Pro se cert petitioner can't be located; his SCOTUS brief is due soon
A Baltimore property owner who persuaded the U.S. Supreme Court to hear his case has gone missing.
The court granted cert last month based on a petition written by property owner Bobby Chen without the help of a lawyer, the Wall Street Journal (sub. req.) reports. A reporter who visited Chen’s last known address in New York City was unable to find him. The Supreme Court and a lawyer who would like to represent Chen have also tried to contact him without success.
Chen had claimed in a lawsuit that Baltimore officials tore down his townhouse to hide damage created when the city tore down a building next door, the story says. His case never got to trial, however, because he missed a deadline to serve the legal papers. One judge gave him an extension, but a second judge dismissed the suit when the case was transferred to him.
At issue, according to Courthouse News Service, is whether federal procedural rules give judges discretion to extend the time for service without a showing of good cause. Chen’s brief is due on Dec. 22.
