Mims, Reginald v. Brown, Logan, et al

IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
FOR THE WESTERN DISTRICT OF WISCONSIN
REGINALD JERMAINE MIMS,
Plaintiff,
v.
LOGAN BROWN, et al.,
Defendants.
OPINION and ORDER
25-cv-42-jdp
Plaintiff Reginald Jermaine Mims, representing himself, is proceeding on Fourth
Amendment excessive force and Fourteenth Amendment equal protection claims against
certain Fitchburg police officers, and on state-law assault claims against Paul Morris, James
Wilson, and Simple Recovery Towing. 	Dkt. 6 at 2. 	This order concerns motions filed by
defendant Morris, who is also representing himself.
Morris has filed a motion asking to be excused from having to register as an e-filer,
stating that he has difficulty reading documents on his computer. Dkt. 37. He has also filed
a related motion asking the court to mail him court documents in large print, and for the court
to be patient with him during proceedings because he has speech and cognitive impairments.
Dkt. 36.
A. Registering as an e-filer
Morris’s request to remain a non e-filer is conditionally GRANTED, but Morris is
ORDERED to provide an alternative way for the court and the other parties in this litigation
to contact him. At the December 15, 2025 preliminary pretrial conference, the court explained
that all parties have an obligation to maintain up-to-date contact information so that the court
can 	send 	them 	notices 	and 	the 	other 	parties 	can 	send 	them 	discovery 	request 	and
Case: 3:25-cv-00042-jdp Document #: 39 Filed: 01/14/26 Page 1 of 4

2
correspondence. 	Parties can provide a physical address to receive these communications by
mail or they can agree to electronic communications. Defendants Morris and Wilson objected
to providing their home addresses in light of the allegations underlying this case, which include
an alleged assault between them and plaintiff and alleged threats of violence plaintiff directed
at defendants. In light of this, the court found good cause to keep their home addresses under
seal, 	but 	the 	court 	explained 	that 	these 	defendants 	must 	provide 	alternative 	contact
information to participate in discovery. 	During the preliminary pretrial conference, these
defendants agreed to register as e-filers and to provide an email address for discovery process.
The court ordered the parties to register as e-filers by December 29, 2025. Dkt. 35.
Now defendant Morris asks to be excused from registering as an e-filer. The court will
conditionally 	grant 	this 	request, 	but 	only 	upon 	Morris 	providing 	alternative 	contact
information. He may use an alternative physical address, such as his work address or a P.O.
Box, or he may yet elect to use electronic communication.1 Whatever means he selects is his
choice, but he must provide some valid means. 	Providing no address or keeping the only
address provided so far under seal are not options. Morris is ORDERED to submit a letter to
the court by the deadline below providing the alternative address he agrees to use for purposes
of this lawsuit or reporting that he has registered as an e-filer and will use email.
B. Requested accommodations
Morris asks the court to mail him court documents in large print, and for the court to
be patient with him during proceedings because he has speech and cognitive impairments. Dkt.
1 To register as an e-filer, Morris would need to create an account in PACER and complete the
electronic filing registration for this court. See registration information for non-attorney filers
at https://pacer.uscourts.gov/register-account/non-attorney-filers-cmecf.
Case: 3:25-cv-00042-jdp Document #: 39 Filed: 01/14/26 Page 2 of 4

3
36. The court will treat Morris with the same courtesy and patience it extends to all litigants,
and if Morris needs more time to meet deadlines, the court will grant reasonable extension for
good cause shown. As to the more specific accommodation requests for special materials, these
are DENIED.
The court is not able to provide large-print versions of case documents to individual
litigants without undertaking fundamental changes to its operations and thus incurring
significant administrative burdens. 	The court has a small team of clerks that handle many
hundreds of cases. 	Having a special rule for formatting and printing in one case is not
something that the court is equipped to handle in the normal course. With significant effort,
the court may be able to change the font size of its own text-only orders, but it cannot also
easily or economically reformat its other court filings, including its captioned orders, and it
cannot reformat submissions from the other parties.
But perhaps more importantly, Morris does not explain why he could not address his
vision issues on his own. If he elects to receive case documents by mail, he may use a vision
aid like a magnifying glass or glasses to read those documents. 	And if he elects to receive
documents by electronic means, he could enlarge the documents on his computer. 	Many
people take these steps to read small-print materials every day.
All things considered, there are other means for Morris to address his concerns, so there
is no strong need to fashion other accommodations. And, in any event, the burdens associated
with providing the requested accommodations outweigh any need.
Case: 3:25-cv-00042-jdp Document #: 39 Filed: 01/14/26 Page 3 of 4

4
ORDER
IT IS ORDERED that:
1. 	Defendant Paul Morris’s motion for accommodations, Dkt. 36, is GRANTED in
part and DENIED in part.
2. 	Defendant Morris’s motion to return to non e-filer status, Dkt. 37, is conditionally
GRANTED.
3. 	Defendant Morris is ORDERED to submit a letter to the court by January 21, 2026
the alternative address he agrees to use for purposes of this lawsuit or notice that he
has registered as an e-filer and will use email.
Entered January 14, 2026.
BY THE COURT:
/s/
________________________________________
ANITA MARIE BOOR
Magistrate Judge
Case: 3:25-cv-00042-jdp Document #: 39 Filed: 01/14/26 Page 4 of 4