Source: s3://data.kl3m.ai/documents/govinfo/USCOURTS/USCOURTS-ca10-92-03438/USCOURTS-ca10-92-03438-0/pdf.json

Nature of Suit Code: 550
Nature of Suit: Prisoner - Civil Rights (U.S. defendant)
Cause of Action: 

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, FIL~ ... v 

UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALYnited States Co'!lrt(?f Appeal~ o,, ► r ,~"'""'4; 

TENTH CIRCUIT 

DONALD E. EWING, ) 

) 

Plaintiff-Appellant, ) 

) 

vs. ) 

) 

PUBLIC DEFENDER OFFICE, OLATHE, KANSAS, ) 

) 

Defendant-Appellee. ) 

ORDER AND JUDGMENT* 

MAY G 1~9.3 

ROBERT L. HOECKER 

Clerk . 

No. 92-3438 

(D.C. No. 92-3420-DES) 

(D. Kan.) 

Before TACHA, BALDOCK, and KELLY, Circuit Judges.** 

Plaintiff-appellant ponald E. Ewing appeals the district 

court's dismissal of his claim based on 42 U.S.C. § 1983. We 

grant Mr. Ewing leave to proceed in forrna pauperis on appeal and 

affirm. 

The district court dismissed Mr. Ewing's claim as one based 

on an indisputably meritless legal theory. See 28 U.S.C. 

§ 1915(d); Neitzke v. Williams, 490 U.S. 319 (1989). In reaching 

that conclusion, the district court's reliance on Tower v. Glover, 

467 U.S. 914 (1984), was appropriate. The Court has held that 

* This order and judgment has no precedential value and shall 

not be cited, or used by any court within the Tenth Circuit, 

except for purposes of establishing the doctrines of the law of 

the case, res judicata, or collateral estoppel. 10th Cir. R. 

36.3. 

** After examining the briefs and appellate record, this panel 

has determined unanimously that oral argument would not materially 

assist the determination of this appeal. ~ Fed. R. App. P. 

34(a); 10th. Cir. R. 34.1.9. The cause therefore is ordered 

submitted without oral argument. 

Appellate Case: 92-3438 Document: 010110110052 Date Filed: 05/06/1993 Page: 1 
"appointed counsel in a state criminal prosecution, though paid 

and ultimately supervised by the State, does not act 'under color 

of' state law in the normal course of conducting the defense . " 

Id. at 920 (citing Polk County v. Dodson, 454 U.S. 312 (1981)). 

Thus, Plaintiff failed to allege "a conspiracy with state 

officials to deprive [him] of federal rights." Id. 

AFFIRMED. 

-2-

Entered for the Court 

Paul J. Kelly, Jr. 

Circuit Judge 

Appellate Case: 92-3438 Document: 010110110052 Date Filed: 05/06/1993 Page: 2