Opinion
DA 22-0739
01-10-2023
CHARLES HENRY PINNER, Petitioner and Appellant, v. STATE OF MONTANA, Respondent and Appellee.
ORDER
Before this Court is a Motion to Withdraw as Counsel, filed by Colin M. Stephens, requesting his withdrawal as counsel and substituting appointed counsel from the Appellate Defenders Division. Counsel explains that Charles Henry Pinner privately retained him for this postconviction proceeding in the Roosevelt County District Court, but that now Pinner is indigent and cannot afford private counsel after liquidating his retirement account. Counsel points to §§ 46-21-201 and 47-l-104(4)(v), MCA.
Pinner appeals a December 6, 2022 Order Denying Petitioner's Petition for Post Conviction Relief. A petition for postconviction relief is a civil proceeding, and the Rules of Civil Procedure apply. Section 46-21-201(1)(c), MCA. As a general rule, petitioners are not entitled to appointment of counsel. Section 46-21-201(2), MCA. Here, Pinner retained his own counsel in the District Court, and he is now indigent.
Pinner is not entitled to appointment of counsel on appeal. Counsel for Pinner, however, may be allowed to withdraw.
Accordingly, IT IS ORDERED that the Motion to Withdraw as Counsel is GRANTED.
IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that the Motion Requesting Substitution of Counsel is DENIED.
The Clerk is directed to provide a copy of this Order to counsel of record and to Charles Henry Pinner along with a copy of this Court's Appellate Handbook.