Engel v. PayPal

4:21-cv-00886MoedJan 7, 2026

Full text

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
EASTERN DISTRICT OF MISSOURI
EASTERN DIVISION
JOSEPH MICHAEL DEVON ENGEL, 	)
)
Plaintiff, 	)
)
v. 	) 	No. 4:21-cv-00886-HEA
)
PAYPAL, 	)
)
Defendant. 	)
OPINION, MEMORANDUM AND ORDER
This matter is before the Court on review of Plaintiff’s post-judgment motion to reopen.1
[ECF No. 21]. Plaintiff is a prisoner who is subject to 28 U.S.C. § 1915(g), and who previously
“knowingly and persistently engaged in litigation practices that amount[ed] to abuse of the judicial
process.” Engel v. Jefferson County Sheriff Dep’t. No. 4:21-cv-00896-SEP, 2021 WL 4133791, at
*3 (E.D. Mo. Sept. 10, 2021). In the instant motion, Plaintiff complains that in August of 2021,
defendant PayPal allowed someone to hack his account and “take over” his identity. He seeks the
status of the instant action, and he asks this Court to let him proceed with his claims to hold PayPal
responsible.
Plaintiff’s motion is frivolous, and it is consistent with his prior pattern of abusive litigation
before this Court. The Court will therefore deny the motion and direct the Clerk to return any
future documents to Plaintiff unfiled.
Accordingly,
IT IS HEREBY ORDERED that Plaintiff’s motion to reopen, ECF No. 21, is DENIED.
1This action was dismissed on August 13, 2021, pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1915(g). On October 27, 2021,
the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals dismissed Plaintiff’s appeal for failure to prosecute. Engel v. PayPal,
No. 21-2918 (8th Cir. 2021).
Case: 4:21-cv-00886-HEA Doc. #: 22 Filed: 01/07/26 Page: 1 of 2 PageID #:
<pageID>
IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that, should Plaintiff submit any additional documents in
this closed matter, the Clerk of Court shall return them to Plaintiff unfiled.
Dated this 7th day of January, 2026.
HENRY EDWARD AUTREY
UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE
Case: 4:21-cv-00886-HEA Doc. #: 22 Filed: 01/07/26 Page: 2 of 2 PageID #:
<pageID>

Continue your research in ChatGPT or Claude

Connect Omnilex to search the legal corpus from your AI assistant.