Illescas v. Annucci

District Court, S.D. New York·Decided September 13, 2023·No. 7:21-cv-08473·Unknown

Opinion

VoL OLInNti DOCUMENT ELECTRONICALLY FILED UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT DOC #: SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF NEW YORK DATE FILED: 9/13/2023 SILVIO R. ILLESCAS, Plaintiff, -against- DR. JOHN MORLEY; DR, ROBERT V. 21-CV-8473 (NSR) BENTIVEGNA; ALBERT ACRISH; NICOLET T. THOMPSON; JOHN DOE OPINION & ORDER CORRECTIONAL OFFICERS #1, #2, #3, #4; DR. MOHAMME; DR. ODENLYL; SUSANNA NAYSHULER; and DR. KIM, Defendants.

NELSON S. ROMAN, United States District Judge: Plaintiff Silvio R. Illescas, currently incarcerated at Green Haven Correctional Facility, brings this pro se action under 42 U.S.C. § 1983, alleging that Defendants were deliberately indifferent to his serious medical needs. In an Opinion & Order dated December 7, 2022, this Court dismissed Plaintiff’s Complaint and granted Plaintiff leave to amend and replead any claims that were dismissed without prejudice. (ECF No. 95.) The Court allowed Plaintiff until January 10, 2023 to file an Amended Complaint consistent with the Opinion and Order. (/d. at 17.) The Court expressly warned that failure to timely file an Amended Complaint or otherwise show “good cause to excuse such a failure” would result in “dismissal with prejudice of all claims that this Court has dismissed without prejudice.” (/d.) The Court granted Plaintiff three extensions of time to file the Amended Complaint. (ECF Nos. 99, 102, 110, and 115.) Plaintiff timely filed an Amended Complaint on July 31, 2023 (ECF No. 117), adding the following Defendants: Nicolet T. Thompson; John Doe Correctional Officer #1, #2, #3, #4; Dr. Mohamme; Dr. Odenlyl; Susanna Nayshuler; and Dr. Kim. (ECF No. 117.) Plaintiff, however, did not include claims previously asserted against Defendants Anthony J. Annucci, Vassar Brothers Medical Center, Daniel E.

Laurie,1 Sajin A. Pillaj, Jesse M. Wolstein, Dr. Bruce R. Gendron, Hector Ojeda-Martinez, Sehrish Shahid, and Dr. Robert U. Mmereole. As a result of Plaintiff’s decision not to include claims against these Defendants, those claims previously asserted against Defendants Anthony J. Annucci, Vassar Brothers Medical

Center, Daniel E. Laurie, Sajin A. Pillaj, Jesse M. Wolstein, Dr. Bruce R. Gendron, Hector Ojeda- Martinez, Sehrish Shahid, and Dr. Robert U. Mmereole and dismissed without prejudice were deemed dismissed with prejudice. (ECF No. 121.) In a letter dated August 14, 2023, Plaintiff explains that he submitted his Amended Complaint on July 27, 2023 so as to avoid missing the July 31, 2023 deadline. (ECF No. 127.) “As a result,” Plaintiff “did not have time to ask for help and review the brief if correct.” (Id.) Accordingly, Plaintiff neglected to include Defendants Annucci, Vassar Brothers Medical Center, Laurie, Pillaj, Wolstein, Gendron, Ojeda-Martinez, Shahid, and Mmereole as defendants in his Amended Complaint. (Id.) Plaintiff reiterates that he has obtained “personal medical records” to “prove the diseases in [his] stomach and organs did not come from the COVID-19 virus, but from

medications that Vassar Brothers put in [his] body system.” (Id.) Plaintiff also notes that he is on the “waiting list” for surgery at an “outside hospital.” (Id.) “For the above state[d] reasons,” Plaintiff requests this Court appoint pro bono counsel, arguing that otherwise he will “suffer prejudice.” (Id.) Plaintiff also requests this Court “consider” the “Defendants not added” in the Amended Complaint. (Id.) The Court interprets Plaintiff’s letter as a renewed motion for the appointment of pro bono counsel as well as a motion to reconsider this Court’s Order at ECF No.

1 Although the Court neglected to mention Defendant Laurie among the Vassar Brothers Defendants in dismissing without prejudice all claims against the Vassar Brothers Defendants in the December 7, 2022 Opinion & Order, Defendant Laurie had joined in their motion and the Court’s Opinion & Order applied with equal force to him. 121 dismissing with prejudice claims previously-asserted against Defendants Annucci, Vassar Brothers Medical Center, Laurie, Pillaj, Wolstein, Ojeda-Martinez, Shahid, and Mmereole.2 The Court addresses each in turn. I. Motion for Appointment of Pro Bono Counsel

Unlike in criminal proceedings, the Court does not have the power to obligate attorneys to represent indigent pro se litigants in civil cases. See Mallard v. U.S. Dist. Court for the S. Dist. of Iowa, 490 U.S. 296, 308–09 (1989). Instead, pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1915(e)(1), the Court may, at its discretion, order that the Pro Se Office request an attorney to represent an indigent litigant by placing the matter on a list circulated to attorneys who are members of the Court’s pro bono panel. See Palacio v. City of New York, 489 F. Supp. 2d 335, 344 (S.D.N.Y. 2007). The Second Circuit set forth the standards governing the appointment of counsel in pro se cases in Hendricks v. Coughlin, 114 F.3d 390, 392 (2d Cir. 1997), Cooper v. A. Sargenti Co., 877 F.2d 170, 172 (2d Cir. 1989), and Hodge v. Police Officers, 802 F.2d 58, 60–62 (2d Cir. 1986). These cases direct the district courts to “first determine whether the indigent’s position seems

likely to be of substance,” Hodge, 802 F.2d at 61, and then, if this threshold is met, to consider “secondary criteria,” including the pro se litigant’s “ability to obtain representation independently, and his ability to handle the case without assistance in the light of the required factual investigation, the complexity of the legal issues, and the need for expertly conducted cross-examination to test veracity.” Cooper, 877 F.2d at 172; accord Hendricks, 114 F.3d at 392 (quoting Hodge, 802 F.2d at 61–62). “Even where the claim is not frivolous, counsel is often unwarranted where the

2 Plaintiff’s recent letters, received September 7, 2023, renew Plaintiff’s motion for the appointment of pro bono counsel and motion for reconsideration. (See ECF Nos. 132–34.) Plaintiff notes that he does not intend to further prosecute this action against Defendant Gendron. (ECF No. 134.) indigent’s chances of success are extremely slim,” and the Court should determine whether the pro se litigant’s “position seems likely to be of substance,” or shows “some chance of success.” Hodge, 802 F.2d at 60–61. As stated in its two prior orders denying Plaintiff’s motions for appointment of pro bono

counsel (see ECF Nos. 11, 107, and 110), the proceedings are still in their early stages, and the case is yet to proceed past the pleadings stage. Thus, the Court is unable to conclude that Plaintiff cannot handle the case without assistance, although this conclusion may change as the action progresses.3 Furthermore, the Court still cannot ascertain whether Plaintiff’s position shows a strong chance of success, especially in light of this Court’s Opinion and Order dismissing Plaintiff’s original complaint (ECF No. 95). Nor are the legal issues in this case particularly complex. Therefore, because the Court does not find any circumstances which warrant the appointment of pro bono counsel at this time, Plaintiff’s request is DENIED without prejudice to renew at a later stage in the proceedings. II. Motion for Reconsideration

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