Isma El v. Fayette County Detention Center et al, No. 5:2014cv00197 - Document 4 (E.D. Ky. 2014)

Court Description: MEMORANDUM OPINION AND ORDER: (1) Clerk shall modify the docket to identify the Pla as "Kenneth Mobley, aka Amir Kenneth Mobley Isma El." (2) Mobley's 1 Notice of Removal is DISMISSED for lack of jurisdiction, and this action is REMA NDED to the Circuit Court of Fayette County, Kentucky. (3) Clerk shall FORWARD a certified copy of this Order to the Clerk of the Circuit Court of Fayette County, Kentucky, referencing Case No. #14-F-756. (4) Circuit Court may proceed with this action without further impediment. (5) Mobley's 3 Motion to Challenge Jurisdiction is DENIED. Signed by Judge Joseph M. Hood on May 22, 2014. (AWD) cc: Pla via US Mail to FCDC,certified copy to Fayette Circuit Court

Download PDF
UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT EASTERN DISTRICT OF KENTUCKY CENTRAL DIVISION at LEXINGTON KENNETH MOBLEY, aka AMIR KENNETH MOBLEY ISMA EL, Plaintiff, V. FAYETTE COUNTY. DETENTION CENTER, et al., Defendants. *** *** ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) Civil No. 5: 14-197-JMH MEMORANDUM OPINION AND ORDER *** *** Kenneth Mobley1 is an inmate at the Fayette County Detention Center in Lexington, Kentucky. filed a Notice of Removal Proceeding pro se, Mobley has [R. 1]; a Notice of Unlawful Action [R. 2]; and a Motion to Challenge Jurisdiction. [R. 3] 1 Mobley identifies himself as Amir Kenneth Mobley Isma El. [R. 1] However, the Account Activity Ledger he has provided indicates that his legal name is Kenneth Mobley [R. 1-2, p. 5], a name he has used in prior litigation before this Court. Moche Isma El v. Commonwealth of Kentucky, No. 5:12-CV-207-WOB (E.D. Ky. 2012); Mobley v. Kentucky District Court, No. 5:13443-KSF (E.D. Ky. 2013). A plaintiff must litigate a case filed in federal court using his or her legal name. The Court will therefore direct the Clerk of the Court to modify the docket to identify Kenneth Mobley as the plaintiff s legal name, with Amir Kenneth Mobley Isma El included as an additional designation. Mobley has not paid the $400.00 in filing and administrative fees, nor filed a motion to proceed in forma pauperis. In his Notice of Removal, Mobley asserts that jurisdiction over this action is vested with the United States Supreme Court, but he also has invoked this Court s removal jurisdiction under 28 U.S.C. § 1441, apparently seeking remove Case #14-F-756 from the Fayette Circuit Court. p. 1] Mobley separately asserts a Cause of to [R. 1, Action, the subject matter of which appears to be the December 3, 2013, search of his apartment and his subsequent arrest by officers, which he contends was done without a proper warrant. also complains regarding events occurring Mobley during his confinement, including a guard s termination of a phone call with his attorney and his subsequent confinement in segregation. Id. at 2. He further contends that the judges presiding over his criminal proceedings lack jurisdiction over him because, as a foreign sovereign, he is not subject to the laws of Kentucky or of the United States. Mobley s officials Notice violated of the Id. at 3-5; R. 1-1, pp. 1-2. Unlawful Action asserts Foreign Sovereign that state Immunities Act, codified at 28 U.S.C. §§ 1330, 1332, 1391(f), 1441(d), and 16021611 ( FSIA ) notwithstanding by referring to him his asserted right to as Kenneth choose his Mobley own name. Mobley contends that state case #14-F-756 is therefore removable to this Court pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1441(d). [R. 2] Finally, in his Motion to Challenge Jurisdiction, Mobley contends that he cannot be prosecuted under or made subject to the laws of the United States or any of the several States because they do not apply to him. [R. 3, pp. 1-2] This action is the latest effort by Mobley to interfere with past against and him ongoing by criminal Kentucky District Court, February 21, No. 2014, and civil officials. 5:13-443-KSF Order of See (E.D. actions Mobley Ky. instituted v. Kentucky 2013) Dismissal]. As [R. 17, with its predecessor, the Court will dismiss this action for lack of jurisdiction and remand it to the Fayette Circuit Court. Mobley seeks to pursuant to § 1441(d). remove the state court criminal action That section provides: Any civil action brought in a State court against a foreign state as defined in section 1603(a) of this title may be removed by the foreign state to the district court of the United States for the district and division embracing the place where such action is pending. 28 U.S.C. § 1441(d). frivolous. Case No. Mobley s invocation of this provision is #14-F-756 pending in Fayette Circuit Court. permits actions. the removal Cf. of Thompson state v. is a felony criminal action By its terms, § 1441(d) only civil Scutt, No. actions, not 1:11-cv-573, criminal 2011 WL 2745934, at *4-5 fundamentally, actions against § 1603(a). that a (W.D. section foreign Mich. only July 13, permits state as 2011). removal defined in More of 28 civil U.S.C. Only a foreign state possesses standing to seek removal under this provision, something Mobley plainly is not. See United States v. Curtiss Wright Export Corp., 299 U.S. 304, 318 19 (1936). Because Mobley has failed to establish any basis for this Court s jurisdiction, the Court will dismiss this matter and remand it to the Fayette Circuit Court for all further proceedings. Accordingly, IT IS ORDERED that: 1. The Clerk of the Court shall modify the docket to identify the plaintiff as Kenneth Mobley, a/k/a Amir Kenneth Mobley Isma El. 2. Mobley s Notice of Removal [R. 1] is DISMISSED for lack of jurisdiction, and this action is REMANDED to the Circuit Court of Fayette County, Kentucky. 3. The Clerk of Court shall FORWARD a certified copy of this Order to the Clerk of the Circuit Court of Fayette County, Kentucky, referencing Case No. #14-F-756. 4. The Circuit Court may proceed with this action without further impediment. 5. Mobley s Motion to Challenge Jurisdiction is DENIED. This the 22nd day of May, 2014.

Some case metadata and case summaries were written with the help of AI, which can produce inaccuracies. You should read the full case before relying on it for legal research purposes.

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.