Thompson v. Steele

Filing 9

MEMORANDUM AND ORDER: IT IS HEREBY ORDERED that petitioner's motion for appointment of counsel is DENIED without prejudice. Signed by Magistrate Judge Shirley Padmore Mensah on 4/13/17. (CAR)

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
EASTERN DISTRICT OF MISSOURI
EASTERN DIVISION
DEVARICK THOMPSON,
Petitioner,
v.
TROY STEELE,
Respondent.

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No. 4:17-CV-278 SPM

MEMORANDUM AND ORDER
Petitioner moves for appointment of counsel. After considering the motion and
the pleadings, the motion is denied without prejudice to refiling at a later time.
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 petitioner has presented non-frivolous allegations supporting his or her
prayer for relief; (2) whether the petitioner will substantially benefit from the
appointment of counsel; (3) whether there is a need to further investigate and present the
facts related to the petitioner’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.
Petitioner has presented non-frivolous allegations in his complaint. However, he
has demonstrated, at this point, that he can adequately present his claims to the Court.
Additionally, neither the factual nor the legal issues in this case are complex.

The Court will entertain future motions for appointment of counsel as the case
progresses.
Accordingly,
IT IS HEREBY ORDERED that petitioner’s motion for appointment of counsel
is DENIED without prejudice.
Dated this

13th

day of April, 2017.

SHIRLEY PADMORE MENSAH
UNITED STATES MAGISTRATE JUDGE

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