The opinion
IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
FOR THE MIDDLE DISTRICT OF TENNESSEE
NASHVILLE DIVISION
DEBORAH MANEY, )
)
Plaintiff, )
) No. 3:24-cv-01144
v. )
) Judge Trauger
SPECIAL MILITARY GROUPS, ) Magistrate Judge Holmes
)
Defendant. )
)
MEMORANDUM OPINION AND ORDER
Pro se Plaintiff Deborah Maney, a resident of Nashville, Tennessee, filed this complaint
against “Lgb [undecipherable] Affiliates Special Military Groups/Gangs.” (Doc. No. 1 at
PageID# 1).
I. FILING FEE
Plaintiff submitted an Application for Leave to Proceed In Forma Pauperis (“IFP
Application”). (Doc. No. 2). According to Plaintiff’s IFP Application, her monthly income totals
$923 from Supplemental Social Security payments, she has no assets of any kind, her monthly
expenses total over $500, and she does not expect any major changes to her monthly income or
expenses in the next 12 months (Id.) Plaintiff did not provide a residential address. It appears that
Plaintiff may be unhoused. Because her IFP Application reflects that she lacks sufficient
financial resources to pay the full filing fee without undue hardship, the IFP Application (Doc.
No. 2) is GRANTED. The Clerk therefore is DIRECTED to file the complaint in forma
pauperis. 28 U.S.C. § 1915(a).
II. INITIAL SCREENING STANDARD
Congress enacted 28 U.S.C. § 1915, the federal in forma pauperis statute, seeking to
“lower judicial access barriers to the indigent.” Denton v. Hernandez, 504 U.S. 25, 31 (1992). In
doing so, however, “Congress recognized that ‘a litigant whose filing fees and court costs are
assumed by the public, unlike a paying litigant, lacks an economic incentive to refrain from
filing frivolous, malicious, or repetitive lawsuits.’” Id. at 31 (quoting Neitzke v. Williams, 490
U.S. 319, 324 (1989)). To address this concern, Congress included subsection (e), which requires
sua sponte dismissal of an action upon certain determinations. 28 U.S.C. § 1915(e)(2)(B).
Because Plaintiff is proceeding in forma pauperis, the Court must review her complaint
pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1915(e). Benson v. O’Brian, 179 F.3d 1014, 1016 (6th Cir. 1999). Under
§ 1915(e), the Court is required to screen in forma pauperis complaints and dismiss any
complaint, or any portion thereof, if the action is frivolous or malicious, fails to state a claim
upon 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); see also Hill v. Lappin, 630 F. 3d 468, 470-71 (6th Cir.
2010).
Rule 8 of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure requires that a complaint contain: (1) a
short and plain statement of the grounds for the court's jurisdiction, (2) a short and plain
statement of the claim showing that the plaintiff is entitled to relief, and (3) a demand for the
relief sought. Fed. R. Civ. P. 8(a). Although allegations in a pro se complaint are held to “less
stringent standards than formal pleadings drafted by lawyers,” Haines v. Kerner, 404 U.S. 519,
520 (1972), “liberal construction . . . has limits.” Erwin v. Edwards, 22 F. App’x 579, 580 (6th
Cir. 2001) (citing Franklin v. Rose, 765 F.2d 82, 85 (6th Cir. 1985). A pro se complaint must
still “contain sufficient factual matter, accepted as true, to state a claim to relief that is plausible
on its face.” Barnett v. Luttrell, 414 F. App’x 784, 786 (6th Cir. 2011). District courts “have no
obligation to act as counsel or paralegal” to pro se litigants. Pliler v. Ford, 542 U.S. 225, 231
(2004). Nor are they “required to create” a pro se litigant’s claim for him or her. Payne v.
Secretary of Treasury, 73 F. App’x 836, 837 (6th Cir. 2003). And pro se litigants are not exempt
from the requirements of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure. Brown v. Matauszak, 415 F.
App’x 608, 613 (6th Cir. 2011).
III. ALLEGED FACTS
As best the Court can discern,1 the complaint alleges that an unidentified person or entity
“denied our life, denied our life to work, to do our jobs.” (Doc. No. 1 at PageID# 3). The
complaint lists words and phrases such as “Bush admin”, “New war,” “spiritual warfare,” and
“lost 300 ambulance.” (Id. at PageID# 4). Plaintiff’s “Injuries” and “Relief” sections are
undecipherable.
IV. SCREENING OF THE IN FORMA PAUPERIS COMPLAINT
After conducting the initial screening pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1915(e)(2), the Court finds
that Plaintiff’s complaint does not satisfy Federal Rule of Civil Procedure Rule 8 and cannot
survive screening under Section 1915(e)(2). The allegations set forth in the complaint are
frivolous and/or delusional. Additionally, the complaint fails to state a federal claim upon which
relief can be granted.
V. CONCLUSION
As explained above, Plaintiff’s in forma pauperis complaint is subject to dismissal as
frivolous and delusional under 28 U.S.C. 1915(e). Additionally, the complaint fails to state a
federal claim upon which relief can be granted. Accordingly, this action is hereby DISMISSED
WITH PREJUDICE.
1 Plaintiff has filed many pro se complaints in this Court since 2024. Her handwritten complaints
are so skeletal and nonsensical that it is difficult to distill her statements into coherent narratives
and causes of action.
Because an appeal would not be taken in good faith, Plaintiff is not certified to pursue an
appeal from this judgment in forma pauperis. 28 U.S.C. § 1915(a)(3).
This is the final Order denying all relief in this case. The Clerk SHALL enter judgment.
Fed. R. Civ. P. 58(b).
It is so ORDERED. Ue
Aleta A. Trauger
United States District Judge