Oliver v. Hooton et al

IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
EASTERN DISTRICT OF ARKANSAS
NORTHERN DIVISION
ARTEZ DAVON OLIVER 	PLAINTIFF
V. 	Case No. 3:25-CV-00255-DPM-BBM
HALEY HOOTON, Jail Administration,
Mississippi County; BO MCCOLLUM,
Captain, Jail Administrator, Mississippi
County; MATTHEW MCCLAIN, Chief
Jailer, Lt., Mississippi County; and
FREEMAN, C/O, Mississippi County 	DEFENDANTS
INITIAL ORDER FOR PRO SE PRISONERS
You filed this civil rights lawsuit pro se, which means you are representing yourself,
without a lawyer. Nevertheless, you must still follow the rules and procedures provided in
the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, the Local Rules of the Eastern District of Arkansas,
and this Order. If you fail to do so, your case may be dismissed.
First, follow all court rules. This includes both the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure
and the Local Rules for the Eastern District of Arkansas. In particular, Local Rule 5.5(c)(2)
provides that:
It is the duty of any party not represented by counsel to promptly notify the
Clerk and the other parties to the proceedings of any change in his or her
address, to monitor the progress of the case, and to prosecute or defend the
action diligently. A party appearing for himself/herself must sign his/her
pleadings and state his/her address, zip code, and telephone number. If any
communication from the Court to a pro se plaintiff is not responded to within
thirty (30) days, the case may be dismissed without prejudice. Any party
proceeding pro se must be expected to be familiar with and follow the
Federal Rules of Civil Procedure.
Second, the Prison Litigation Reform Act (“PLRA”), 28 U.S.C. § 1915(g), creates
the Three Strikes Rule:
In no event shall a prisoner bring a civil action or appeal a judgment in a civil
action [without prepayment of fees] if the prisoner has, on 3 or more prior
occasions, while incarcerated or detained in any facility, brought an action
or appeal in a court of the United States that was dismissed on the grounds
that it is frivolous, malicious, or fails to state a claim upon which relief may
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be granted, unless the prisoner is under imminent danger of serious physical
injury.
Importantly, if this case is dismissed as frivolous, malicious, or for failure to state a
claim, your future right to proceed without the prepayment of fees, also known as in forma
pauperis (“IFP”), in civil rights actions may be impacted. The filing fee and IFP
requirements are discussed in further detail below.
Third, you are responsible for providing the correct names and service address for
each Defendant, including the addresses for any “John/Jane Doe” Defendants. The Court
will order service on all properly identified Defendants if it determines that service is
appropriate after screening your claims as required by 28 U.S.C. § 1915A.1 However, you
are responsible for providing sufficient identifying information and valid service addresses
for each of them. Any Defendant who is not served within 90 days may be dismissed,
without prejudice, from the lawsuit. See Fed. R. Civ. P. 4(m).
The below filing fee issue must be resolved before the Court may screen your
Complaint.
Fourth, you are placed on notice that, if you file an amended complaint in this
matter, that pleading will supersede all previous pleadings. See In re Atlas Lines, Inc., 209
F.3d 1064, 1067 (8th Cir. 2000). Accordingly, any amended complaint you file should
contain all defendants you seek to name in this matter, all claims you seek to pursue in this
action, and the factual predicate for all claims against all defendants. Additionally, if you
seek to pursue any supplemental allegations—that is, allegations concerning events that
occurred after you initiated this action—you must exhaust any available administrative
remedies, then either file a separate lawsuit or seek leave to file a supplemental pleading
in this action. See 42 U.S.C. § 1997e(a); Fed. R. Civ. P. 15(d).
Fifth, unlike criminal cases, you do not have a right to an appointed lawyer in this
civil case. If your case proceeds to a jury trial, however, a lawyer will be appointed before
your trial.
Sixth, discovery requests (such as interrogatories and requests for production of
documents) and responses to discovery requests are not permitted to be filed with the Court.
Instead, you must mail discovery requests and responses directly to counsel for the
Defendant. See Fed. R. Civ. P. 5(d). Do not mail discovery requests to Defendants’ counsel
until after: (1) the Court has screened your claims and allowed the case to proceed forward;
and (2) counsel for Defendants has filed an answer or motion to dismiss your Complaint.
1 The PLRA requires federal courts to screen prisoner complaints prior to service and to
dismiss any claims that: (a) are legally frivolous or malicious; (b) fail to state a claim upon which relief
may be granted; or (c) seek monetary relief from a defendant who is immune from such relief. 28 U.S.C.
§ 1915A(a) & (b).
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Seventh, do not send documents to the Court, unless: (1) the document is attached
to a Motion permitted by the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure or to a response to a motion
filed by Defendants; or (2) the Court orders you to file documents or other evidence. If you
send any other documents to the Court, they will be returned to you.
Eighth, if your case is set for trial, as your trial date approaches, you will be asked
to provide a witness list. After reviewing your witness list, the Court will subpoena the
necessary witnesses. You should not provide the Court with your witness list until you are
directed to do so in a scheduling order.
Ninth, every civil case filed by a prisoner requires the plaintiff to pay a filing fee.
28 U.S.C. § 1915. The PLRA states that “if a prisoner brings a civil action or files an appeal
in forma pauperis, the prisoner shall be required to pay the full amount of a filing fee.” 28
U.S.C. § 1915(b)(1). A $405 filing and administrative fee must be paid at the beginning of
the lawsuit unless you cannot afford to pay the entire fee at once. If you cannot afford to
pay the filing fee in a lump sum, you may file a motion to proceed in forma pauperis (“IFP
Motion”). If you are granted IFP status, the filing fee is $350, which will be collected in
installments from your institutional account. Importantly, even if your lawsuit is later
dismissed, the Court will continue to collect the filing fee until it has received the full
amount of $350 from your institutional account.
You have not paid the filing fee for this action, and your IFP Motion is
incomplete.2 Moreover, Court records indicate that you are a 3-striker3 and may not
proceed in forma pauperis unless you are currently in imminent danger of serious
physical injury. See 28 U.S.C. § 1915(g); Ashley v. Dilworth, 147 F.3d 715, 717 (8th
Cir. 1998).
Although you allege that you do not feel safe in the Mississippi County
Detention Facility (“MCDF”), have a no-contact order with Defendant Matthew
McClain, are being “targeted,” and have been hit two times by “the jailer,” (Doc. 2 at
4, 7), your allegations are too vague for the Court to determine whether you are in
imminent danger of serious physical injury. To give you an opportunity to correct
this issue, the Clerk of the Court will be directed to send you a § 1983 complaint form
labeled “Amended Complaint.” If you wish to proceed with this § 1983 action without
immediately paying the full $405 filing fee, you must complete the Amended
Complaint form, clearly stating the particulars of the alleged “targeting,” why you do
2 See 28 U.S.C. § 1915(a)(2) (requiring prisoners who seek to proceed in forma pauperis to “submit
a certified copy of the trust fund account statement (or institutional equivalent) for the prisoner for the 6-
month period immediately preceding the filing of the complaint...obtained from the appropriate official”).
3 Artez Oliver v. Bradley, 1:17-CV-00102-KGB (E.D. Ark. Oct. 26, 2018) (dismissed for failure to
state a claim); Artez Oliver v. Cook, 3:16-CV-00350-DPM (E.D. Ark. Feb. 9, 2017) (dismissed for failure
to state a claim); Artez Oliver v. Cook, 3:17-CV-00039-BSM (E.D. Ark. Apr. 14, 2017) (dismissed for
failure to state a claim).
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not feel safe at MCDF, and otherwise explain how or if you are currently in danger
of serious physical injury.
IT IS THEREFORE ORDERED THAT:
1. 	Plaintiff’s IFP Motion, (Doc. 1), is DENIED without prejudice.
2. 	The Clerk is directed to send Plaintiff: (1) a blank § 1983 complaint form
that is labeled “Amended Complaint;” and (2) a blank IFP Motion, including the necessary
Certificate and Calculation Sheet.
3. 	If Plaintiff wishes to proceed with this action, he must, within thirty (30)
days of the date of this Order: (1) file and sign4 the requested Amended Complaint; and
(2) either pay the $405 administrative and filing fee in full or complete and sign the IFP
Motion and return it to the Clerk. If Plaintiff does not timely comply with this Order,
this case will be dismissed without prejudice.
4. 	Detention center officials are directed to assist Plaintiff in completing the
Certificate and Calculation Sheet.
SO ORDERED this 13th day of November, 2025.
___________________________________
UNITED STATES MAGISTRATE JUDGE
4 Your Complaint is not signed. (Doc. 2 at 7). Under the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, you
must sign all papers filed with the Court. Fed. R. Civ. P. 11(a). If you fail to do so, the unsigned paper may
be struck from the record. Id.
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