Marner v. U.S. Department of the Air Force
Marner v. U.S. Department of the Air Force
Trial Court Opinion
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8 UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT 9 SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA 10
11 ZACHARY MARNER et al, Case No.: 3:24-cv-01565-JO-BLM 12
Plaintiffs, 13 ORDER DENYING LEAVE TO vs. PROCEED IFP 14 U.S. DEPARTMENT OF THE AIR 15 FORCE et al, 16 Defendants. 17
18 On September 3, 2024, pro se Plaintiff Zachary Marner,1 filed a complaint against 19 the United States Air Force2 and the United States Space Force. Dkt. 1. Plaintiff alleges 20 that these two Defendants harmed him in various ways, from slandering and sexually 21 assaulting him to murdering his loved ones. Id. Accompanying his complaint, Plaintiff 22 also filed a motion to proceed in forma pauperis (“IFP”), Dkt. 2, and motion to appoint 23 24 25 1 Plaintiff Marner also listed Jeanette Miller, Nevah Marner, Taryn White, Phyllis Sharp, and 26 Tiffany Stroh as additional Plaintiffs in this case. Dkt. 1.
27 2 Plaintiff names the “Department of the U.S. Air Force” as one of the three Defendants in this case. Dkt. 1. For the purposes of this order, the Court construes the Department of the U.S. Air Force 28 1 |/counsel, Dkt. 3. For the reasons set forth below, the Court denies Plaintiff's IFP motion 2 || without prejudice and denies Plaintiff's motion to appoint counsel as moot. 3 Plaintiff has not prepaid the civil filing fee and instead has requested to proceed IFP. 4 ||Dkt. 2. A plaintiff filing a civil suit in federal district court must pay a filing fee of $405 5 ||unless the court waives this fee and allows him to proceed IFP based on his inability to 6
28 U.S.C. § 1914(a); Local Civ. R. 4.5. To proceed IFP, a claimant must submit an 7 || affidavit that includes a statement of all assets and demonstrates an inability to pay the 8 || filing fee. /d.; see also Local Civ. R. 3.2. An affidavit is “sufficient where it alleges that 9 || the plaintiff cannot pay the court costs and still afford the necessities of life.” Escobedo v. 10 || Applebees,
787 F.3d 1226, 1234(9th Cir. 2015) (citation omitted). “The granting or 11 ||refusing of permission to proceed [IFP] is a matter committed to the sound discretion of 12 || the district court.” Smart v. Heinze,
347 F.2d 114, 116(9th Cir. 1965). 13 Here, Plaintiff indicates in his affidavit that he is employed, makes a total of $6,524 14 |/per month, and has $15,216 in cash and over $380,000 in assets. Dkt. 2. The Court 15 ||therefore finds that Plaintiff has not “sufficiently show[n] that he lacks the financial 16 |/resources to pay filing fees.” Dillard v. So, No. 12-2958,
2013 WL 4857692, at *1 (S.D. 17 || Cal. Sept. 11, 2013). Accordingly, the Court DENIES Plaintiff's motion to proceed IFP 18 || pursuant to
28 U.S.C. § 1915(a) without prejudice, Dkt. 2, and DENIES Plaintiff's motion 19 || to appoint counsel, Dkt. 3, as moot. 20 Accordingly, the Court also DISMISSES this civil action without prejudice for 21 || failure to pay the $405 filing fee. Dkt. 1. If Plaintiff does not pay the filing fee by February 22 || 17, 2025, the Court will dismiss Plaintiff's complaint and order the Clerk of the Court to 23 || close this case. 24 IT IS SO ORDERED. 25 ||Dated: January 30, 2025 Qe 26 27 Honorable Jinsook Ohta United States District Judge
Reference
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