Carroll v. California Department of Corrections et al
Filing
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ORDER Denying Plaintiff's Motion for Appointment of Counsel (ECF No. 33 ). Motion for Appointment of Counsel is denied without prejudice. Signed by Magistrate Judge Karen S. Crawford on 1/5/21. (All non-registered users served via U.S. Mail Service)(jmo)
Case 3:19-cv-02126-BAS-KSC Document 34 Filed 01/06/21 PageID.173 Page 1 of 5
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UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
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SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA
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ABONILICO CARROLL,
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Case No.: 3:19-cv-2126-BAS-KSC
Plaintiff,
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v.
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ORDER DENYING PLAINTIFF’S
MOTION FOR APPOINTMENT OF
COUNSEL
CALIFORNIA DEPARTMENT OF
CORRECTIONS, et al.,
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[Doc. No. 33]
Defendants.
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Plaintiff Abonilico Carroll is proceeding pro se and in forma pauperis in this civil
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rights action pursuant to 42 U.S.C. § 1983, alleging defendants violated his rights under
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the United States Constitution. See Doc. No. 1. Before the Court is plaintiff’s Motion for
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Appointment of Counsel (“Motion” or “Mot.”). Doc. No. 33. For the reasons set forth
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below, the plaintiff’s Motion is DENIED WITHOUT PREJUDICE.
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3:19-cv-2126-BAS-KSC
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I. BACKGROUND
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On November 5, 2019, plaintiff filed this action, alleging that defendants violated
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his rights under the Eighth and Fourteenth Amendments. See Doc. No. 1 at 3-5. 1 Plaintiff’s
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complaint was dismissed for failure to either pay the filing fee or move to proceed in forma
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pauperis, but was later reinstated after plaintiff corrected these errors. See Doc. Nos. 2, 3,
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and 9.
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On January 16, 2020, the District Court, having conducted the sua sponte screening
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required by 28 U.S.C. §§ 1915(e)(2) and 1915A(b), dismissed plaintiff’s claims against
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California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (“CDCR”) and Richard J.
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Donovan Correctional Facility (“RJD”). Doc. No. 9 at 5. However, the District Court
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found plaintiff had alleged sufficient factual content to survive the “low threshold” of the
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initial screening process, and allowed plaintiff to proceed with his claims against
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defendants Wright and Miller. Id.
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On April 21, 2020, defendants moved to dismiss plaintiff’s complaint. Doc. No. 16.
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After requesting (and receiving) additional time to respond to defendants’ motion, plaintiff
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filed both an opposition and an amended complaint (the “FAC”). See Doc. Nos. 18, 19, 20
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and 21. On September 29, 2020, the undersigned, construing the FAC as the operative
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pleading, issued a Report and Recommendation (“R&R”) to the District Court. Doc. No.
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23. The undersigned sua sponte screened the FAC under 28 U.S.C. §§ 1915(e)(2) and
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1915A(b), and further considered the arguments raised in defendants’ Motion to Dismiss
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as they applied to the FAC. Id. Based on this review, the undersigned recommended that
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the District Court deny in part and grant in part the Motion to Dismiss, and dismiss certain
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of plaintiff’s claims for failure to state a claim. See Doc. No. 23 at 4, 10. Plaintiff twice
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requested additional time to object to the R&R, but ultimately notified the District Court
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All page references are to the ECF-generated page numbers.
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that he had “no objection to judge’s report and recommendation.” See Doc. Nos. 24, 26,
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28. The District Court adopted the R&R on November 24, 2020. Doc. No. 29.
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On December 16, 2020, plaintiff signed a second amended complaint, which was
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accepted for filing and docketed on December 21, 2020. Doc. No. 30. Also on December
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16, 2020, plaintiff signed the instant Motion requesting the appointment of counsel, which
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was accepted for filing and docketed on January 4, 2021. See Mot. at 3. In his Motion,
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plaintiff asks to have counsel appointed based on his in forma pauperis and pro se status,
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and because the issues presented in this case are “very complex.” Id. at 1.
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II. DISCUSSION
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“There is no absolute right to counsel in civil proceedings.” Hedges v. Resolution
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Trust Corp., 32 F.3d 1360, 1363 (9th Cir. 1994). However, District Courts have discretion
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to “request” that an attorney represent indigent civil litigants upon a showing of
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“exceptional circumstances.” See Terrell v. Brewer, 935 F.2d 1015, 1017 (9th Cir. 1991);
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Burns v. County of King, 883 F.2d 819, 823 (9th Cir. 1989). “That a pro se litigant may be
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better served with the assistance of counsel is not the test.” Okler v. MCC IMU Prison,
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No. 3:18-cv-05458-RJB-TLF, 2019 WL 461143, at *1 (W.D. Wash. Feb. 5, 2019). Instead,
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the Court “must determine whether a) there is a likelihood of success on the merits; and b)
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the prisoner is unable to articulate his claims in light of the complexity of the legal issues
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involved.” Cano v. Taylor, 739 F.3d 1214, 1219 (9th Cir. 2014). “None of these factors
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is dispositive; rather they must be considered cumulatively.” Id.
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A. Likelihood of Success
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Plaintiff does not identify, nor does the Court’s independent review of the record
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reveal, any facts to support a finding that he may succeed on the merits of his claims.
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Although his claims against the individual defendants survived both initial screening and
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defendants’ motion to dismiss, the District Court’s determination that plaintiff may be able
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to state a claim against defendant “by no means demonstrates that [he] is likely to win.”
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Ortega v. CSP-SAC Prison Officials, No. 2:08–00588 SOM, 2010 WL 2598228, at *1 (D.
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Haw. June 7, 2010). The Court finds this factor weighs against appointing counsel to
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represent plaintiff in this matter.
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B. Plaintiff’s Ability to Pursue His Claims
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The Court is also not persuaded that plaintiff lacks the ability to pursue his claims in
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light of the complexity of the legal issues presented. Plaintiff seeks redress for defendants’
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alleged deliberate indifference to his medical needs, a “relatively straightforward”
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conditions-of-confinement claim. Harrington v. Scribner, 785 F.3d 1299, 1309 (9th Cir.
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2015). Plaintiff has consistently demonstrated the ability to effectively articulate his
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claims. He has filed three complaints, a motion to proceed in forma pauperis, a motion to
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appoint counsel, and multiple motions for extensions of court deadlines. His claims against
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defendants Wright and Miller have, to this point, survived both initial screening and
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defendants’ Motion to Dismiss. The Court finds these facts demonstrate that plaintiff
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understands basic litigation procedure and can advocate on his own behalf.
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Plaintiff also complains that is a “novice and a layperson of the law,” that his
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“imprisonment will greatly limit his ability to litigate,” and that he is “unable to afford
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counsel.” Mot. at 1. While it may be true that “counsel would better enable plaintiff to
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present evidence and cross examine witnesses,” id., the hardships plaintiff has identified
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are shared by most (if not all) incarcerated litigants and do not “indicate exceptional
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factors.” See Wood v. Housewright, 900 F.2d 1332, 1335–1336 (9th Cir. 1990). “Even if
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it is assumed that [p]laintiff is not well versed in the law and that he has made serious
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allegations which, if proved, would entitle him to relief, his case is not exceptional.”
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Williams v. Lozano, No. 1:15-cv-01250-BAM (PC), 2018 WL 558765, at *1 (E.D. Cal.
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Jan. 25, 2018). Moreover, the Court understands that plaintiff’s access to the law library
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may be limited due to increasing restrictive measures put in place to prevent the spread of
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COVID-19. Mot. at 1. Yet, this difficulty is also common most incarcerated litigants
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today. For that reason, the Court has already granted plaintiff’s requests for additional time
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to meet the Court’s deadlines, and will continue to do so for good cause shown. See, e.g.,
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Doc. Nos. 19, 25.
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C. Conclusion
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For the reasons set forth above, the Court finds plaintiff has not met his burden to
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establish exceptional circumstances warranting the appointment of counsel to represent
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plaintiff in this matter at taxpayer expense. Plaintiff may renew his request if his situation
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changes such that he can make the necessary showing that he is both likely to succeed on
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the merits of his claims, and unable to competently articulate those claims. Cano, 739 F.3d
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at 1219.
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ORDER
Plaintiff’s Motion for Appointment of Counsel [Doc. No. 33] is DENIED
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WITHOUT PREJUDICE.
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IT IS SO ORDERED.
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Dated: January 5, 2021
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3:19-cv-2126-BAS-KSC
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