Hightower v. Medical Staff/St. Louis Justice Center

Filing 12

MEMORANDUM AND ORDER: IT IS HEREBY ORDERED that plaintiff's motion for appointment of counsel is denied without prejudice. Signed by District Judge Carol E. Jackson on 1/6/2015. (KMS)

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
EASTERN DISTRICT OF MISSOURI
EASTERN DIVISION
DAVID HIGHTOWER,

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Plaintiff,
v.
CITY OF ST. LOUIS, et al.,
Defendants.

No. 4:14CV1959 CEJ

MEMORANDUM AND ORDER
This matter is before the Court on plaintiff's motion for appointment of counsel. For the
following reasons, the motion will be denied.
There is no constitutional or statutory right to appointed counsel in civil cases. 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 or her prayer for relief; (2) whether the
plaintiff will substantially benefit from the appointment of counsel; (3) whether there is a need to
further 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 Johnson v. Williams, 788 F.2d
1319, 1322-23 (8th Cir. 1986); Nelson, 728 F.2d at 1005.
After considering these factors, the Court finds that the facts and legal issues involved are
not so complicated that the appointment of counsel is warranted at this time. The legal issues
involve whether excessive force was used when plaintiff was arrested and whether medical staff
at the St. Louis City Justice Center were deliberately indifferent to plaintiff’s serious medical
needs.

Plaintiff’s alleged injury is confined to his left shoulder.

Thus far, plaintiff has

demonstrated an ability to present his claims to the Court. Plaintiff may bring further requests
for appointment of counsel at later stages of this case.
Accordingly,
IT IS HEREBY ORDERED that plaintiff's motion for appointment of counsel is denied
without prejudice.
Dated this 6th day of January, 2015.

CAROL E. JACKSON
UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE

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