USA v. STUKES, ET AL.

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UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
EASTERN DISTRICT OF LOUISIANA
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA 	CRIMINAL ACTION
VERSUS 	NO. 24-12
TROY STUKES, ET AL. 	SECTION R (1)
ORDER AND REASONS
Before the Court is defendant Jamaur Johnson’s unopposed pro se
motion requesting copies of his criminal docket sheet and sentencing
transcript. 1 The Court construes the motion as a request for copies of these
records at the Court’s expense.2 	Johnson is currently incarcerated at the
Federal Correctional Complex in Coleman, Florida. 3
Johnson is not entitled to a free copy of his sentencing transcript
“solely because he is indigent or because he desires to prepare a petition
seeking collateral relief.” United States v. Watson, 61 F. App’x 919, 919 (5th
Cir. 2003) (citing 	United States v. MacCollom, 426 U.S. 317, 324—25
(1976)); see also United States v. Herrera, 474 F.2d 1049, 1049—50 (5th Cir.
1 	R. Doc. 118.
2 	If Johnson wishes to pay for his sentencing transcript, he may contact
the Clerk of Court and file the appropriate order form. See Ordering
Transcripts, U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana,
https://www.laed.uscourts.gov/case-information/ordering-
transcripts.
3 	R. Doc. 118-1.
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1973) (“This Court has consistently held that a federal prisoner is not entitled
to obtain copies of court records at the government’s expense to search for
possible defects merely because he is an indigent.”). 	Under 28 U.S.C.
§ 753(f), Johnson can obtain a free transcript as an indigent prisoner “if the
trial judge or circuit judge certifies that the suit or appeal is not frivolous and
that the transcript is needed to decide the issue presented by the suit or
appeal.” 28 U.S.C. § 753(f); see also MacCollom, 426 U.S. at 320—21.
Johnson has not stated the reason for his request for his sentencing
transcript, and he has failed to explain its relationship to any ongoing
proceeding. Further, the Court notes that no appeal or application for a writ
of habeas corpus is currently pending. 	Because Johnson’s request “is not
related to any pending proceeding,” the Court is unable to certify that
Johnson “is pursuing a matter that is not frivolous or that the transcripts are
needed to decide the issue presented by such a matter.” See United States v.
Stovall, 2021 WL 4439608, at *1 (E.D. La. Sep. 28, 2021). 	Thus, he is not
entitled to a free copy of his sentencing transcript. 	The Court’s records
indicate that Johnson was sent a copy of his criminal docket sheet, but to
ensure receipt, a second copy will be sent.
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Accordingly, the Court DENIES defendant’s motion for a copy of his
sentencing transcript. 	IT IS ORDERED that the Clerk of Court send
defendant a copy of his criminal docket sheet.
New Orleans, Louisiana, this _____ day of October, 2026.
_____________________
SARAH S. VANCE
UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE
13th
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