Drake v. Kernan, et al.

Filing 19

ORDER DENYING, WITHOUT PREJUDICE, Plaintiff's Motion for Appointment of Counsel 16 , signed by Magistrate Judge Stanley A. Boone on 2/13/2018. (Hellings, J)

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UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

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EASTERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA

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SAM DRAKE,

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Plaintiff,
v.
SCOTT KERNAN, et al.,
Defendants.

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Case No.: 1:17-cv-01500-SAB (PC)
ORDER DENYING, WITHOUT PREJUDICE,
PLAINTIFF’S MOTION FOR APPOINTMENT OF
COUNSEL
[ECF No. 16]

Plaintiff Sam Drake is appearing pro se and in forma pauperis in this civil rights action
pursuant to 42 U.S.C. § 1983.
On February 12, 2018, Plaintiff filed a motion seeking the appointment of counsel. Plaintiff

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does not have a constitutional right to appointed counsel in this action, Rand v. Rowland, 113 F.3d

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1520, 1525 (9th Cir. 1997), and the court cannot require any attorney to represent plaintiff pursuant to

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28 U.S.C. § 1915(e)(1). Mallard v. United States District Court for the Southern District of Iowa, 490

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U.S. 296, 298 (1989). However, in certain exceptional circumstances the court may request the

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voluntary assistance of counsel 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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“exceptional circumstances exist, the district court must evaluate both the likelihood of success on the

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

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legal issues involved.” Id. (internal quotation marks and citations omitted).

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In the present case, the Court does not find the required exceptional circumstances.

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Even if it 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. The legal issues present in

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this action are not complex, and Plaintiff has thoroughly set forth his allegations in the complaint. In

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addition, at this early stage in the proceedings, the Court cannot make a determination that Plaintiff is

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likely to succeed on the merits, and based on a review of the record in this case, the Court does not

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find that Plaintiff cannot adequately articulate his claims. Id. Circumstances common to most

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prisoners, such as lack of legal education and limited law library access, do not establish exceptional

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circumstances that would warrant a request for voluntary assistance of counsel. In the present case,

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the Court does not find the required exceptional circumstances.
For the foregoing reasons, Plaintiff’s motion for the appointment of counsel is HEREBY

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DENIED, without prejudice.

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IT IS SO ORDERED.

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Dated:

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February 13, 2018
UNITED STATES MAGISTRATE JUDGE

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