Drew v. Robertson
- Yvonne Rogers
- 4:21-cv-01889
- U.S. District Court · Northern District of California
- 2
In Drew v. Robertson, Judge Rogers denied counsel without prejudice and extended Karl Drew’s deadline to pay the filing fee.
Karl D. Drew, whose request for appointed counsel was denied without prejudice and whose deadline to pay the filing fee was extended; the case also remained subject to dismissal if he did not pay on time.
What happened
In Drew v. Robertson, Karl D. Drew filed a federal petition under 28 U.S.C. § 2254 and asked to proceed without paying the filing fee. The court had previously found that he had enough money in his prison account to pay the $5 fee and set a deadline for payment.
Drew then asked the court to appoint a lawyer. The court said that the constitutional right to counsel does not apply in these proceedings and that appointing counsel was not necessary because an evidentiary hearing did not appear necessary and no exceptional circumstances were shown.
Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers denied the request for appointed counsel without prejudice and granted Drew an additional 28 days from the order to pay the full filing fee. The court warned that failing to pay on time would result in dismissal without further notice.
The detailed version
- Drew v. Robertson · No. 4:21-cv-01889
- Yvonne Rogers
- June 7, 2021
Background
Karl D. Drew filed a petition under 28 U.S.C. § 2254 and asked to proceed without paying the filing fee. On May 13, 2021, the court denied that request after finding that Drew had sufficient funds in his prison trust account to pay the $5 filing fee. The court gave him 28 days to pay or face dismissal. The fee was then due June 10, 2021.
On May 27, 2021, Drew filed a letter asking the court to appoint a lawyer to assist him.
Appointment of Counsel
The court explained that the Sixth Amendment right to counsel does not apply in these proceedings. Unless an evidentiary hearing is required, appointing counsel is within the district court’s discretion. The court determined that an evidentiary hearing did not appear necessary at that time and that no exceptional circumstances supported appointing counsel.
The court therefore denied without prejudice Drew’s motion for appointment of counsel.
Filing-Fee Extension and Disposition
The court granted Drew an additional 28 days from the date of the order to pay the full filing fee. It warned that failing to pay within the extended period would result in dismissal of the action without further notice. The order terminated the docket entry concerning the request for appointed counsel.
Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers issued the order on June 4, 2021. The order did not decide the substance of Drew’s underlying petition.
Read the full 2-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.