Ellis v. United States

[ 356 U.S. Page 674] The petition for writ of certiorari is granted, as is leave to proceed in forma pauperis. The Court of Appeals denied petitioner leave to appeal in forma pauperis a conviction for housebreaking and larceny. 101
U. S. App. D.C. 386, 249 F.2d 478. The Solicitor General concedes that leave to appeal should have been allowed unless petitioner's
contentions on the merits were frivolous. The only statutory requirement for the allowance of an indigent's appeal is the
applicant's "good faith." 28 U. S. C. § 1915. In the absence of some evident improper motive, the applicant's good faith is
established by the presentation of any issue that is not plainly frivolous. Farley v. United States, 354 U.S. 521. The good-faith
test must not be converted [ 356 U.S. Page 675] into a requirement of a preliminary showing of any particular degree of merit.
Unless the issues raised are so frivolous that the appeal would be dismissed in the case of a non-indigent litigant, Fed.
Rules Crim. Proc. 39 (a), the request of an indigent for leave to appeal in forma pauperis must be allowed.