(PC) Garland v. Eldridge et al

Filing 21

ORDER signed by Magistrate Judge Jeremy D. Peterson on 4/26/2021 DENYING without prejudice plaintiff's 20 motion to appoint counsel. (Yin, K)

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UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

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EASTERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA

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ORDER DENYING PLAINTIFF’S MOTION
TO APPOINT COUNSEL

Plaintiff,

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Case No. 2:20-cv-01061-JAM-JDP (PC)

SHAUN DARNELL GARLAND,

v.

ECF No. 20

LAURA ELDRIDGE, et al.,

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Defendants.

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Plaintiff is a state prisoner proceeding without counsel in this civil rights action brought

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under 42 U.S.C. § 1983. He has filed a motion requesting the appointment of counsel. ECF No.

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20.

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Plaintiff does not have a constitutional right to appointed counsel in this action, see Rand

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v. Rowland, 113 F.3d 1520, 1525 (9th Cir. 1997), and the court lacks the authority to require an

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attorney to represent plaintiff. See Mallard v. U.S. District Court for the Southern District of

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Iowa, 490 U.S. 296, 298 (1989). The court may request the voluntary assistance of counsel. See

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28 U.S.C. § 1915(e)(1) (“The court may request an attorney to represent any person unable to

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afford counsel”); Rand, 113 F.3d at 1525. However, without a means to compensate counsel, the

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court will seek volunteer counsel only in exceptional circumstances. In determining whether such

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

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[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.” Rand, 113 F.3d at 1525 (internal quotation marks and citations omitted).

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The court cannot conclude that exceptional circumstances requiring the appointment of

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counsel are present here. The allegations in the complaint are not exceptionally complicated.

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Further, plaintiff has not demonstrated that he is likely to succeed on the merits. For these

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reasons, plaintiff’s motion to appoint counsel, ECF No. 20, is denied without prejudice.

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The court may revisit this issue at a later stage of the proceedings if the interests of justice

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so require. If plaintiff later renews his request for counsel, he should provide a detailed

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explanation of the circumstances that he believes justify appointment of counsel in this case.

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IT IS SO ORDERED.

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Dated:

April 26, 2021

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JEREMY D. PETERSON
UNITED STATES MAGISTRATE JUDGE

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