Jones v. Layton

Opinion

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT EASTERN DISTRICT OF MISSOURI EASTERN DIVISION SHAWON JONES, ) ) Plaintiff, ) ) v. ) Case No. 4:19 CV 1186 CDP ) JOHN RILEY-LAYTON, et al., ) ) Defendants. ) MEMORANDUM AND ORDER Plaintiff Shawon Jones moves for the appointment of counsel to assist him in this prisoner civil rights action. Because the factual and legal issues presented by the claims remaining in this case are not complex and Jones has demonstrated an adequate ability to present his claims to this Court, I will deny his motion. 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 deciding whether to appoint counsel for an indigent plaintiff, I should consider relevant factors, including the factual complexity of the case, the ability of the indigent to investigate the facts, the existence of conflicting testimony, and the ability of the indigent to present his claims. Stevens v. Redwing, 146 F.3d 538, 546 (8th Cir. 1998).

Separately, Defendants John Riley Layton and Jeremiah Kitchell have moved to amend the Case Management Order to extend the deadline to submit initial disclosures. I will grant defendants’ motion. The deadline for both sides to submit initial disclosures as outlined in Section I.3 is now September 3, 2021. All other deadlines set forth in the Case Management Order remain in effect. Accordingly, IT IS HEREBY ORDERED that plaintiff's Motion for Appointment of Counsel [38] is denied. IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that defendants’ Motion to Amend Case Management Order [42] is granted.

CATHERINE D.PERRY // UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE Dated this 27th day of August, 2021.

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