Guyton, Lorenzo v. Wiltzius, Jeremy et al

Filing 22

ORDER denying 20 Motion for Reconsideration. Signed by District Judge Barbara B. Crabb on 12/7/2017. (jef),(ps)

IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
FOR THE WESTERN DISTRICT OF WISCONSIN
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - LORENZO GUYTON,
ORDER
Plaintiff,
17-cv-45-bbc
v.
JEREMY WILTZIUS, SERGEANT CHATMAN,
PATRICIA A. SCHLAEFFER, SERGEANT BIERKIRCHER,
KATHY WHALEN, RN, JAMIE GOHDE, RN and
MICHAEL A. DITTMANN,
Defendants.
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - On October 6, 2017, I denied pro se plaintiff Lorenzo Guyton’s motion for assistance
in recruiting counsel to represent him in this case brought against several employees at the
Columbia Correctional Institution. Dkt. #19. I concluded that plaintiff had not shown that
the case is so complex or that his skills are so poor that I should recruit a lawyer for him at
this time.

With the assistance of another inmate, plaintiff has filed a motion for

reconsideration of that decision. Dkt. #20.
I am denying the motion. Most of plaintiff’s arguments are the same arguments he
made in his previous motion, including that he has no legal experience, has limited literacy
skills and has relied completely on the assistance of another inmate, Jeffrey Davis. Plaintiff
now adds that he suffers from mental health problems, including post traumatic stress
disorder, that he submitted discovery requests to defendants that were unhelpful and that

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he does not know how to contact an important witness who no longer works for the
Department of Corrections.
Even with plaintiff’s additional information, I am not persuaded that plaintiff needs
counsel at this stage in the case. I have still seen nothing drafted by plaintiff himself to
suggest that he cannot understand what is required of him in litigating this case. As for
plaintiff’s statement that his written discovery requests to defendant were unhelpful, I
cannot evaluate whether plaintiff needs help conducting discovery because he did not submit
his discovery requests with his motion. Finally, although plaintiff says he needs help in
obtaining statements from non-party witnesses, I would not consider recruiting counsel to
help him obtain evidence without significantly more information. Plaintiff has not described
what information he hopes to obtain from the non-party witnesses. Moreover, plaintiff
should be aware that although non-parties can provide statements on his behalf, they are not
obligated to do so, even if asked by an attorney. Particularly if the non-party is a current or
former Department of Corrections employee, an attorney may have little better luck than
plaintiff in obtaining a sworn statement.
In sum, I am denying plaintiff’s renewed request for counsel because he has not
shown that the complexities of this case exceed his abilities to litigate on his own. Pruitt v.
Mote, 503 F.3d 647, 649 (7th Cir. 2007). If plaintiff has specific questions about his
responsibilities, he should feel free to contact defendant or the court in writing.

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ORDER
IT IS ORDERED that plaintiff Lorenzo Guyton’s motion for reconsideration, dkt.
#20, is DENIED.
Entered this 7th day of December, 2017.
BY THE COURT:
/s/
_______________________________
BARBARA B. CRABB
District Judge

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