Bowens v. City of Minneapolis et al

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
DISTRICT OF MINNESOTA
Shomari Bowens,
Plaintiff,
v.
City of Minneapolis, Hennepin County,
Rashida Hill, and Michael Wolf, and John
and Jane Doe 1–10,
Defendants.
Case No. 26-cv-0268 (JMB/SGE)
ORDER
This case is before the Court on Plaintiff Shomari Bowens’s Motion to Proceed In
Forma Pauperis, Dkt. No. 2 (“IFP Application”), and accompanying declaration, Dkt. 3
(“Bowens Declaration”). For the reasons below, the Court denies the application without
prejudice.
“The central question [when assessing an application to proceed in forma pauperis
(‘IFP’)] is whether the movant can afford the costs of proceeding without undue hardship
or deprivation of the necessities of life.” Ayers v. Tex. Dep’t of Crim. Justice, 70 F.3d 1268,
1268 (5th Cir. 1995) (per curiam) (citing Adkins v. E.I. DuPont de Nemours & Co., 335
U.S. 331, 339–40 (1948)); see also, e.g., Mays v. Glob. Health Link, No. 25-CV-4676
(DWF/DJF), 2025 WL 3755670, at *1 (D. Minn. Dec. 29, 2025) (quoting Ayers).
Bowens reports receiving $3,000 per month in income. See Bowens Decl. 1. Bow-
ens states that this income is “inconsistent and unreliable,” but because he indicates no
dependents, his reported income exceeds 200 percent of the federal poverty line for one-
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person families in the State of Minnesota. See generally IFP Appl., Bowens Decl. On this
record, the Court cannot find that denying Bowers IFP status would cause undue hardship
or deprive him of life’s necessities. The Court therefore denies the IFP Application.
The Court is denying the IFP Application without prejudice, however, meaning that
Bowens can file a new IFP application if he wants and he believes additional information
would strengthen his application. Alternatively, he may pay this action’s standard filing
fee. If he does neither, however, the Court will recommend dismissing this action without
prejudice, under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 41(b), for failure to prosecute.
ORDER
Based on the foregoing, and on all of the files, records, and proceedings herein, IT
IS HEREBY ORDERED:
1. 	Plaintiff Shomari Bowens’s Motion to Proceed In Forma Pauperis,
Dkt. 2, is DENIED without prejudice.
2. 	Within 21 days of this Order’s date, Plaintiff must either (1) pay this
action’s filing fee, or (2) submit a new IFP application. If he does
neither, the Court will recommend dismissing this action under Fed-
eral Rule of Civil Procedure 41(b) for failure to prosecute.
Dated: January 15, 2026 	s/ Shannon G. Elkins
SHANNON G. ELKINS
United States Magistrate Judge
CASE 0:26-cv-00268-JMB-SGE Doc. 4 Filed 01/15/26 Page 2 of 2