Automated Summary
Key Facts
Samuel Davis, Jr., a prisoner, filed a complaint alleging Warsaw Police Officers violated his rights during his arrest at his mother's apartment on January 16, 2024. The court determined the complaint was untimely under Indiana's two-year statute of limitations for § 1983 claims, though equitable tolling could potentially apply. Davis was granted until April 27, 2026 to submit an amended complaint with his inmate trust fund ledger, or the case will be dismissed for failure to state a claim.
Issues
- The court determined that the complaint was untimely filed as it was dated January 16, 2024 but filed January 1, 2026, exceeding Indiana's two-year statute of limitations. The court noted the complaint could not have been mailed earlier given the jail paperwork dated February 27, 2026.
- The court considered whether equitable tolling might apply to toll the statute of limitations given the plaintiff's circumstances, noting that equitable tolling halts the limitations clock when a litigant has pursued rights diligently but some extraordinary circumstance prevents timely action.
- The court granted the plaintiff until April 27, 2026 to file an amended complaint with his inmate trust fund ledger. The court cautioned that failure to file by the deadline would result in dismissal under 28 U.S.C. § 1915A and denial of in forma pauperis status.
Holdings
The court grants Samuel Davis, Jr. until April 27, 2026, to file an amended complaint with his inmate trust fund ledger. The court cautions that if he does not file an amended complaint by the deadline, the case will be dismissed under 28 U.S.C. § 1915A without further notice because the current complaint is untimely. Additionally, if he does not file his ledger by the deadline, he will be denied leave to proceed in forma pauperis.
Remedies
The court grants Samuel Davis, Jr. until April 27, 2026, to file an amended complaint with his inmate trust fund ledger. If he fails to file by the deadline, the case will be dismissed under 28 U.S.C. § 1915A without further notice.
Legal Principles
The court applied 28 U.S.C. § 1915A standards for reviewing prisoner complaints (frivolous, malicious, fails to state claim, or seeks relief against immune defendant), Indiana's two-year statute of limitations for § 1983 claims, the equitable tolling doctrine, and the standard for amending defective pleadings in civil cases to allow correction of early-stage errors.
Precedent Name
- Herrera v. Cleveland
- Snodderly v. R.U.F.F. Drug Enforcement Task Force
- Erickson v. Pardus
- Abu-Shawish v. United States
Cited Statute
- Prisoner Civil Action statute governing frivolous claims
- Civil Rights Act providing basis for civil rights claims
Judge Name
Gretchen S. Lund
Passage Text
- (1) GRANTS Samuel Davis, Jr., until April 27, 2026, to file an amended complaint with his inmate trust fund ledger; (2) CAUTIONS Samuel Davis, Jr., if he does not file an amended complaint by the deadline, this case will be dismissed under 28 U.S.C. § 1915A without further notice because the current complaint is untimely; and (3) CAUTIONS Samuel Davis, Jr., if he does not file his ledger by the deadline, he will be denied leave to proceed in forma pauperis.
- Davis alleges he was arrested at his mother's apartment on January 16, 2024. Though he dated the complaint January 1, 2026, he could not have mailed on that day because he attaches Kosciusko County Jail paperwork dated February 27, 2026. Because it was not mailed from the jail until then or later, this complaint is untimely.
- A document filed pro se is to be liberally construed, and a pro se complaint, however inartfully pleaded, must be held to less stringent standards than formal pleadings drafted by lawyers.