United States District Court, D. Arizona
Jaron D. Perkins, Plaintiff,
v.
JPMorgan Chase Bank NA, Defendant.
ORDER
Honorable John J. Tuchi United States District Judge
At
issue are pro se Plaintiff Jaron D. Perkins's
Complaint (Doc. 1, Compl.) and Application to Proceed in
District Court without Prepaying Fees or Costs (Doc. 2). The
Application does not contain sufficient information from
which the Court can determine that Plaintiff is entitled to
proceed without paying the Court's filing fees.
Specifically, Plaintiff lists $0 for every item on the form,
including his food and lodging expenses. Without more
explanation or detail, the Court cannot rule on
Plaintiff's Application. The Court will thus deny the
Application but allow Plaintiff to file an Amended
Application.
Even if
the Court were to grant the Application, the Court finds that
the Complaint fails to state claims upon screening it
pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1915(e)(2). The Court will
therefore dismiss the Complaint but allow Plaintiff to file
an Amended Complaint.
I.
LEGAL STANDARDS
A.
28 U.S.C. § 1915(e)(2)
For
cases such as the present one in which a party asks to
proceed in forma pauperis- that is, the party lacks
the means to pay court fees-Congress provided that a district
court “shall dismiss the case at any time if the court
determines” that the “allegation of poverty is
untrue” or that the “action or appeal” is
“frivolous or malicious, ” “fails to state
a claim on which relief may be granted, ” or
“seeks monetary relief against a defendant who is
immune from such relief.” 28 U.S.C. § 1915(e)(2).
Section 1915(e) applies to all in forma pauperis
proceedings. Lopez v. Smith, 203 F.3d 1122, 1129
(9th Cir. 2000). “It is also clear that section 1915(e)
not only permits but requires a district court to dismiss an
in forma pauperis complaint that fails to state a
claim.” Id. at 1127.
B.
Rule 8, Federal Rules of Civil Procedure
A
complaint must include “a short and plain statement of
the claim showing that the pleader is entitled to
relief.” Fed.R.Civ.P. 8(a)(2). The complaint must
contain “sufficient factual matter, accepted as true,
to ‘state a claim to relief that is plausible on its
face.'” Ashcroft v. Iqbal, 556 U.S. 662,
678 (2009) (quoting Bell Atl. Corp. v. Twombly, 550
U.S. 544, 570 (2007)). Even where a complaint has the factual
elements of a cause of action present but scattered
throughout the complaint and not organized into a
“short and plain statement of the claim, ” it may
be dismissed for failure to satisfy Rule 8(a). Sparling
v. Hoffman Constr. Co., 864 F.2d 635, 640 (9th Cir.
1988). A dismissal for failure to state a claim can be based
on either (1) the lack of a cognizable legal theory or (2)
insufficient facts to support a cognizable legal claim.
Balistreri v. Pacifica Police Dep't, 901 F.2d
696, 699 (9th Cir. 1990).
II.ANALYSIS
In the
Complaint, Plaintiff appears to raise 12 claims against
Defendant under the Fair Credit Reporting Act, but none of
the 12 claims are delineated, and it is entirely unclear to
the Court what the 12 claims are. The Court must dismiss the
Complaint for this reason alone.
The
Complaint also fails to state claims because, while it does
contain factual allegations, no facts are associated with the
alleged 12 claims under the Fair Credit Reporting Act,
whatever they may be. To avoid dismissal, each claim must
include sufficient factual allegations to support a
cognizable legal claim.
If a
defective complaint can be cured, the plaintiff is entitled
to amend the complaint before the action is dismissed.
See Lopez, 203 F.3d at 1130. Because Plaintiff may
be able to cure the defects in his Complaint by amendment,
the Court will dismiss the Complaint without prejudice.
IT IS
THEREFORE ORDERED denying Plaintiffs Application to Proceed
in District Court Without Prepaying Fees or Costs (Doc. 2),
with leave to file an Amended Application by January 24,
2020.
IT IS
FURTHER ORDERED dismissing Plaintiffs Complaint (Doc. 1)
without prejudice. Plaintiff may file an Amended Complaint by
January 24, 2020. Failure to timely file an Amended
Application and ...