Chance v. Tennessee
Opinion of the Court
ORDER
This is an appeal from a district court judgment denying an inmate / litigant’s application to proceed in forma pauperis. This case has been referred to a panel of the court pursuant to Rule 34(j)(1), Rules of the Sixth Circuit. Upon examination, this panel unanimously agrees that oral argument is not needed. Fed. R.App. P. 34(a).
In 2002, Tennessee state inmate Steven Ray Chance filed an application to proceed in forma pauperis in his proposed prisoner civil rights complaint against various corrections employees as well as officials and departments of the State of Tennessee. The district court denied the application on the authority of 28 U.S.C. § 1915(g) and this appeal followed.
In 2001, Tennessee inmate Chance filed a civil rights complaint in which he alleged that virtually every political entity of the
Section 1915(g) of Title 28, the so-called “three strikes” provision, provides that:
In no event shall a prisoner bring a civil action or appeal a judgment in a civil action or proceeding under this section if the prisoner has, on 3 or more prior occasions, while incarcerated or detained in any facility, brought an action or appeal in a court of the United States that was dismissed on the grounds that it is frivolous, malicious, or fails to state a claim upon which relief may be granted, unless the prisoner is under imminent danger of serious physical injury.
The district court properly determined that Chance was not entitled to pauper status under § 1915(g). The court concluded that Chance has filed three or more lawsuits that were dismissed because they were frivolous or failed to state a claim, and Chance does not challenge the court’s conclusion that § 1915(g) applies to him. Finally, Chance has not established that he falls within the “imminent danger of serious physical injury” exception to § 1915(g). Chance’s conclusory allegations that he was the target of a government-sponsored assault, or “contract hit,” are completely unsupported by any evidentiary material and appear to be a thinly veiled rehashing of similar arguments made and rejected in his previous lawsuit challenging his administrative punishment for stabbing another inmate.
Accordingly, the district court’s judgment is affirmed. Rule 34(j)(2)(C), Rules of the Sixth Circuit.
Reference
- Full Case Name
- Steven Ray CHANCE v. State of TENNESSEE
- Cited By
- 4 cases
- Status
- Published