withdrawal slip g[iven] to them by [Plaintiff] that they took and made go to the abyss.” Id. at 9. 

Attached to his motion is a CDCR Form 22, “Inmate/Parolee Request for Interview, Item or 

Service,” in which Plaintiff requests prison officials to “sign his trust withdrawal so [he] could 

send [it] to [the] trust office to pay [his] filing fee for [the] court.” Id. at 2. In the section labeled 

“Staff Response,” it states: “Your trust withdrawal [slips] have been signed.” Id. Then under the 

section labeled, “Request for Supervisor Review,” Plaintiff writes: “Where did you send the trust 

withdrawal slips I had you sign?” Id. There is no further response on the form.

Again, at this time, the Court cannot review Plaintiff’s complaint because he has neither 

paid the filing fee nor submitted a completed prisoner IFP application form. While Plaintiff now 

claims that he has “proved the prison wasn’t going to pay the filing fee using [his] money,” see id. 

at 1, such a claim is not supported by any evidence showing such conduct. In fact, the record 

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shows that prison officials were attempting to process his request to have his trust withdrawal slips

signed. See id. at 2. Thus, the Court again finds that Plaintiff has not shown a sufficient reason 

for this Court to interfere in the day-to-day operations of the prison. See Turner, 482 U.S. at 84-

86; Wright, 642 F.2d at 1132. The Court DENIES Plaintiff’s second request for a Court Order 

directing prison officials pay the filing fee with his funds. Dkt. 9. Plaintiff is granted a second

extension of time of up to and including twenty-eight (28) days from the date of this Order to pay 

the filing fee or provide a completed prisoner IFP application form, a Certificate of Funds, and a 

copy of his inmate trust account showing six months of transactions from SVSP. Blank copies of 

the aforementioned forms are attached to this Order. Failure to pay the full filing fee or submit a 

completed prisoner IFP application as ordered herein by the twenty-eight-day deadline shall result 

in the dismissal of this action without prejudice. However, as it has stated before, if Plaintiff 

provides documented proof of his legitimate requests for his IFP supporting documents and 

evidence showing that prison officials are obstructing his ability to meet the mandatory 

requirements of 28 U.S.C. § 1915(a)(2), then the Court will reconsider Plaintiff’s request to issue 

an order directing prison officials to submit the necessary IFP supporting documents. The Clerk 

shall send Plaintiff a blank prisoner IFP application along with a copy of this Order. 

This Order terminates Docket No. 9.

IT IS SO ORDERED.

Dated:

______________________________________

YVONNE GONZALEZ ROGERS

United States District Court Judge

May 24, 2019

Case 4:19-cv-00299-YGR Document 10 Filed 05/24/19 Page 3 of 3