MOSS
v.
SECRETARY, DEPARTMENT OF CORRECTIONS (ORANGE COUNTY)
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A plaintiff may not file duplicative complaints to expand legal rights; this case is dismissed for improper claim splitting.
Petitioner filed a petition for writ of habeas corpus challenging his state conviction. The court noted that Petitioner had previously filed a similar…
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conviction as in this case. Compare (Dkt. 1 with Case No. 6:24-cv-1144-JSS-LHP, Dkt. 1-3).
"[I]t is well settled that a plaintiff may not file duplicative complaints in order to expand their legal rights." Vanover v. NCO Fin. Servs., Inc., 857 F. 3d 833, 841 (11th Cir. 2017) (citation and internal quotation marks omitted). The doctrine, which is called "claim splitting," "ensures that a plaintiff may not split up his demand and prosecute it by piecemeal, or present only a portion of the grounds upon which relief is sought, and leave the rest to be presented in a second suit, if the first fails[,]" thereby "ensure[ing] fairness to litigants and . . . conserv[ing] judicial resources." Id. (internal citations and quotation marks omitted). The claim-splitting doctrine applies where “a plaintiff maintain[s] two separate causes of action involving the same subject matter, at the same time, in the same court, against the same defendant." Rumbough v. Comenity Capital Bank, 748 F. App'x 253, 255 (11th Cir. 2018) (citing Vanover, 857 F. 3d at 840-42).
Here, Petitioner's claim arises from the same event and challenges the same conviction and seeks relief against the same respondent. Thus, assuming Petitioner intended to initiate another habeas action, he has engaged in improper claim splitting. Because Petitioner's first case involves the same claim at issue in this case, the present case must be dismissed.
Accordingly:
1. This case is DISMISSED without prejudice.
2
2. Petitioner may pursue the present claim in the earlier case (Case No. 6:24-cv-1144-JSS-LHP).
3. The Clerk is directed to CLOSE this case.
ORDERED in Orlando, Florida on July 17, 2024.
JULIE S. SNEED
UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE
Copies furnished to: Unrepresented Party
3
[fn 1]: This is the date under the "mailbox rule." Under that rule, "a pro se prisoner's court filing is deemed filed on the date it is delivered to prison authorities for mailing." See, e.g., Williams v. McNeil, 557 F. 3d 1287, 1290 (11th Cir. 2009). The Court assumes, "[a]bsent evidence to the contrary, . . . that a prisoner delivered a filing to prison authorities on the date that he signed it." Jeffries v. United States, 748 F. 3d 1310, 1314 (11th Cir. 2014).
Cases With Similar Vibessemantic neighbors from the corpus
Citator
Authorities Cited
- Steadroy Williams v. McNEIL, 557 F.3d 1287 (11th Cir. 2009)
- Marlandow Jeffries v. United States, 748 F.3d 1310 (11th Cir. 2014)
- Vanover v. NCO Fin. Servs., Inc., 857 F.3d 833 (11th Cir. 2017)