Opinion
Case No. 03-71169
07-09-2012
JULIA F. WIGLEY, Petitioner, v. MILLICENT WARREN, WARDEN, Respondent.
HON. GEORGE CARAM STEEH
ORDER DENYING PETITIONER'S MOTION
FOR APPOINTMENT OF COUNSEL (#39)
Petitioner Julia Wigley, appearing pro se, filed a motion for appointment of counsel. There is no constitutional right to counsel in a habeas proceeding; "[t]he decision to appoint counsel for a federal habeas petitioner is within the discretion of the court and is required only where the interests of justice or due process so require." Mira v. Marshall, 806 F.2d 636, 638 (6th Cir. 1986). "Habeas corpus is an extraordinary remedy for unusual cases, and the law accordingly requires appointment of counsel only 'if, given the difficulty of the case and the litigant's ability, [he] could not obtain justice without an attorney, [he] could not obtain a lawyer on [his] own, and [he] would have had a reasonable chance of winning with a lawyer at [his] side.'" Thirkield v. Pitcher, 199 F.Supp.2d 637, 653 (E.D. Mich. 2002). Given the opinion denying petitioner's first habeas petition and the Sixth Circuit orders denying her requests for leave to file subsequent petitions, it does not appear petitioner has a reasonable chance of winning with a lawyer at her side. Accordingly, petitioner's motion for appointment of counsel is DENIED.
SO ORDERED.
__________________
GEORGE CARAM STEEH
UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE
CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE
Copies of this Order were served upon attorneys of record on
July 9, 2012, by electronic and/or ordinary mail and also to
Julia Wigley, #271811, at Robert Scott Correctional Facility,
47500 Five Mile Road, Plymouth, MI 48170.
Barbara Radke
Deputy Clerk