KEYES v. VALDOSTA STATE PRISON

IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
FOR THE MIDDLE DISTRICT OF GEORGIA
VALDOSTA DIVISION
SIR K’VAUGHN KEYES, :
:
Plaintiff, :
:
v. : Case No. 7:25-cv-140-WLS-ALS
:
VALDOSTA STATE PRISON, :
:
Defendant. :
ORDER
Pending before the Court is a document that pro se Plaintiff Sir K’Vaughn Keyes, a
prisoner currently confined at Valdosta State Prison in Valdosta, Georgia, filed in the United States
District Court for the Northern District of Georgia. (Doc. 1). That court determined that Plaintiff
is seeking relief pursuant to 42 U.S.C. § 1983 and transferred the action to this Court. (Docs. 2, 3).
For the following reasons, Plaintiff must (1) either pay the Court’s filing fee in full or submit a
proper and complete motion for leave to proceed in forma pauperis (“IFP”) and (2) recast his
complaint on the Court’s standard form within FOURTEEN (14) DAYS of the date of this Order
if he wishes to proceed with his claims.
MOTION TO PROCEED IFP
Plaintiff has not paid the required $405.00 filing fee in this case or moved for leave to
proceed IFP. A prisoner proceeding IFP must submit (1) an affidavit in support of his claim of
indigence and (2) “a certified copy of [his] trust fund account statement (or institutional equivalent)
. . . for the 6-month period immediately preceding the filing of the complaint.” 28
U.S.C. § 1915(a)(1)-(2). Plaintiff is, therefore, ORDERED to either pay the Court’s $405.00 filing
fee in full or submit a proper and complete motion to proceed without the prepayment of the filing
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fee, which should include a certified copy of his trust fund account statement. Plaintiff shall have
FOURTEEN (14) DAYS from the date of this Order to comply.
ORDER TO RECAST COMPLAINT
Plaintiff is also ORDERED to recast his complaint on the Court’s standard form within
FOURTEEN (14) DAYS of the date of this Order. The recast complaint must contain a caption
that clearly identifies, by name, each individual that Plaintiff has a claim against and wishes to
include as a defendant in this action. Plaintiff should be aware that to any extent he seeks to name
Valdosta State Prison as a defendant, the prison is an arm of the State and, therefore, has Eleventh
Amendment immunity. See Cainion v. Valdosta State Prison, No. 7:15-CV-174 (HL), 2017 WL
1632875, at *3 (M.D. Ga. Apr. 28, 2017) (citations omitted). Additionally, the prison is not a legal
entity subject to suit. Id. (citations omitted). Thus, Plaintiff should refrain from naming Valdosta
State Prison as a defendant in his recast complaint. Instead, Plaintiff must name only the
individuals associated with the claim or related claims that he is pursuing in this action. Plaintiff
must then tell the Court exactly how each individual violated his constitutional or federal statutory
rights, including (1) what each defendant did (or did not do) to violate his rights; (2) when and
where each action occurred; and (3) how Plaintiff was injured as a result of each defendant’s
actions. Plaintiff must complete the entire complaint form, answering each question fully and
truthfully.
Plaintiff’s recast complaint will take the place of and supersede all allegations made in
the original pleading. (Doc. 1). The Court will only consider the factual allegations and claims
contained in Plaintiff’s recast complaint on the enclosed § 1983 form. Thus, any fact Plaintiff
deems necessary to his lawsuit should be clearly stated in his recast complaint, even if Plaintiff
has previously alleged it in another filing. As stated above, Plaintiff must name each defendant he
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wishes to sue and if Plaintiff fails to link a named defendant to a claim, the claim will be dismissed.
CONCLUSION
For the reasons discussed above, Plaintiff shall have FOURTEEN (14) DAYS from the
date shown on this Order to (1) either pay the $405.00 filing fee in full or submit a proper and
complete motion for leave to proceed IFP in this action and (2) file a recast complaint with the
Clerk of Court. If Plaintiff does not timely and fully comply with this Order, this action may
be dismissed. Plaintiff is further DIRECTED to notify the Court immediately in writing of any
change in his mailing address and his failure to do so may result in the dismissal of this action.
The Clerk of Court is DIRECTED to forward to Plaintiff the necessary IFP documents and the
Court’s standard § 1983 form, all showing Plaintiff’s civil action number. There shall be no service
of process in this case until further order of the Court.
SO ORDERED, this 1st day of December, 2025.
s/ ALFREDA L. SHEPPARD
UNITED STATES MAGISTRATE JUDGE
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