Rebidoux v. Macomber et al

Filing 14

ORDER denying 12 Motion to Appoint Counsel signed by Magistrate Judge Craig M. Kellison on 03/08/17. (Plummer, M)

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1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT 9 FOR THE EASTERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA 10 11 VERNON REBIDOUX, 12 Plaintiff, 13 14 15 vs. ORDER J. MACOMBER, et al., Defendants. 16 17 18 19 No. 2:16-CV-1033-MCE-CMK-P / Plaintiff, a prisoner proceeding pro se, brings this civil rights action pursuant to 42 U.S.C. § 1983. Plaintiff seeks the appointment of counsel. The United States Supreme Court has 20 ruled that district courts lack authority to require counsel to represent indigent prisoners in 21 § 1983 cases. See Mallard v. United States Dist. Court, 490 U.S. 296, 298 (1989). In certain 22 exceptional circumstances, the court may request the voluntary assistance of counsel pursuant to 23 28 U.S.C. § 1915(e)(1). See Terrell v. Brewer, 935 F.2d 1015, 1017 (9th Cir. 1991); Wood v. 24 Housewright, 900 F.2d 1332, 1335-36 (9th Cir. 1990). A finding of “exceptional 25 circumstances” requires an evaluation of both the likelihood of success on the merits and the 26 ability of the plaintiff to articulate his claims on his own in light of the complexity of the legal 1 1 issues involved. See Terrell, 935 F.2d at 1017. Neither factor is dispositive and both must be 2 viewed together before reaching a decision. See id. 3 In the present case, the court does not at this time find the required exceptional 4 circumstances. First, plaintiff has demonstrated an adequate ability to articulate himself on his 5 own. Second, plaintiff allegations of inadequate medical treatment and retaliation do not involve 6 complex legal issues. Finally, at this stage of the proceedings and before plaintiff has filed an 7 amended complaint as provided in the accompanying order, the court cannot say that plaintiff has 8 any particular likelihood of success on the merits. 9 10 Accordingly, IT IS HEREBY ORDERED that plaintiff’s request for the appointment of counsel (Doc. 12) is denied. 11 12 13 14 DATED: March 8, 2017 ______________________________________ CRAIG M. KELLISON UNITED STATES MAGISTRATE JUDGE 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 2

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