# JACKSON v. DIXON

> District Court, N.D. Florida · August 8, 2025

URL: https://www.frixlaw.com/law-library/cases/11134102

## Case

- **Court:** District Court, N.D. Florida
- **Decided:** August 8, 2025
- **Opinion:** 100trialcourt
- **Cited by:** 0 later opinions in the Frix Law Library

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## Opinion text

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
NORTHERN DISTRICT OF FLORIDA
PENSACOLA DIVISION

CRAIG A. JACKSON,

Plaintiff,

v. Case No. 3:25cv1254-TKW-HTC

SECRETARY RICKY DIXON, et al.,

Defendants.
________________________________/
ORDER AND
REPORT AND RECOMMENDATION
Plaintiff Craig A. Jackson, a prisoner proceeding pro se, has filed a civil rights
complaint under 42 U.S.C. § 1983 arising out of the conditions of his confinement
at Blackwater River Correctional Rehabilitation Facility. Doc. 1. After reviewing
the complaint, the undersigned concludes this action should be dismissed for an
abuse of the judicial process because Jackson has failed to truthfully disclose his
litigation history. Thus, the Court will also deny Jackson’s motion to proceed in
forma pauperis. Doc. 2.
I. Legal Standard
Because Jackson is a prisoner seeking to proceed in forma pauperis and
seeking relief from government officials or entities, the Court must dismiss his
complaint, or any portion thereof, if it determines it 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. See 28 U.S.C. §§ 1915A(b);

1915(e)(2)(B). Additionally, the Court has inherent power to dismiss an action for
a plaintiff’s failure to comply with orders of the Court, this Court’s local rules, or for
abusing the judicial process. See McNair v. Johnson, 2025 WL 1923126 (11th Cir.

July 14, 2025).
II. Discussion
Section VIII of the Court’s approved complaint form requires plaintiffs to
disclose their prior litigation history. The form advises plaintiffs that “failure to

disclose all prior state and federal cases … may result in the dismissal of this case.”
Doc. 1 at 19. The form also advises plaintiffs to “err on the side of caution” if they
are uncertain about whether a case should be identified. Id. Question A. asks the

plaintiff to identify “any case in federal court, including federal appellate court,
dismissed as frivolous, as malicious, for failure to state a claim, or prior to service.”
Id. at 20. Question C. asks the plaintiff to identify “any other lawsuit, habeas corpus
petition, or appeal in state or federal court either challenging your conviction or

relating to the conditions of your confinement?” Id. at 22.
Jackson answered “Yes” to Question A. and identified two cases. However,
based on this Court’s independent investigation, he has failed to disclose, at least,

the following case: Jackson v. Dixon, No. 3:25-cv-552-MW-ZCB, at Doc. 1 (N.D.
Fla. Apr. 28, 2025) (complaint identical to his instant complaint in this case,
dismissed prior to service).1 Additionally, Jackson answered “Yes” to Question C.

and identified two cases. But he did not disclose, at least, the following case:
Jackson v. Fla. Dep’t of Corr., No. 19-13743 (11th Cir. Dec. 9, 2019) (appeal to 11th
circuit from case challenging conditions of confinement).

Despite these omissions, Jackson signed the complaint form under penalty of
perjury. Id. at 25. Jackson’s pro se status does not excuse him from conforming to
acceptable standards when interacting with the Court. If the Court cannot rely on
the statements or responses made by the parties, it threatens the quality of

justice. The Court will not tolerate false responses or statements in any pleading or
motion filed before it. If Jackson suffered no penalty for his untruthful responses,
there would be little or no disincentive for his attempt to evade or undermine the

purpose of the form.
An appropriate sanction for Jackson’s failure to provide the Court with true
factual responses is to dismiss this case without prejudice. See Bratton v. Sec’y
DOC, 2012 WL 2913171, at *1 (M.D. Fla. July 16, 2012) (dismissing the case

without prejudice when prisoner failed to disclose one prior federal case that was

1 Although Jackson wrote on the complaint “possibly more” cases, it is Jackson’s obligation to
remember and fully disclose all cases filed. See Sheffield v. Brown, 2023 WL 9105658 at *3 (N.D.
Fla. Dec. 14, 2023) (“Plaintiff could have requested his litigation history from the appropriate
clerks of the various courts…[a]s such, Plaintiff simply cannot blame his faulty memory for his
failure to respond to the questions.”).
dismissed under 28 U.S.C. § 1915(e)(2)); Johnson v. Crawson, No. 5:08cv300-RS-
EMT, 2010 WL 1380247, at *2 (N.D. Fla. Mar. 3, 2010) (same); see also Strickland

v. United States, 739 F. App’x 587, 588 (11th Cir. 2018) (“A sanction less than
dismissal would signal that a failure to disclose filings is an infraction without
consequence.”). As one district judge from this District stated in an order of

dismissal for failure to disclose, “If the requirement for prisoner plaintiffs to disclose
their prior lawsuits is to serve its purpose, a plaintiff must provide accurate
information. If word got around the prisons that inaccurate or incomplete
information could be provided with no effective sanction, the form would serve little

purpose.” Rodriguez v. Inch, No. 4:19cv191-RH-HTC, Doc. 52 (N.D. Fla. June 7,
2020).
Indeed, “[a] plaintiff’s affirmative misrepresentation regarding his prior

litigation history, when the complaint form required disclosure of such history and
the plaintiff’s statements were made under penalty of perjury, constitutes abuse of
the judicial process warranting dismissal of the case without prejudice as ‘malicious’
under § 1915(e)(2)(B)(i) and § 1915A(b)(1).” Ealy v. CCA, 2015 WL 9647546, at

*1 (N.D. Fla. Dec. 18, 2015) (collecting Eleventh Circuit cases affirming dismissals
without prejudice where plaintiffs failed to disclose their prior litigation history).
Accordingly, it is ORDERED:
1. Jackson’s motion to proceed in forma pauperis (Doc. 2) is DENIED

because the complaint is subject to dismissal for abuse of the judicial process.
It is also RECOMMENDED:
1. That this case be DISMISSED WITHOUT PREJUDICE under 28

U.S.C. §§ 1915(e)(2)(B) and 1915A(b) and this Court’s inherent power for Jackson’s
failure to truthfully disclose his litigation history.
2. That the clerk be directed to close the file.
At Pensacola, Florida, this 8th day of August, 2025.

/s/ Hope Thai Cannon

HOPE THAI CANNON
UNITED STATES MAGISTRATE JUDGE

NOTICE TO THE PARTIES
Objections to these proposed findings and recommendations may be filed within 14
days of the date of this Report and Recommendation. Any different deadline that
may appear on the electronic docket is for the Court’s internal use only and does not
control. A copy of objections shall be served upon the Magistrate Judge and all other
parties. A party failing to object to a Magistrate Judge’s findings or
recommendations contained in a report and recommendation in accordance with the
provisions of 28 U.S.C. § 636(b)(1) waives the right to challenge on appeal the
district court’s order based on unobjected-to factual and legal conclusions. See 11th
Cir. R. 3-1.

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Source: Frix Law Library, https://www.frixlaw.com/law-library/cases/11134102. Public record. Not legal advice.
