Coleman, Sidney et al v. Compton, David et al

Filing 90

ORDER that the clerk's office enter Edna Kersting and Alexis Pool of the law firm of Deborah Meiners, Wes Webendorfer and Erin Burns of the law firm of DeWitt, Ross & Stevens as plaintiffs' pro bono counsel of record and to set this case for a status conference in late August as the court's schedule allows. Signed by District Judge James D. Peterson on 8/3/2017. (jef),(ps)

IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
FOR THE WESTERN DISTRICT OF WISCONSIN

SIDNEY L. COLEMAN and LAKESHA M. JOHNSON,
ORDER
Plaintiffs,
v.
13-cv-765-jdp
DAVID J. COMPTON et al.,
Defendants.

Plaintiffs Sidney Coleman and Lakesha Johnson filed this civil action pursuant to 42
U.S.C. § 1983, alleging that Madison Police Department officers violated their Fourth
Amendment rights in several ways in conjunction with the search of their motel room for a
crime for which plaintiff Coleman was a suspect. At plaintiffs’ request, the court recruited
counsel Deborah Meiners, Wes Webendorfer and Erin Burns of the law firm of DeWitt, Ross
& Stevens in Madison, Wisconsin, to represent them pro bono for the remainder of this civil
action. See 28 U.S.C. § 1915(e)(1) (“The court may request an attorney to represent any
person unable to afford counsel.”); Pruitt v. Mote, 503 F.3d 647, 653-54 (7th Cir. 2007) (en
banc) (noting that § 1915(e)(1) confers, at most, discretion “to recruit a lawyer to represent
an indigent civil litigant pro bono publico”). Accordingly, the court will enter their appearance
as plaintiffs’ pro bono counsel for the record.
The next step is for the court to hold a status conference to reset the calendar in this
case. Plaintiff Coleman is currently incarcerated at the Dane County Jail, 115 W. Doty Street,
Madison, WI 53703; plaintiff Johnson may be reached at 5817 Raymond Road, Apt. 2,
Madison, WI 53711, [phone]. So that counsel will have sufficient time to consult
with plaintiffs in advance of a preliminary pretrial conference, the clerk’s office will be directed
to set that conference in late August as the court’s schedule allows.
Finally, plaintiffs should appreciate that their counsel took on this representation out

of a sense of professional responsibility, which includes representing zealously those clients
they take on. Now that they are represented by counsel, plaintiffs are advised that in return
for representation plaintiffs, too, have taken on a responsibility.

For example, all future

communications with the court must be through their attorney of record. Plaintiffs must also
work directly and cooperatively with their attorneys, as well as those working at their direction,
and must permit them to exercise their professional judgment to determine which matters are
appropriate to bring to the court’s attention and in what form. Plaintiffs do not have the right
to require counsel to raise frivolous arguments or to follow every directive they make. On the
contrary, plaintiffs should expect their counsel to tell them what they need to hear, rather than
what they might prefer to hear, and understand that the rules of professional conduct may
preclude counsel from taking certain actions or permitting plaintiffs from doing so.
If plaintiffs decide at some point that they do not wish to work with their lawyers, they
are free to alert the court and end their representation, but they should be aware that it is
highly unlikely that the court will recruit a second set of attorneys to represent them.
ORDER
IT IS ORDERED that the clerk’s office enter Deborah Meiners, Wes Webendorfer and
Erin Burns of the law firm of DeWitt, Ross & Stevens as plaintiffs’ pro bono counsel of record
and to set this case for a status conference in late August as the court’s schedule allows.
Entered August 3, 2017.
BY THE COURT:
/s/___________________________
JAMES D. PETERSON
District Judge

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