UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
FILED
FOR THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA AUG 25 2010
Clerk. U.S. District & 8ankru tc
Courts for the District of COIU~bra
)
Nicole M. Settles, )
)
Plaintiff, )
)
v. ) Civil Action No.
) 10 1432
D.C. Housing Authority, )
)
Defendant. )
)
MEMORANDUM OPINION
This matter is before the Court on plaintiff s pro se complaint and application to proceed
in forma pauperis. The Court will grant plaintiffs application and dismiss the complaint for lack
of subject matter jurisdiction.
The subject matter jurisdiction of the federal district courts is limited and is set forth
generally at 28 U.S.C. §§ 1331 and 1332. Under those statutes, federal jurisdiction is available
only when a "federal question" is presented or the parties are of diverse citizenship and the
amount in controversy exceeds $75,000. A party seeking relief in the district court must at least
plead facts that bring the suit within the court's jurisdiction. See Fed. R. Civ. P. 8(a). Failure to
plead such facts warrants dismissal of the action. See Fed. R. Civ. P. 12(h)(3).
Plaintiff, a resident of the District of Columbia, sues the D.C. Housing Authority for
alleged injuries she suffered when she allegedly fell into an "unknown hole that was on a path
walkway" in the 200 block of 37th Street, S.E. Compl. at 1. Plaintiff seeks $85,000 in monetary
damages. The complaint neither presents a federal question nor provides a basis for diversity
jurisdiction because the parties are not of diverse citizenship. Plaintiffs recourse lies, if at all, in
the Superior Court of the District of Columbia. A separate Order of dismissal accompanies this
Memorandum Opinion.
Date: August J2-, 2010
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