Smalley v. Gamache et al

Filing 114

MEMORANDUM AND ORDER: IT IS HEREBY ORDERED that the Clerk of the Court shall update the docket sheet to reflect plaintiff's current address of Western Missouri Correctional Center, 609 East Pence Road, Cameron, Missouri 64429 and shall provide c opies of the following documents to plaintiff at his new address: docket sheet; complaint 1 ; Order denying summary judgment 108 ; Order relating to trial 109 ; and, plaintiff's letter 112 . IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that the motion for appointment of counsel 113 is denied.. Signed by District Judge Rodney W. Sippel on 5/22/13. (LGK)

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
EASTERN DISTRICT OF MISSOURI
EASTERN DIVISION
JAMES SMALLEY,
Plaintiff,
vs.
MICHAEL GAMACHE, et al.,
Defendants.

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Case No. 4:10CV319 RWS

MEMORANDUM AND ORDER
This matter is before me on a letter plaintiff sent to the Clerk of Court and a motion for
appointment of counsel. Although plaintiff has failed to file a notice of change of address in
accordance with the local rules, he has apparently been transferred to Western Missouri
Correctional Center, 609 East Pence Road, Cameron, Missouri 64429, so I will Order the Clerk
of the Court to update the docket sheet accordingly. It is unclear what plaintiff is asking the
Clerk of the Court to send him - this case is three years old and has 113 docket entries. Because
plaintiff’s trial date is fast approaching, I will order the Clerk of the Court to send copies of
the following documents only to plaintiff as a one-time courtesy: docket sheet; complaint
[#1]; Order denying summary judgment [#108]; Order relating to trial [#109]; and, plaintiff’s
letter [#112].
As for plaintiff’s request for a lawyer, I have considered it under the appropriate standards
and find that no appointment of counsel is necessary.1 Plaintiff states he needs a lawyer to hire
1

There is no constitutional or statutory right to appointed counsel in a civil case. Nelson
v. Redfield Lithograph Printing, 728 F.2d 1003, 1004 (8th Cir. 1984). In determining whether to
appoint counsel, the Court considers several factors including (1) whether the plaintiff has
presented non-frivolous allegations supporting his prayer for relief; (2) whether the plaintiff will
substantially benefit from the appointment of counsel; (3) whether there is a need to further

an expert witness and conduct discovery, but as plaintiff is well aware, all discovery in this
matter is closed so no expert witness could be presented and no additional discovery could
be conducted by appointed counsel. This case is not factually complex. Plaintiff is not entitled
to a lawyer, and I do not find that appointment of counsel is warranted. This case is set to go to
trial in a little over a month. If plaintiff is seeking an extension of the trial date due to his
transfer or for any other reason, then he must file a timely motion in accordance with the local
rules for the Court’s consideration.
Accordingly,
IT IS HEREBY ORDERED that the Clerk of the Court shall update the docket sheet to
reflect plaintiff’s current address of Western Missouri Correctional Center, 609 East Pence
Road, Cameron, Missouri 64429 and shall provide copies of the following documents to
plaintiff at his new address: docket sheet; complaint [#1]; Order denying summary judgment
[#108]; Order relating to trial [#109]; and, plaintiff’s letter [#112].
IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that the motion for appointment of counsel [#113] is
denied.

RODNEY W. SIPPEL
UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE
Dated this 22nd day of May, 2013.

investigate and present the facts related to the plaintiff’s allegations; and (4) whether the factual
and legal issues presented by the action are complex. See Battle v. Armontrout, 902 F.2d 701,
702 (8th Cir. 1990); Johnson v. Williams, 788 F.2d 1319, 1322-23 (8th Cir. 1986); Nelson, 728
F.2d at 1005.
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