Devon J. Hypes v. Thomas Brady, Mike Watson, Carpenter, Dion Urbina, Devon...

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT NORTHERN DISTRICT OF INDIANA FORT WAYNE DIVISION DEVON J. HYPES, Plaintiff, v. CAUSE NO. 1:26-CV-67-JD-AZ THOMAS BRADY, MIKE WATSON, CARPENTER, DION URBINA, DEVON BURTON, ZACK SHIFFLET, RUTKOWSKI, ROSE, KOURTNEY CARPER, ELWARD, SMOLEK, QCC, CRUZ, BALL, TAYLOR, and DON’T NO NAME MAIN, Defendants.

OPINION AND ORDER Devon J. Hypes, a prisoner without a lawyer, filed a complaint with unrelated claims against sixteen defendants. ECF 1. Hypes alleges two nurses neglected his gluten allergy. He alleges two guards did not protect him from sexual harassment by another inmate. He alleges a different guard threatened, disciplined, and punished him. He goes on for several pages with more unrelated claims, but that is sufficient to illustrate the problem with this complaint. “[U]nrelated claims against different defendants belong in different suits . . ..” George v. Smith, 507 F.3d 605, 607 (7th Cir. 2007). Claims are not related merely because all the alleged events happened to Hypes at the DeKalb County Jail.

When a plaintiff files a complaint with unrelated or mis-joined claims, the court may allow the plaintiff to decide which properly joined and related claims to pursue in the current case and when (or if) to bring the other claims in separate suits. See Wheeler v. Wexford Health Sources, Inc., 689 F.3d 680, 683 (7th Cir. 2012) (District courts may direct a plaintiff “to file separate complaints, each confined to one group of injuries and defendants.”). Hypes needs to decide which claims to pursue in this case. Once he decides, he must put this cause number on a Civil Complaint (INND Rev. 4/24) and write the word “Amended” above the title “Civil Complaint” on page one. If he wants to pursue other claims, he must file other lawsuits using separate complaint forms without a cause number for each separate group of claims.

For these reasons, the court: (1) STRIKES the complaint (ECF 1) but it will remain part of the public record; and (2) GRANTS Devon J. Hypes, until July 9, 2026, to file an amended complaint with related claims.

SO ORDERED on May 18, 2026 /s/JON E. DEGUILIO JUDGE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT