Rossmann v. Leader
Opinion
FILED 5/27/2020 Clerk, U.S. District & Bankruptcy Court for the District of Columbia UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA
BRUD ROSSMANN,
Plaintiff,
v. Civil Action No. 1:20-cv-01221 (UNA)
LENNERT LEADER, et al.,
Defendants.
MEMORANDUM OPINION
This matter, brought pro se, is before the Court on review of Plaintiff’s Complaint, ECF
No. 1, and application to proceed in forma pauperis, ECF No. 2. The Court will grant the in
forma pauperis application and dismiss the case because the Complaint fails to meet the minimal
pleading requirements of Rule 8(a) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure.
Pro se litigants must comply with the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure. Jarrell v. Tisch,
656 F. Supp. 237, 239(D.D.C. 1987). Rule 8(a) requires complaints to contain “(1) a short and
plain statement of the grounds for the court’s jurisdiction [and] (2) a short and plain statement of
the claim showing that the pleader is entitled to relief.” Fed. R. Civ. P. 8(a); see Ashcroft v.
Iqbal,
556 U.S. 662, 678-79(2009); Ciralsky v. CIA,
355 F.3d 661, 668-71(D.C. Cir. 2004).
The Rule 8 standard ensures that defendants receive fair notice of the claim being asserted so that
they can prepare a responsive answer, launch an adequate defense, and determine whether the
doctrine of res judicata applies. Brown v. Califano,
75 F.R.D. 497, 498(D.D.C. 1977). It also
assists the Court in determining whether it has jurisdiction over the subject matter.
Plaintiff is a District of Columbia resident who purports to sue various individuals,
including a Judge and a Magistrate Judge of this Court, United States Attorney General William
1 Barr, CIA Director Gina Haspel, FBI Director Christopher Wray, and former FBI Director James
Comey. See generally Compl. Plaintiff also lists as defendants “Jews More Generally.”
Id.The 329-paragraph pleading is essentially a non-conforming diatribe.
Id.Complaints like this
one, which are “excessively long, rambling, disjointed, incoherent, or full of irrelevant and
confusing material will patently fail [Rule 8(a)’s] standard,” as will “a complaint that contains an
untidy assortment of claims that are neither plainly nor concisely stated, nor meaningfully
distinguished from bold conclusions, sharp harangues and personal comments.” Jiggetts v.
District of Columbia,
319 F.R.D. 408, 413(D.D.C. 2017), aff'd sub nom. Cooper v. District of
Columbia, No. 17-7021,
2017 WL 5664737(D.C. Cir. Nov. 1, 2017) (internal quotation marks
and citations omitted). Therefore, this case will be dismissed. An Order will be released
contemporaneously with this Memorandum Opinion.
DATE: May 27, 2020 CARL J. NICHOLS United States District Judge
2
Reference
- Status
- Published