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Luevano v. Jenkins

United States District Court, Eastern District of California
Nov 14, 2022
2:22-cv-0091 KJN P (E.D. Cal. Nov. 14, 2022)

Opinion

2:22-cv-0091 KJN P

11-14-2022

JOSE LUEVANO, Plaintiff, v. ANTHONY JENKINS, et al., Defendants.


ORDER

KENDALL J. NEWMAN UNITED STATES MAGISTRATE JUDGE

Plaintiff is a state prisoner, proceeding pro se, in an action brought under 42 U.S.C. § 1983. Plaintiff requests that the court appoint counsel. District courts lack authority to require counsel to represent indigent prisoners in section 1983 cases. Mallard v. United States Dist. Court, 490 U.S. 296, 298 (1989). In exceptional circumstances, the court may request an attorney to voluntarily represent such a plaintiff. See 28 U.S.C. § 1915(e)(1). Terrell v. Brewer, 935 F.2d 1015, 1017 (9th Cir. 1991); Wood v. Housewright, 900 F.2d 1332, 1335-36 (9th Cir. 1990). When determining whether “exceptional circumstances” exist, the court must consider plaintiff's likelihood of success on the merits as well as the ability of the plaintiff to articulate his claims pro se in light of the complexity of the legal issues involved. Palmer v. Valdez, 560 F.3d 965, 970 (9th Cir. 2009) (district court did not abuse discretion in declining to appoint counsel). The burden of demonstrating exceptional circumstances is on the plaintiff. Id. Circumstances common to most prisoners, such as lack of legal education and limited law library access, do not establish exceptional circumstances that warrant a request for voluntary assistance of counsel.

Having considered the factors under Palmer, the court finds that plaintiff failed to meet his burden of demonstrating exceptional circumstances warranting the appointment of counsel at this time.

Accordingly, IT IS HEREBY ORDERED that plaintiff's motion for the appointment of counsel (ECF No. 21) is denied without prejudice.


Summaries of

Luevano v. Jenkins

United States District Court, Eastern District of California
Nov 14, 2022
2:22-cv-0091 KJN P (E.D. Cal. Nov. 14, 2022)
Case details for

Luevano v. Jenkins

Case Details

Full title:JOSE LUEVANO, Plaintiff, v. ANTHONY JENKINS, et al., Defendants.

Court:United States District Court, Eastern District of California

Date published: Nov 14, 2022

Citations

2:22-cv-0091 KJN P (E.D. Cal. Nov. 14, 2022)