Parish v. Steele

Filing 7

MEMORANDUM AND ORDER : IT IS HEREBY ORDERED that petitioner's motion for appointment of counsel is DENIED without prejudice. Signed by District Judge Ronnie L. White on 03/21/2017. (KCB)

UNITED ST ATES DISTRICT COURT
EASTERN DISTRICT OF MISSOURI
EASTERN DIVISION
PHILLIP C. PARISH,
Petitioner,
V.

TROY STEELE,
Respondent.

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No. 4:17-cv-985-RLW

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 the petition.

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.
As the case progresses, the Court will entertain a future motion for appointment of
counsel as appropriate.
According! y,

IT IS HEREBY ORDERED that petitioner' s motion for appointment of counsel is
DENIED without prejudice.

Dated this 21st day of March, 2017.

RONNIE L. WHITE
UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE

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