Hall v. San Joaquin County Jail, et al

Filing 19

ORDER denying 16 Motion to Appoint Counsel signed by Magistrate Judge Allison Claire on 06/10/13. (Plummer, M)

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IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

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FOR THE EASTERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA

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TERRELL D. HALL,
Plaintiff,

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No. 2:13-cv-0324 AC P

vs.
SAN JOAQUIN COUNTY JAIL, et al.,
Defendants.

ORDER
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Plaintiff has requested the appointment of counsel. The United States Supreme

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Court has ruled that district courts lack authority to require counsel to represent indigent

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prisoners in § 1983 cases. Mallard v. United States Dist. Court, 490 U.S. 296, 298 (1989). In

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certain exceptional circumstances, the court may request the voluntary assistance of counsel

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pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1915(e)(1). Terrell v. Brewer, 935 F.2d 1015, 1017 (9th Cir. 1991);

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Wood v. Housewright, 900 F.2d 1332, 1335-36 (9th Cir. 1990). In the present case, the court

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does not find the required exceptional circumstances. Specifically, on May 22, 2013, the court

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dismissed plaintiff’s complaint with leave to amend, and, to date, plaintiff has not yet filed an

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amended complaint. Accordingly, no defendants have appeared in the action, or, indeed, been

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served. Plaintiff’s request for the appointment of counsel will therefore be denied, because it is
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premature.

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Plaintiff has also filed with the court a proposed summons. ECF No. 17. Plaintiff

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is advised that he is not required to prepare any such documents at this time. If the court orders

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service, the court will provide plaintiff with the appropriate forms to complete.

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Accordingly, IT IS HEREBY ORDERED that plaintiff’s May 7, 2013, request for

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the appointment of counsel (Docket No. 13) is denied without prejudice to renewal at a later

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stage in the proceedings.

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DATED: June 10, 2013

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ALLISON CLAIRE
UNITED STATES MAGISTRATE JUDGE

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AC:rb

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hall0324.31

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