Bey v. Dyfs

• Decision Date: 25 May 2018
• Docket Number: Civil Action No. 12-5296 (CCC)
• Parties: MARY-K BOWLES BEY, Petitioner, v. DYFS, et al., Respondents.
• Court: U.S. District Court — District of New Jersey

MARY-K BOWLES BEY, Petitioner, v. DYFS, et al., Respondents.

Civil Action No. 12-5296 (CCC)

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT DISTRICT OF NEW JERSEY

May 25, 2018

NOT FOR PUBLICATION

OPINION

CECCHI, District Judge:

Presently before the Court are two letters by Plaintiff, (ECF No. 7 and 8), in response to the Court's October 19, 2012 Order ("Prior Order"). (ECF No. 4.) Plaintiff is requesting that the Court reopen the case and grant relief sought in Plaintiff's original submission. The Court construes these letters as motions for reconsideration of the Prior Order. For the reasons stated below, the Clerk will be directed to alter the docket sheet by changing the designation "plaintiff" to "petitioner," and "defendants" to "respondents"; the original submission, (ECF No. 1), will be dismissed; and the motions for reconsideration will be denied. The Court will also deny a certificate of appealability.

I. FACTUAL BACKGROUND

A. Initial Submission

This matter was commenced upon the Clerk's receipt of a submission which: (a) asserted simultaneous jurisdiction under habeas and non-habeas provisions; and (b) designated "Allah Azza Wal Jallah Lord of All the Worlds Mary-K Bowles Bey" as "plaintiff," and named a federal entity, a state agency, numerous state employees, and a few unidentified private individuals as "defendants." (ECF No. 1 at 1.) The submission arrived accompanied by $5.00. See id.

Since the submission hinted in equal measure at both habeas and civil proceedings, the Clerk docketed the submission replicating, as closely as possible, the designations utilized by the drafter. Consequently, the instant matter was categorized as a Section 2254 habeas action because that provision was listed first of the six provisions offered as jurisdictional bases, with "Allah Azza Wal Jallah Lord of All the Worlds Mary-K Bowles Bey" designated as "plaintiff" and the juridical and natural persons named as opposing parties designated as "defendants." See generally Docket. The submission consisted of 64 pages, with the first 23 pages styled as a habeas pleading and accompanying memorandum, and the remainder presenting two sets of exhibits. (See ECF Nos. 1, 1-1 and 1-2.)

B. Post-Commencement Developments

Upon docketing the above-described submission, the Clerk forwarded "Allah Azza Wal Jallah Lord of All the Worlds Mary-K Bowles Bey" a copy of the docket sheet, to apprise her about the index number assigned to this action. The Clerk's mailing was returned as undeliverable. (ECF No. 2.)

Shortly thereafter, the Clerk docketed a motion seeking an extension of time to submit responsive pleadings. That motion was filed by counsel representing a New Jersey Superior Court Judge named as one of "Allah Azza Wal Jallah Lord of All the Worlds Mary-K Bowles Bey's" opposing parties. (ECF No. 3.)

A week later, the Clerk docketed an application from "Allah Azza Wal Jallah Lord of All the Worlds Mary-K Bowles Bey." (ECF No. 4) (executed on October 17, 2012). That application, titled "Affidavit": (1) sought this Court's order directing the Clerk to strike the aforesaid motion;and (2) requested entry of default judgment in favor of "Allah Azza Wa Jallah Mary Bowles Bey" as to all named defendants. See id.

Two days later, "Allah Azza Wal Jallah Lord of All the Worlds Mary-K Bowles Bey" executed another letter, (ECF No. 6), elaborating on her application to strike the motion for an extension of time. See id. (informing this Court of her belief that a Deputy Attorney General could not have had a basis to seek extension of time, as well as of her belief that such request for an extension of time was "unacceptable").¹

C. This Court's Prior Ruling

The Court carefully examined the above-detailed panoply of submissions. That examination suggested that "Allah Azza Wal Jallah Lord of All the Worlds Mary-K Bowles Bey" was, seemingly an adherent of the "sovereign citizenship"/"redemptionist" movements and, in accordance with her socio-political beliefs, has been executing her submissions by asserting so-called "Marrakush" claims (reduced to so-called "Marrakush" argot) consistently found invalid by the courts in this District and across the nation.² See Abdullah v. New Jersey, 2012 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 99021 (D.N.J. July 16, 2012) (detailing facial deficiencies of "Marrakush"-style argot and facial invalidity of "Marrakush"-style claims); Imoore v. Gasbarro, 2012 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 73114(D.N.J. May 24, 2012) (same); Bey v. Stumpf, 825 F. Supp. 2d 537 (D.N.J. 2011) (same); Murakush Caliphate of Amexem Inc. v. New Jersey, 790 F. Supp. 2d 241 (D.N.J. 2011); Burpee El v. Warden, Fort Dix, 2010 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 118307 (D.N.J. Nov. 8, 2010) (same); Estate of Casimir v. New Jersey, 2009 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 78113 (D.N.J. Aug. 31, 2009) (same); Marrakush Soc'y v. N.J. State Police, 2009 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 68057 (D.N.J. July 30, 2009) (same); accord Monroe v. Beard, 536 F.3d 198 (3d Cir. 2008) (same); Cetacean Cmty. v. Bush, 386 F.3d 1169 (9th Cir. 2004) (same); El Bey v. United States, 2009 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 33838 (M.D.N.C. Jan. 26, 2009) (same).

Substantively, it appears that "Allah Azza Wal Jallah Lord of All the Worlds Mary-K Bowles Bey" commenced the instant matter because her five children had been taken into custody by the New Jersey Division of Youth and Family Services ("DYFS") upon child abuse/neglect charges.³

Taking notice of the foregoing, as well as the fact that the Clerk's mailing was returned as undeliverable, the Court issued a memorandum opinion and order reaching a number of preliminary determinations. (ECF No. No. 4.) The Court detailed to "Allah Azza Wal Jallah Lord of All the Worlds Mary-K Bowles Bey" that her submissions, executed in "Marrakush"-style argot, were not in compliance with the requirements posed by Rule 8 of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure.

The Court also noted the possibility that "Allah Azza Wal Jallah Lord of All the Worlds Mary-K Bowles Bey" intended to commence this action on behalf of her children. Entertaining such possibility, the Court pointed out that "Allah Azza Wal Jallah Lord of All the Worlds Mary-K Bowles Bey" lacked standing to raise such claims due to her loss of legal custody. In addition,the Court stressed that the custody-dispute claims fell outside this Court's jurisdiction, being barred by the domestic relations exception stripping this Court of subject matter jurisdiction over "cases involving the issuance of a divorce, alimony, or child custody decree." Ankenbrandt v. Richards, 504 U.S. 689 (1992); accord Schottel v. Kutyba, 2009 WL 230106 (2d Cir. 2009); Rabinowitz v State of New York, 329 F. Supp. 2d 373 (E.D.N.Y. 2004); see also Donohue v. Pataki, 28 Fed. App'x 59 (2d Cir. 2002); Agg v. Flanagan, 855 F.2d 336, 339 (6th Cir.1988); Friedlander v. Friedlander, 149 F.3d 739, 740 (7th Cir.1998); Lannan v. Maul, 979 F.2d 627, 631 (8th Cir.1992); Tackett v. Tackett, 877 F.2d 60 (4th Cir.1989).

However, the Court concluded that it did not need to reach dispositive issues. In light of the Clerk's mailing being returned as undeliverable, the Court found that "Allah Azza Wal Jallah Lord of All the Worlds Mary-K Bowles Bey" did not diligently update her current address with the Court as required by Local Civil Rule 10.1(a). Therefore, the Court merely directed the Clerk to administratively terminate this action, but gave "Allah Azza Wal Jallah Lord of All the Worlds Mary-K Bowles Bey" 30 days to move to reopen the case. In conjunction with the same, the Court dismissed, as moot, the motion seeking an extension of time to file responsive pleadings. (See ECF No. 4.)

D. The Letters At Bar

Two letters were filed by "Allah Azza Wal Jallah Lord of All the Worlds Mary-K Bowles Bey" following the Court's entry of the above-detailed decision. (ECF Nos. 7 and 8.)

1. Letter Docketed As Entry No. 7

The letter docketed as ECF No. 7, titled as an application to reopen, stated that: (1) the person who commenced this matter wished to be referred to as "Mary-K Bowles: Bey," id. at 1 (colon sign in original), and "Allah Azza Wa Jallah" was her "Lord and The Creator . . . as theEternal Living Exalted in Might God of All"; but (2) she preceded her own name with "Allah Azza Wa Jallah" in order to convince this Court that the juridical/natural persons named as opposing parties were "attacking [her] family during the holy month of Ramadan." Id.⁴

The letter arrived accompanied by what appeared to be "Mary-K Bowles: Bey's" memorandum in support of her original submission. (See ECF No. 7-1.) It appears that it was executed with the goal to convey that: (a) "Mary-K Bowles: Bey" (hereinafter "Petitioner") commenced this action as a habeas proceeding under to 28 U.S.C. § 2254; (b) Petitioner is, indeed, an adherent of the "sovereign citizenship"/"redemptionist" movements; (c) her children were, indeed, removed from her custody on the basis of abuse/neglect charges.⁵ See id. The memorandum closed with a demand for return of the children into her custody within 72 hours, and for this Court's order directing closure of the DYFS proceeding. See id. at 5. The memorandum was accompanied by a "Judicial Notice" directing this Court to immediately "affirm" Petitioner's "Affidavit." See id. at 6.

2. Letter Docketed As Entry No. 8

The next letter submitted by Petitioner reads as follows:

I am writing you to ask why my amended writ of habeas corpus Order has not been signed? . . . I requested a response to my Order within 72 hours . . . and I have received no response. I demand my Order be signed and returned to me immediately. . . . Also if this process is not the proper process in which to handle this matter I authorize you to inform me of the proper process. Mary Bowles: Bey . . . now comes forth to make demands in this formal Affidavit due to the nature ofthe biasness, and prejudice actions coming from Stephen J. Bernstein JSC, . . . ; summons Chief Judge The Honorable Stuart Rabner of THE SUPERIOR COURTS OF NEW JERSEY known as Respondent(s), here in after. [Petit

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