Order Michigan Supreme Court
Lansing, Michigan
March 23, 2018 Stephen J. Markman,
Chief Justice
157435 (39) Brian K. Zahra
Bridget M. McCormack
David F. Viviano
MICHAEL CHARLES WARD, Richard H. Bernstein
Plaintiff-Appellant, Kurtis T. Wilder
Elizabeth T. Clement,
Justices
v SC: 157435
COA: 339639
MACOMB CORRECTIONAL FACILITY WARDEN,
EARNEST C. BROOKS CORRECTIONAL
FACILITY WARDEN, DEPARTMENT OF
CORRECTIONS, and PAROLE BOARD,
Defendants-Appellees.
____________________________________________/
On order of the Chief Justice, the motion to waive fees is DENIED because MCL
600.2963 requires that a prisoner pursuing a civil action be liable for filing fees.
Ordinarily, MCL 600.2963(8) would preclude appellant from seeking leave to appeal in
this Court because of the outstanding fees he owes in other civil case filings. However,
applying that statutory section to bar review of appellant’s complaint for habeas corpus in
the Court of Appeals would violate the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth
Amendment. Smith v Bennett, 365 US 708; 81 S Ct 895; 6 L Ed 2d 39 (1961).
Appellant is not required to pay an initial partial fee. However, for an appeal to be
filed, within 21 days of the date of this order, appellant shall submit a copy of this
order and refile the copy of the pleadings returned with this order. By doing this,
appellant becomes responsible to pay the $375.00 filing fee. Failure to comply with this
order shall result in the appeal not being filed in this Court.
If appellant timely refiles the pleadings, monthly payments shall be made to the
Department of Corrections in the amount of 50 percent of the deposits made to
appellant’s account until the payments equal the balance due of $375.00. This amount
shall then be remitted to this Court.
Pursuant to MCL 600.2963(8), appellant shall not file a new civil action or appeal
in this Court until the entry fee in this case is paid in full.
The Clerk of the Court shall furnish two copies of this order to appellant and
return a copy of appellant’s pleadings with this order.
I, Larry S. Royster, Clerk of the Michigan Supreme Court, certify that the
foregoing is a true and complete copy of the order entered at the direction of the Court.
March 23, 2018
izm
Clerk