(PS) Staffin v. Bosenko ( 2021 )

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT 9 FOR THE EASTERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA 10 11 CHRISTOPHER DALE STAFFIN, No. 2:19-CV-1058-KJM-DMC 12 Plaintiff, 13 v. ORDER 14 TOM BOSENKO, et al., 15 Defendants. 16 17 Plaintiff, who is proceeding pro se, brings this civil action. Pending before the 18 Court is Plaintiff’s motion, ECF No. 10, for the appointment of counsel. 19 The United States Supreme Court has ruled that district courts lack authority to 20 require counsel to represent indigent plaintiffs in civil actions. See e.g. Mallard v. United States 21 Dist. Court, 490 U.S. 296, 298 (1989). In certain exceptional circumstances, the court may 22 request the voluntary assistance of counsel pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1915(e)(1). See Terrell v. 23 Brewer, 935 F.2d 1015, 1017 (9th Cir. 1991); Wood v. Housewright, 900 F.2d 1332, 1335-36 (9th 24 Cir. 1990). 25 In the present case, the Court does not at this time find the required exceptional 26 circumstances. In his motion, Plaintiff states that he can “prove ongoing harassment and civil 27 rights violations by Shasta County Sheriff’s Office.” ECF No. 10. He seeks appointment of 28 counsel from “elsewhere than Shasta County and its present political climate.” Id. Plaintiff has 1 | not outlined any circumstances which the Court could consider exceptional and warranting the 2 | appointment of counsel. A review of the docket reflects that Plaintiff has thus far been able to 3 | articulate his claims and, at this juncture, before Plaintiff has filed a second amended complaint as 4 | directed by the Court on August 10, 2021, the Court cannot say that Plaintiff has stated any 5 || cognizable claims let alone claims upon which he has a likelihood of success on the merits. 6 The Court will sua sponte extend the time for Plaintiff to file a second amended 7 | complaint. 8 Accordingly, IT IS HEREBY ORDERED that: 9 1. Plaintiff's motion for the appointment of counsel, ECF No. 10, is denied; 10 | and 11 2. Plaintiff shall file a second amended complaint within 30 days of the date 12 | of this order. 13 14 | Dated: September 22, 2021 Ssvcqo_ 15 DENNIS M. COTA 16 UNITED STATES MAGISTRATE JUDGE 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28