(PC) Wallace v. California Department of Corrections & Rehabilitation ( 2020 )

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT 9 EASTERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA 10 11 WILLIAM JAMES WALLACE, II, Case No. 1:20-cv-00905-NONE-JLT (PC) 12 Plaintiff, ORDER DENYING PLAINTIFF’S MOTION 13 v. FOR APPOINTMENT OF COUNSEL 14 CALIFORNIA DEPARTMENT OF (Doc. 3) CORRECTIONS AND 15 REHABILITATION, et al., 16 Defendants. 17 18 Plaintiff requests the appointment of counsel to represent him in this action. (Doc. 3.) 19 Plaintiffs do not have a constitutional right to appointed counsel in section 1983 actions, Rand v. 20 Rowland, 113 F.3d 1520, 1525 (9th Cir. 1997), and the Court cannot require an attorney to 21 represent a party under 28 U.S.C. § 1915(e)(1). See Mallard v. U.S. Dist. Court, 490 U.S. 296, 22 304-05 (1989). However, in “exceptional circumstances,” the Court may request the voluntary 23 assistance of counsel pursuant to section 1915(e)(1). Rand, 113 F.3d at 1525. 24 Given that the Court has no reasonable method of securing and compensating counsel, the 25 Court will seek volunteer counsel only in extraordinary cases. In determining whether 26 “exceptional circumstances exist, a district court must evaluate both the likelihood of success on 27 the merits [and] the ability of the [plaintiff] to articulate his claims pro se in light of the 1 In the present case, the Court does not find the required exceptional circumstances. Even 2 if it is assumed that Plaintiff is not well versed in the law and has made serious allegations that, if 3 proven, would entitle him to relief, his case is not extraordinary. The Court is faced with similar 4 cases almost daily. In addition, at this stage in the proceedings, the Court cannot make a 5 determination on whether Plaintiff is likely to succeed on the merits; and, based on a review of 6 the records in this case, the Court does not find that Plaintiff cannot adequately articulate his 7 claims. Accordingly, the Court DENIES Plaintiff’s motion for the appointment of counsel 8 without prejudice. 9 IT IS SO ORDERED. 10 11 Dated: October 22, 2020 /s/ Jennifer L. Thurston UNITED STATES MAGISTRATE JUDGE 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27