Torgerson, Kristopher Paul v. Law & Crime Productions, LLC

IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
FOR THE WESTERN DISTRICT OF WISCONSIN
KRISTOPHER PAUL TORGERSON,
Plaintiff,
v.
LAW & CRIME PRODUCTIONS, LLC and GOOGLE
LLC d/b/a YOUTUBE,
Defendants.
ORDER
25-cv-835-jdp
Plaintiff Kristopher Paul Torgerson, proceeding without counsel, seeks relief under 42
U.S.C. § 1983. This order provides Torgerson guidance on how to properly submit his claims
for this court’s review.
This court provides prisoners seeking to file suit a prisoner complaint package that
includes a complaint form and instructions on filing a prisoner complaint in federal court. Filing
a complaint on the form is not mandatory in every prisoner case, but the court has discretion
to order prisoners to use the form when it promises to help them articulate their claims and to
promote judicial economy. See A. Bauer Mech., Inc. v. Joint Arb. Bd. of Plumbing Contractors’ Ass’s
& Chi. Journeymen Plumbers’ Loc. Union 130, U.A., 562 F.3d 784, 790 (7th Cir. 2009) (courts
have broad discretion to enforce local practices that enable a district court to manage its docket
as efficiently as possible).
Torgerson’s 	amended 	complaint, 	which 	runs 	41 	pages, 	is 	excessively 	long 	and
argumentative, and it contains many redundant and immaterial allegations. The court will not
parse the amended complaint to attempt to discern the facts supporting a potentially plausible
claim because that would unduly strain the court’s resources and divert it from its role as a
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neutral decisionmaker. The court must construe Torgerson’s allegations generously, but it
cannot construct his claims for him.
Instead, the court will require Torgerson to file a second amended complaint, using the
prisoner complaint form, to more carefully articulate the facts supporting his claims. Once the
court has received the second amended complaint, it will be screened.
The court will send Torgerson a copy of the prisoner complaint form along with this
order. Torgerson may include supplemental pages with the form if he needs more space to
allege facts supporting his claims, but he may provide no more than eight (8) supplemental
pages. Any handwritten or typewritten text on the form or any supplemental page must be
large enough and have enough spacing between the lines and in the margins for the court to
read it easily. For reference, Torgerson’s amended complaint meets the spacing and text size
requirements.
In drafting the second amended complaint, Torgerson should be mindful that, to state
a claim for relief, a pleading need only contain “a short and plain statement of the claim
showing that [he] is entitled to relief.” Fed. R. Civ. P. 8(a)(2). Torgerson’s allegations must be
“simple, concise, and direct.” Fed. R. Civ. P. 8(d). Torgerson should state his allegations in
numbered paragraphs, “each limited as far as practicable to a single set of circumstances.”
Fed. R. Civ. P. 10(b). Torgerson should identify his claims in this manner and omit any legal
arguments.
Torgerson should carefully consider whether he is naming proper defendants, which
means that he should omit defendants who did not personally participate in, or otherwise
cause, a violation of his rights. Torgerson must explain what each defendant did, or failed to
do, to violate his rights. Torgerson should avoid referring to defendants collectively. Torgerson
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also should identify by full name in the case caption of the amended complaint every one of
the defendants.
ORDER
IT IS ORDERED that:
1. 	Plaintiff Kristopher Paul Torgerson has until March 25, 2026 to file a second
amended complaint in accordance with the instructions provided in this order.
2. 	The second amended complaint will act as a complete substitute for the earlier
pleadings. This case will proceed on only the allegations made and claims presented
in the second amended complaint, and against only the defendants specifically
named in the second amended complaint’s caption.
3. 	If plaintiff fails to comply with this order, the court may dismiss the case.
4. 	The clerk of court is directed to send plaintiff a copy of the court’s prisoner
complaint form.
Entered February 24, 2026.
BY THE COURT:
/s/
________________________________________
ANITA MARIE BOOR
Magistrate Judge
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