Case Information
*1 UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT EASTERN DISTRICT OF MISSOURI SOUTHEASTERN DIVISION LESLIE BERNARD HOWARD, )
) Plaintiff, )
) vs. ) Case No. 1:12CV00003 AGF
) CORRECTIONAL MEDICAL )
SERVICES, et al., )
) Defendants. )
MEMORANDUM AND ORDER
This matter is before the Court on Plaintiff’s motion for appointment of counsel.
Plaintiff, a Missouri state prisoner, brings this action pro se under 42 U.S.C. § 1983, claiming that she received inadequate medical care in violation of her constitutional rights.
There is no constitutional right for a pro se plaintiff to have counsel appointed in a civil case, although a district court has discretion to appoint an attorney to handle such a case when necessary. Phillips v. Jasper County Jail , 437 F.3d. 791, 794 (8th Cir. 2006); Davis v. Scott , 94 F.2d 444, 447 (8th Cir. 1996). Among the factors a court should consider in making this determination are the legal and factual complexity of the case; the ability of the plaintiff to investigate the facts and present his claim; and to what degree the plaintiff and the court would benefit from such an appointment. Phillips , 791 F.3d at 794; Edgington v. Mo. Dep’t of Corr. , 52 F.3d 777, 780 (8th Cir. 1995).
Upon review of the file and the relevant factors, the Court finds that Plaintiff’s complaint presents neither complex nor novel issues and that appointment of counsel is unnecessary at this time.
Accordingly,
IT IS HEREBY ORDERED that Plaintiff's motion for appointment of counsel (Doc. No. 15.) is DENIED .
AUDREY G. FLEISSIG UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE Dated this 2nd day of October, 2012. 2
