Michael Davis v. Donald Moroney

POSNER, Circuit Judge.

Michael Davis, an inmate at Illinois Pontiac Correctional Center, sued a guard, Donald Moroney, for allegedly using excessive force against him, but the district court dismissed the suit for failure to prosecute. Davis now challenges the denial of a subsequent motion for relief from judgment under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 60(b). He argues that exceptional circumstances warrant relief from the judgment, principally because mental impairments prevented him from prosecuting the case without the aid of counsel.

Davis filed this suit under 42 U.S.C. § 1983 in 2013…