Crowell v. Beeler

Filing 17

ORDER DENYING 14 Motion to Appoint Counsel WITHOUT PREJUDICE, signed by Magistrate Judge Barbara A. McAuliffe on 03/02/2015. (Martin-Gill, S)

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UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

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EASTERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA

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F. L. ODINSON CROWELL,

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Plaintiff,
v.

1:14-cv-01724-BAM (PC)
ORDER DENYING MOTION FOR
APPOINTMENT OF COUNSEL
(ECF No. 14)

E. BEELER,
Defendant.

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Plaintiff F. L. Odinson Crowell (“Plaintiff”) is a state prisoner proceeding in this civil

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rights action pursuant to 42 U.S.C. § 1983. Plaintiff originally filed this civil action through

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counsel on November 3, 2014. On February 13, 2015, the Court granted Plaintiff’s substitution of

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attorney and Plaintiff now proceeds pro se.

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On February 23, 2015, Plaintiff filed the instant motion for appointment of counsel. (ECF

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No. 14.) Plaintiff does not have a constitutional right to appointed counsel in this action, Rand v.

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Rowland, 113 F.3d 1520, 1525 (9th Cir. 1997), and the Court cannot require an attorney to

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represent plaintiff pursuant to 28 U.S.C. ' 1915(e)(1). Mallard v. United States District Court for

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the Southern District of Iowa, 490 U.S. 296, 298, 109 S.Ct. 1814, 1816 (1989). However, in

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certain exceptional circumstances the Court may request the voluntary assistance of counsel

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pursuant to section 1915(e)(1). Rand, 113 F.3d at 1525.

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Without a reasonable method of securing and compensating counsel, the Court will seek
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volunteer counsel only in the most serious and exceptional cases. In determining whether

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Aexceptional circumstances exist, the district court must evaluate both the likelihood of success on

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the merits [and] the ability of the [plaintiff] to articulate his claims pro se in light of the

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complexity of the legal issues involved.@ Id. (internal quotation marks and citations omitted).
In the present case, the Court does not find the required exceptional circumstances. Even

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if it is assumed that Plaintiff is not well versed in the law and that he has made serious allegations

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which, if proved, would entitle him to relief, his case is not exceptional. This Court is faced with

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similar cases almost daily from prisoners with limited access to the law library. Although

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Plaintiff has had difficulty securing counsel, it is evident that he has $3,000.00 available to retain

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counsel. (ECF No. 14, p. 2.) Moreover, at this early stage in the proceedings, the Court cannot

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make a determination that Plaintiff is likely to succeed on the merits, and based on a review of the

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record in this case, the Court does not find that Plaintiff cannot adequately articulate his claims.

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Id.

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For the foregoing reasons, Plaintiff=s motion for the appointment of counsel is HEREBY
DENIED without prejudice.

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IT IS SO ORDERED.
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Dated:

/s/ Barbara

March 2, 2015

A. McAuliffe

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UNITED STATES MAGISTRATE JUDGE
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