Boyd v. Shannan-Sharpe et al

Filing 11

ORDER denying 9 plaintiffs motion for the appointment of counsel signed by Judge Lynn Adelman on 8/13/15. (cc: all counsel, via USPS to plaintiff)(dm)

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
EASTERN DISTRICT OF WISCONSIN
DEMETRIUS MONROE BOYD,
Plaintiff,
v.

Case No. 15-cv-832

LT. SHANNAN-SHARPE, et al.,
Defendants.

ORDER
Plaintiff, a Wisconsin state prisoner, filed a pro se complaint under 42 U.S.C.
§ 1983, alleging that his civil rights were violated. On August 8, 2015, I gave plaintiff the
option to file an amended complaint by September 14, 2015, to cure the deficiencies I
identified in his original complaint.
On August 11, 2015, plaintiff filed a motion for the appointment of counsel for the
limited purpose of assisting plaintiff to file the amended complaint. As I recently explained
to plaintiff, I have discretion to recruit counsel to represent a litigant who is unable to afford
one in a civil case. Navejar v. Iyiola, 718 F.3d 692, 696 (7th Cir. 2013); 28 U.S.C. §
1915(e)(1); Ray v. Wexford Health Sources, Inc., 706 F.3d 864, 866-67 (7th Cir. 2013).
As a threshold matter, litigants must make a reasonable attempt to secure private counsel
on their own. Pruitt v. Mote, 503 F.3d 647, 653 (7th Cir. 2007). Plaintiff still has not
satisfied the first step in the process outlined in my August 8, 2015 order. Until he does,
I will not consider granting a motion asking me to appoint counsel–regardless of the scope
of that appointment.

In any event, I believe that plaintiff is more than capable of filing an amended
complaint without the assistance of counsel. Plaintiff states that he is in segregation and
has “little to no writing material”; however the Clerk of Court provided plaintiff with a blank
complaint form, so the lack of paper should not be a hindrance to him. Plaintiff need only
make a short, plain statement describing how he believes his constitutional rights were
violated. Plaintiff can do that on his own. Plaintiff should refer to my August 8 order for
additional guidance on the pleading standard.
IT IS THEREFORE ORDERED that plaintiff’s motion for the appointment of counsel
(Docket #9) is DENIED.
Dated at Milwaukee, Wisconsin, this 13th day of August, 2015.
s/ Lynn Adelman
_______________________
LYNN ADELMAN
District Judge

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