Blow v. County of San Diego et al
Filing
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ORDER Denying 14 Motion to Appoint Counsel ; Denying 18 Motion to Appoint Counsel. Signed by Judge Janis L. Sammartino on 4/17/2017. (All non-registered users served via U.S. Mail Service)(dxj)
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UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
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SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA
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JOSHUA ALAN BLOW,
Case No.: 17-CV-157 JLS (JLB)
Plaintiff,
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ORDER DENYING MOTIONS FOR
APPOINTMENT OF COUNSEL
v.
COUNTY OF SAN DIEGO, et. al,
(ECF Nos. 14, 18)
Defendants.
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Presently before the Court is Plaintiff Joshua Alan Blow’s Motion for Appointment
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of Counsel, (ECF No. 14), and Renewed Request for Appointment of Counsel, (“Counsel
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Mot.,” ECF No. 18).1 The Court previously granted Plaintiff’s motion to proceed in forma
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pauperis but denied his initial motion to appoint counsel. (ECF No. 4.) The Court
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subsequently denied his amended motion to appoint counsel. (ECF No. 10.) The Court
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concluded exercising its limited ability to appoint counsel in a civil case was not
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appropriate because Plaintiff had not demonstrated “exceptional circumstances.” (Id.; see
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Plaintiff’s Motion for Appointment of Counsel, (ECF No. 14), appears to be a verbatim copy of his
Renewed Request for Appointment of Counsel, (ECF No. 18). Accordingly, the Court cites to the latter
of Plaintiff’s motions, but the Court’s Order applies to both.
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17-CV-157 JLS (JLB)
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also id. at 3–42 (discussing Palmer v. Valdez, 560 F.3d 965, 970 (9th Cir. 2004), and setting
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forth the appropriate legal standard for appointment of counsel in civil proceedings).)
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In his renewed request, Plaintiff provides an affidavit from Julio Reyes, who is
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Plaintiff’s “caretaker and partner in everything else in life.” (Counsel Mot. 2, ECF No. 18.)
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In general, Mr. Reyes states the following: (1) Mr. Reyes has drafted and assisted Plaintiff
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with his filings thus far, (id. ¶ 1); (2) Plaintiff has difficulty articulating his claims and gets
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easily frustrated by complex tasks due to his disabilities, (id. ¶ 2); (3) Plaintiff does not
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have any formal legal training, (id. ¶ 3); (4) Mr. Reyes is not a lawyer and thus cannot
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represent Plaintiff, (id. ¶ 4); (5) Plaintiff and Mr. Reyes have unsuccessfully sought legal
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counsel from other organizations, (id. ¶ 5); (6) Defendants have “vast resources and
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unlimited budgets” and thus it is unfair for Plaintiff to be unrepresented, (id. ¶ 6); (7)
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Plaintiff does not understand “the legal terms, citations[,] and jargon” used in the Court’s
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Orders, (id. ¶ 7).
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As before, this request still does not demonstrate “exceptional circumstances”
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warranting an appointment of counsel. See Palmer, 560 F.3d at 970. First, Plaintiff has not
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demonstrated that he is likely to succeed on the merits. This case is in its infancy, and
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Defendants have recently filed a motion to dismiss Plaintiff’s First Amended Complaint.
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(See ECF No. 25.) Second, Plaintiff has demonstrated his ability to articulate his claims
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pro se thus far. In addition to filing the several motions for appointment of counsel, Plaintiff
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has successfully moved the Court for permission to amend his original Complaint, (see
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ECF Nos. 22, 23), and Plaintiff successfully filed a response in opposition to Defendants’
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initial motion to dismiss the original Complaint, (see ECF No. 23), which is replete with
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case analysis and citations. This renders questionable Plaintiff’s claim that he does not
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Pin citations to docketed material refer to the CM/ECF numbers electronically stamped at the top of each
page.
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17-CV-157 JLS (JLB)
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understand the “legal terms, citations[,] and jargon” of the Court’s Orders. Accordingly, at
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this time the Court DENIES Plaintiff’s pending motions to appoint counsel (ECF Nos. 14,
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18).
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IT IS SO ORDERED.
Dated: April 17, 2017
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17-CV-157 JLS (JLB)
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