Andrew R. Wiseman
How Judge Wiseman rules, drawn from 31 signed orders. Every observation links to the order it came from.
How Judge Wiseman decides
Patterns drawn from this judge's own signed orders. Every observation links to the order it came from.
What persuades
He draws a hard line around a prisoner's release account: it may be reached for the statutory initial partial payment, but a federal court cannot order the balance of a filing fee withdrawn from it. The point is about the limits of federal authority over state prison officials, not about the litigant's finances, so the motion fails even where he has found the litigant indigent in the same order.
“with the exception of initial partial payments, federal courts lack the authority to tell state officials whether and to what extent a prisoner should be able to withdraw money from a release account.”
Where the account statement shows no present means to pay, he will waive the initial partial payment outright rather than defer it: while keeping the full fee obligation alive for whenever funds appear. Indigency findings are made on the numbers in the certified statement, and he will re-evaluate an updated one.
“Plaintiff’s request to waive the initial partial filing fee is GRANTED. However, plaintiff remains responsible for paying the entire $350 filing fee for this case when funds exist.”
Procedural preferences
He reads self-represented filings for what they are asking rather than how they are labeled, construing an ordinary letter as the motion it functions as and deciding it on the merits. Litigants are not penalized for failing to caption a request correctly.
“Now plaintiff has filed a letter in the case that I construe as a motion to waive the initial partial payments.”
A fee ruling that goes against the litigant is routinely paired with practical relief: more time to pay, denial without prejudice, or an invitation to submit an updated account statement if circumstances have worsened. A denial is usually an opportunity to renew rather than the end of the matter.
“Plaintiff Johnny Ray Hunley, Jr.’s motion to waive the initial partial filing fee is DENIED without prejudice.”
Cautions
A finding of indigency is not the same as a waiver. Because the initial partial payment is required by statute, he will deny a waiver request from a litigant who qualifies to proceed without prepaying the full fee but whose account activity shows the means to make the smaller payment.
“I will deny his motion to waive prepayment of the filing fee because an initial partial payment is required by statute, and because plaintiff evidently has the means, based on near-weekly deposits into his account in amounts ranging from $20 to $100.”
He applies the statutory formula to the certified account statement and will require prepayment in full where the numbers do not support indigency, setting a firm deadline to pay. This happens on habeas petitions as well as civil complaints.
“IT IS ORDERED that plaintiff Melvin Jones’s petition for leave to proceed without prepayment of the filing fee is DENIED. Plaintiff must pay the $405 fee no later than February 6, 2026.”
Signed rulings
A grounded sample of orders signed by this judge, with the verbatim dispositive language.
A routine assessment order computing the statutory share of the filing fee from the inmate account statement.
“Plaintiff’s motion for use of release account funds to pay the entire filing fee in this case (Dkt. #4) is DENIED.”
“Plaintiff Gormidou Y. Lavela’s petition for leave to proceed without prepayment of fees is GRANTED.”
“Plaintiff Ronnie Famous’s motion for use of release account funds to pay the entire filing fee in this case (Dkt. #3) is DENIED.”
“Plaintiff Paul Negron’s motion for use of release account funds to pay the entire filing fee in this case is DENIED.”
A threshold order requiring the six-month account statement that the statute makes a precondition to evaluating a request to proceed without prepayment.
He calculated the statutory initial partial payment and held all further action until it was paid and the complaint screened.
“IT IS ORDERED that plaintiff Christopher Blair Vine’s motion for an order directing prison officials to pay the remainder of the filing fee for this case from plaintiff’s release account is DENIED.”
“Plaintiff Johnny Ray Hunley, Jr.’s motion to waive the initial partial filing fee is DENIED without prejudice.”
He found the litigant qualified for indigent status, calculated the statutory initial partial payment from the trust fund account statement, and stayed further action until that payment arrived and screening was complete.
“The motion filed by plaintiff Yousef Gilali for leave to proceed without prepayment of the filing fee is GRANTED.”
Because the fee was paid in full, the only remaining step was the statutory screening of a prisoner complaint.
Caseload & timing
From public federal docket records for this judge.
Median motion-to-ruling time: 5 days (N = 1).
The reviewed orders describe filing-fee administration for self-represented and incarcerated litigants across civil rights, prisoner, immigration habeas, and state habeas matters. They do not establish the distribution of any caseload assigned to him, because none is.
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