(HC) Martinez Obando v. United States Department of Homeland Security ( 2024 )

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT 9 EASTERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA 10 11 BISMARCK ALFREDO MARTINEZ Case No. 1:24-cv-01328-SAB-HC OBANDO, 12 ORDER DENYING PETITIONER’S Petitioner, MOTION TO APPOINT COUNSEL 13 v. (ECF No. 6) 14 UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF 15 HOMELAND SECURITY, 16 Respondent. 17 18 Petitioner is a federal prisoner proceeding pro se with a petition for writ of habeas corpus 19 pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 2241. 20 Petitioner has moved for appointment of counsel. (ECF No. 5.) There currently exists no 21 absolute right to appointment of counsel in habeas proceedings. See, e.g., Chaney v. Lewis, 801 22 F.2d 1191, 1196 (9th Cir. 1986); Anderson v. Heinze, 258 F.2d 479, 481 (9th Cir. 1958). 23 However, the Criminal Justice Act authorizes the appointment of counsel at any stage of the 24 proceeding for financially eligible persons if “the interests of justice so require.” 18 U.S.C. 25 § 3006A(a)(2)(B). To determine whether to appoint counsel, the “court must evaluate the 26 likelihood of success on the merits as well as the ability of the petitioner to articulate his claims 27 pro se in light of the complexity of the legal issues involved.” Weygandt v. Look, 718 F.2d 952, 954 (9th Cir. 1983). 1 Petitioner contends that counsel should be appointed because he has a strong chance of 2 | success on the merits and the complexity of the law. (ECF No. 6 at 2.) Upon review of the 3 | petition, the Court finds that Petitioner appears to have a sufficient grasp of his claims and the 4 | legal issues involved and that he is able to articulate those claims adequately. The Court finds 5 | that the interests of justice do not require the appointment of counsel at the present time. 6 | However, if upon review of Respondent’s response to the petition, the Court finds that the legal 7 | issues are more complex than they currently appear, the Court may revisit Petitioner’s request for 8 | counsel. 9 Accordingly, IT IS HEREBY ORDERED that Petitioner’s motion to appoint counsel 10 | (ECF No. 6) is DENIED without prejudice. 11 Db IT IS SO ORDERED. DAM Le 13 | Dated: _November 18, 2024 __ Oe STANLEY A. BOONE 14 United States Magistrate Judge 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28