Theodore Brown v. United States of America

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF GEORGIA SAVANNAH DIVISION THEODORE BROWN, ) ) Plaintiff, ) ) v. ) CV425-282 ) UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, ) ) Defendant. ) ORDER Pro se plaintiff Theodore Brown has filed a somewhat informal Complaint seeking to collect an alleged debt he is owed by the United States of America. See generally doc. 1. The Court recommended that his request to proceed in forma pauperis be denied, doc. 5, and he objected, doc. 6. However, upon closer review, it is clear that his Complaint does not allege any event that occurred in this District, so it will be transferred. The Report and Recommendation is VACATED.

Doc. 5. His request to proceed in forma pauperis will be addressed by the transferee court.

Brown’s Complaint includes in the signature line that it is signed “at Savannah, Georgia.” Doc. 1 at 1. However, the return address on the envelope in which he submitted his pleading is the Federal Correctional Complex in Coleman, Florida. Id. at 4. Correspondence attached to the Complaint also indicates that Plaintiff resides in “Coleman, Florida.” Id. at 2. Finally, a search of public records maintained by the United States Burau of Prisons also indicates that Brown is incarcerated in Coleman, Florida. Coleman, Florida is located in Sumter County, Florida which lies in the Middle District of Florida. See 28 U.S.C. § 89(b). As Brown’s claim is against the United States, venue lies only in the “judicial district where the plaintiff resides.” See 28 U.S.C. § 1402. Therefore, the proper venue for this case is the United States District Court for the Middle District of Florida. 28 U.S.C. § 1402 (venue); 28 U.S.C. § 1406 (district courts may dismiss or transfer cases suffering venue defects); see also, e.g., Collins v. Hagel, 2015 WL 5691076, at *1 (N.D. Ga. Sept. 28, 2015) (“A district court may raise the issue of defective venue sua sponte.”).

Accordingly, the Clerk is DIRECTED to transfer this case to the Middle District of Florida for all further proceedings.

SO ORDERED, this 9th day of March, 2026.

CHRISTOPHER L. RAY UNITED STATES MAGISTRATE JUDGE SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF GEORGIA