UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS
FOR THE FIFTH CIRCUIT
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No. 01-31274
Summary Calendar
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KARSTON KEELEN,
Plaintiff-Appellant,
versus
BURL CAIN; UNKNOWN DURRETT; CORNEL JONES; UNKNOWN REGIS; UNKNOWN
OWEN; UNKNOWN TURNER; UNKNOWN BARBET; UNKNOWN ZARBAR; UNKNOWN
HALL; UNKNOWN BROOKS; UNKNOWN MILES; UNKNOWN BARBRA; UNKNOWN
THOMPSON; UNKNOWN FOUTAIN; UNKNOWN PARKER; UNKNOWN NORWOOD;
UNKNOWN SANDERS; UNKNOWN ORGON; UNKNOWN DANIEL; UNKNOWN LOCKWOOD;
UNKNOWN ALLEN; UNKNOWN ALLEN; UNKNOWN NETTLES; UNKNOWN DEVEAL;
UNKNOWN HAMPTON; UNKNOWN FONTENOT; UNKNOWN REED; UNKNOWN HOLMES;
UNKNOWN SPIKE; UNKNOWN ANDREW,
Defendants-Appellees.
Appeal from the United States District Court
for the Middle District of Louisiana
(01-CV-689-D)
January 21, 2002
Before HIGGINBOTHAM, WIENER, and BARKSDALE, Circuit Judges.
PER CURIAM:*
Karston Keelen, Louisiana prisoner #125690, appeals, pro se,
the denial of his motion: (1) to amend the judgment dismissing his
civil rights complaint without prejudice for failure to comply with
*
Pursuant to 5TH CIR. R. 47.5, the court has determined that
this opinion should not be published and is not precedent except
under the limited circumstances set forth in 5TH CIR. R. 47.5.4.
the district court’s deficiency notice concerning Keelen’s
application for leave to proceed in forma pauperis (IFP); or (2) to
make additional findings of fact. While it is unclear whether
Keelen moved pursuant to Federal Rules of Civil Procedure 52(b) or
59(e), he challenges the correctness of the judgment. Accordingly,
we construe his motion as brought pursuant to Rule 59(e). See,
e.g. , Nat’l Metal Finishing Co., Inc. v.
BarclaysAmerican/Commercial, Inc., 899 F.2d 119, 122 (1st Cir.
1990) (“Circuit precedent suggests that challenges to the
correctness of a judgment are properly construed as motions under
Rule 59(e).”); 12 JAMES WM. MOORE ET AL., MOORE’S FEDERAL PRACTICE ¶
59.05[6] (3d ed. 1999) (“[A] Rule 59(e) motion seeks an alteration
or amendment of a judgment, often by way of the court’s finding of
additional facts. In contrast, a Rule 52(b) motion seeks only the
correction of findings or the finding of additional facts without
the amendment of the judgment”.).
We generally review the denial of a Rule 59(e) motion for
abuse of discretion. Fletcher v. Apfel, 210 F.3d 510, 512 (5th
Cir. 2000). That standard applies where, as here, the challenge is
to the district court’s discretion in marshaling the facts and
deciding whether its judgment should be changed. See id.; see also
Trust Co. Bank v. U.S. Gypsum Co., 950 F.2d 1144, 1147 n.5 (5th
Cir. 1992). Keelen contends the district court abused its
discretion in the light of the fact that he satisfied the noticed
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deficiency by submitting a certified statement of account in a
timely manner.
The deficiency notice stated that “failure to amend the
pleadings as indicated will result in the dismissal of your suit by
the court without further notice”. The deficiency indicated was
that “[Keelen] must have an authorized officer complete the
Statement of Account”. The court enclosed a statement of account
form when it mailed the deficiency notice to Keelen. That form
contained, inter alia, a block for the statutorily-mandated
disclosure of financial information for the six-month period
preceding the filing of Keelen’s complaint. See 28 U.S.C. §
1915(a)(2) (“A prisoner seeking to bring a civil action ... without
prepayment of fees ... shall 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 of each
prison at which the prisoner is or was confined.” (emphasis
added)). Although Keelen timely returned that enclosed form, it
was apparently completed by him and was not certified by an
authorized official. Keelen contemporaneously filed an additional
statement of account form, which was apparently completed and
certified by an authorized official; but, that form did not provide
the statutorily-mandated six-month information.
AFFIRMED
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