Harris v. Taylor, City of, 2:24-cv-13458

Karlos Latwian Harris filed suit against the City of Taylor, a local judge, police trooper, and other city officials.
Harris sought to proceed in forma pauperis (without paying court fees), claiming he individually had no assets, as they were held in a trust or LLC in his name.
He also requested the court to order the U.S. Marshals to serve process on the defendants.
The court reviewed Harris's affidavit and considered whether he qualified as indigent under federal law.
The court addressed whether Harris's assertion about asset ownership (via trust/LLC) was sufficient to justify fee waiver and marshal service.

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument	Defendant's Argument	Held
Proceeding in forma pauperis	Harris claims no personal assets and cannot afford fees	No brief noted; court reviews facts	Denied: Plaintiff has access to trust/LLC
Order U.S. Marshals to serve process	Fee waiver should entitle him to marshal service	No brief noted; court reviews circumstances	Denied: Not entitled due to fee waiver denial
Sufficiency of affidavit of indigence	Maintains all personal assets are legally separate from him	No brief noted	Denied: Does not show inability to pay
Use of trust/LLC to avoid fees	Asserts operation of trust/LLC restricts access to assets	Court questions validity	Denied: Court finds assets could be used

Adkins v. E.I. DuPont de Nemours & Co., 335 U.S. 331 (1948) (establishes that in forma pauperis status is for those who cannot pay fees and still provide necessities of life)
Phipps v. King, 866 F.2d 824 (6th Cir. 1988) (court has discretion in granting or denying in forma pauperis applications)